HomeMy WebLinkAboutResolution No. 2025-65COUNTY COUNCIL
COUNTY OF KAUA'l
~esolution No. 2025-65
RESOLUTION IN SUPPORT OF RESTORING THE ELIGIBILITY TO
RECEIVE FULL PENSION BENEFITS AFTER TWENTY-FIVE YEARS OF
SERVICE, REGARDLESS OF AGE, FOR POLICE OFFICERS AND
FIREFIGHTERS
WHEREAS, the County of Kaua'i depends on a fully staffed and well-trained
Kaua'i Police Department (KPD) and Kaua'i Fire Department (KFD) to ensure the
protection, safety, and well-being of residents and visitors; and
WHEREAS, KPD continues to face persistent challenges in recruiting qualified
applicants and filling vacant officer positions, resulting in increased strain on
existing personnel as well as reduced operational capacity; and
WHEREAS, the State of Hawai'i Organization of Police Officers (SHOPO)
submitted testimony to the Hawai'i State Legislature during the 2023 Legislative
Session on Senate Bill No. 1158, emphasizing that county police departments
statewide face a significant lack of new police hires, while identifying the current
Employees' Retirement System (ERS) structure for officers hired after 2012 as a
contributing factor in the hiring struggles; and
WHEREAS, prior to July 1, 2012, police officers and firefighters in Hawai'i who
participated in the ERS program were eligible for full, unreduced retirement benefits
upon attainment of twenty-five (25) years of credited service in a designated
profession, regardless of age; and
WHEREAS, Act 163, Session Laws of Hawai'i (SLH) 2011, amended Hawai'i
Revised Statutes (HRS) Section 88-73 and created a new retirement tier for ERS
members, including police officers and firefighters, who first entered ERS
membership after June 30, 2012, which imposed a minimum age of fifty-five (55) with
twenty-five (25) years of credited service or a minimum age of sixty (60) with at least
ten (10) years of credited service, for ERS members, resulting in a more restrictive
set of eligibility conditions than those applicable to pre-2012 hires; and
WHEREAS, feedback gathered from SHOPO members across the state,
including from KPD, indicates that Act 163, the changes to the minimum retirement
age requirement, and the reduced retirement benefits for post-2012 hires, have
negatively affected recruitment and retention across all county police departments;
and
WHEREAS, specifically on Kaua'i, the number of applicants for police officer
positions decreased by forty percent (40%) between 2017 and 2021; and
WHEREAS, as of July 8, 2025, KPD reported thirty (30) police officer
vacancies, which represents an approximately eighteen percent (18%) vacancy rate;
and
VilHEREAS, the vacancy rate for sworn police officers as well as firefighters
should be as close to zero (0) as possible; and
'WHEREAS, restoring full retirement eligibility after twenty-five (25) years of
service, regardless of age, for police officers and firefighters hired on or after
July 1, 2012, would reestablish parity with employees hired prior to that date, help
address staffing shortages, improve recruitment appeal, and promote long-term
retention of valued staff within KPD and KFD; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE COUNTY OF KAUA'I,
STATE OF HA"TAI'I, that the Council hereby requests that the Hawai'i State
Legislature amend HRS Chapter 88 to restore full retirement eligibility for county
police officers and firefighters who attain twenty-five (25) years of credited service,
regardless of age, and apply such benefits to employees hired on or after July 1, 2012.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Council encourages the Legislature to
revisit the provisions and entitlements contained within Act 163, SLH 2011, to ensure
that retirement benefits for current and future police officers and firefighters support
effective and responsive recruitment, retention, and the overall public safety needs
for the County of Kaua'i.
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that the County Clerk shall forward certified
copies of this Resolution to the Honorable Governor Josh Green, Senate President
Ronald D. Kouchi, House Speaker Nadine K. Nakamura, Senate Committee on Ways
and Means Chair Donovan M. Dela Cruz, Senate Committee on Public Safety and
Military Affairs Chair Brandon J.C. Elefante, House Committee on Public Safety
Chair Della Au Belaiti, Senate Committee on Labor and Technology Chair Henry J.C.
Aquino, House Committee on Labor Chair Jackson D. Sayama, Board of Trustees of
the Employees' Retirement System, State of Hawai'i Organization of Police
Officers (SHOPO), Hawai'i Fire Fighters Association (HFFA), Kaua'i Police
Department Chief of Police Elliott K. Ke, and Kaua'i Fire Department Chief Michael
Gibson.
Introduced by:
MEL RAPOZO
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We berebp certifp tbat 3ltesolution ~o. 2025-65
was abopteb bp tbe <!rouncil of tbe <!rountp of J!aua'i, ~tate of
1E>awai'i, 1!.Tbu'e, Jk.aua'i, 1E>awai'i, on December 17, 2025
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t!lateb December 17, 2025
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