ETS committee presses for funding, staffing clarity as Legislature considers moving Broadband Office to ETS

Christine, Chief Information Officer, Office of Enterprise Technology Services, told the IT Steering Committee that the office is tracking House Bill 934, which would transfer the Hawaii Broadband and Digital Equity Office to DAGS and ETS.

The bill “seeks to move the Hawaii Broadband and Digital Equity Office over to DAGS and ETS along with its staff,” James Gonzer, Public Information Officer for ETS, said. Gonzer said ETS has submitted testimony and that its primary concern is ensuring the office is adequately funded if the transfer occurs.

Sean McLaughlin, a member of the public who identified himself as having past experience with broadband subsidy programs, told the committee he attended to offer support for the legislation and the committee’s work. “I’m a big fan of digital equity and access,” McLaughlin said.

Committee members pressed ETS staff for details about what responsibilities ETS would inherit if HB 934 becomes law. Gonzer said ETS would likely oversee four employees from the Broadband Office and take on outreach and regulatory oversight duties that ETS has not previously performed. “We would have to oversee four employees that run the broadband office. There would also need to be outreach to the community, which ETS has not done,” Gonzer said.

Garrett, an IT Steering Committee member, described the intended role for the IT Steering Committee as “purely a governance role,” not a transactional operating responsibility. He and ETS staff emphasized the need for the Broadband Office to arrive “fully funded” so ETS and the committee would not inherit an unfunded mandate.

ETS staff and committee members also discussed the source of project funding. A participant on the call summarized federal support for broadband projects, saying the initiatives are funded by federal programs including ARPA and funds from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law; if federal funding ceased, the speaker said, “it is not the state’s responsibility to pick that up.” ETS staff added that if parts of projects later became desirable for state ownership, taking them over would be an option but not an obligation.

James Gonzer said ETS is tracking roughly 16 bills relevant to ETS, and highlighted Senate Bill 742, which would support data sharing, among others. He also noted that Christine’s confirmation as CIO cleared a committee vote and will move to the full Senate at an unspecified date.

Committee members asked ETS to clarify operational impacts and community-outreach responsibilities if HB 934 moves forward; ETS repeated that its key condition is that the transferred office be funded to carry out its mission. The committee asked ETS to provide updates if the bill advances to further hearings.