Source: https://planning.hawaii.gov/hawaii-state-planning-act/
Timestamp: 2019-04-18 23:08:06+00:00

Document:
All state agencies, including the Office of Planning, are guided by the Hawaii State Planning Act, which is a broad policy document that sets the table for all activities, programs, and decisions made by local and state agencies.
The Hawaii State Planning Act was signed into law in 1978 to “improve the planning process in this state, to increase the effectiveness of government and private actions, to improve coordination among different agencies and levels of government, to provide for wise use of Hawaii’s resources and to guide the future development of the state” (HRS § 226-1). The Act is codified under HRS Chapter 226.
Part I, Overall Theme, Goals, Objectives, and Policies. Part I lists the state plan’s overall theme and goals. Objectives and policies are listed in sections 226-5 through 226-27. Objectives and policies focus on general topic areas, including population, economy, physical environment, facility systems, and socio-cultural advancement.
Part II, Planning Coordination and Implementation. Part II of the state plan establishes a statewide planning system to coordinate and guide all major state and county activities and to implement the overall theme, goals, objectives, policies, and priority guidelines. The system implements the state plan through the development of functional plans and county general plans. Functional plans, general plans, and the formulation, administration, and implementation of state programs must be in conformance with the state plan (HRS § 226-59).
Functional plans set forth the policies, statewide guidelines, and priorities within a specific field of activity, when such activity or program is proposed, administered, or funded by any agency of the state. Functional plans are developed by the state agency primarily responsible for a given functional area, which include agriculture, conservation lands, education, energy, higher education, health, historic preservation, housing, recreation, tourism, and transportation. When preparing functional plans, the agency responsible must seek the cooperation of advisory committees established by the governor (HRS § 226-55(c)), affected government officials, and people from each county. Functional plans must identify priority issues in the functional area and contain objectives, policies, and implementing actions to address those priority issues. Actions may include organizational or management initiatives, facility or physical infrastructure development initiatives, initiatives for programs and services, or legislative proposals. Functional plans are approved by the governor and serve as guidelines for funding and implementation by state and county agencies. In addition, functional plans shall be used to guide the allocation of resources for the implementation of state policies adopted by the legislature (HRS § 226-57).
Part III, Priority Guidelines. The purpose of this part is to establish overall priority guidelines to address areas of statewide concern (HRS § 226-101). This part lays out the overall direction for the state, as follows: “The state shall strive to improve the quality of life for Hawaii’s present and future population through the pursuit of desirable courses of action in five major areas of statewide concern which merit priority attention: economic development, population growth and land resource management, affordable housing, crime and criminal justice, and quality education” (HRS § 226-102).

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