Proposal 067: Allow civil service exemptions for Honolulu Department of Planning and Permitting employees

Grassroot Institute of Hawaii 2025 Honolulu Charter amendment proposal

from Grassroot Institute

The following text was submitted to the 2025 Honolulu Charter Commission for consideration as an amendment to the Honolulu City Charter, with final approval to be determined by popular vote in the 2026 general election. The questions being answered were posed by the Commission.
_____________

What issue or concern are you trying to address?

The City and County of Honolulu’s Department of Planning and Permitting continues to face chronic staffing shortages that have led to significant delays in permit processing and broader inefficiencies. 

While the civil service system was created to ensure fairness and merit-based hiring, it often results in rigid and time-consuming recruitment processes that make it difficult for the City to attract and retain qualified professionals — particularly in specialized and high-demand fields such as planning, engineering and architecture.

Although expanding civil service exemptions may ultimately depend on changes to state law, it is important for the City Charter to include enabling language in anticipation of such reforms. By proactively establishing this framework now, Honolulu can be prepared to act quickly once state law allows for greater flexibility. This would ensure that the City is not delayed in implementing needed staffing solutions that could help

DPP and related departments operate more efficiently and responsively.

Describe the change you are proposing:

Add “(n,)” “(o)” and “(p)” to Section 6-1103. Civil Service and Executive Branch Exemptions:

(n) Positions of the Department of Housing and Land Management to the extent allowed by state law, provided that this exemption shall not preclude the city from establishing these positions as civil service positions.

(o) Positions or contracts for personal services with private persons or entities for services lasting no more than one year and at a cost of no more than $750,000 to the extent allowed by state law, provided that the exemption under this paragraph shall apply to contracts for building, custodial and grounds maintenance services with qualified community rehabilitation programs, as defined in section 103D-1001, lasting for no more than a year and at a cost of no more than $850,000.

(p) Positions of the Department of Planning and Permitting to the extent allowed by state law, provided that this exemption shall not preclude the City from establishing these positions as civil service positions.

Explain what you hope this amendment will accomplish:

This amendment aims to give the City and County of Honolulu the flexibility to address critical staffing shortages in departments such as Planning and Permitting by allowing limited civil service exemptions for specialized or hard-to-fill positions. 

By doing so, the City would be better equipped to recruit qualified professionals more efficiently, reduce hiring delays and compete with private sector opportunities.

In the long term, this flexibility would help improve the City’s ability to process permits, manage planning functions and deliver essential services in a more timely and responsive manner. 

Establishing this authority in the Charter now, pending future changes in state law, will ensure Honolulu is ready to implement needed reforms without additional delay, helping to modernize City operations and improve service to residents and businesses alike.