County IT seeks staff, cybersecurity services, website refresh and GIS coordination in FY26

The Department of Information Technology (DIT) presented its FY26 priorities to the Hawaii County Council on May 1, pressing for additional staff hires, managed cybersecurity services and a countywide website and device refresh to address security, compliance and user‑support needs.

Director Corey Stone described a multi‑year effort to replace aging network switches, expand fiber connections to county facilities, and standardize desktop and software procurement. Stone said DIT is working with finance to centralize procurement of common county hardware and software to reduce duplication and improve security standards. The department is consolidating licensing and plans an annual PC refresh cycle.

Cybersecurity and backup resilience: DIT reported an FY26 line for managed cybersecurity services and penetration testing to improve external and internal vulnerability monitoring. Stone told councilmembers the county has not had a comprehensive managed security service and that the new line item funds third‑party penetration testing and exploration of a 24/7 managed service to monitor threats and protect backups.

Web and accessibility work: DIT aims to refresh the county’s public websites for accessibility (ADA) compliance and to create a single payments portal to allow citizens to pay multiple county fees from a single interface. Stone said an RFP is being drafted for a countywide website modernization and that the Finance Department supported consolidating web payments via a single vendor.

Staffing and help‑desk footprint: DIT seeks to fill vacancies (about 10–12 at the time of the hearing) across user support, network, cybersecurity and GIS teams. Stone described plans to place IT support staff near major county hubs (Hilo, Kona, Alakaʻi/Alponi) to reduce response times and better support departments; he also proposed that large departments consider in‑house IT liaisons to speed requests and align procurement.

GIS coordination: Stone reported a new quarterly inter‑county GIS working group with counterparts from Kaua‘i, Maui and Honolulu to share data and coordinate training/licensing. He added DIT is preparing for an Esri license renewal and will evaluate enterprise licensing and training that supports the county’s utility, planning and emergency management needs.

Council questions focused on network speed and coverage in Chambers and rural sites, options for leveraging spare county vehicles for field staff, and training budgets. Stone said DIT will work with facilities and Parks and Recreation to use community centers and parks as digital access and training points and is coordinating with a grant‑funded program that already purchased laptops and tablets for community outreach.

Why it matters: Investments in cybersecurity, staff and accessible web services affect county operations, public transactions and resilience against ransomware and other threats. Staffing shortfalls limit the county’s ability to install, monitor and update critical systems.

What’s next: DIT will proceed with pilot cybersecurity penetration testing, finalize the website RFP, begin the PC‑refresh procurement and continue recruiting for several technical positions. The department will report back with vendor proposals and detailed staffing timelines.