Hawaii Gov. Josh Green recently announced a second round of nominees to serve as director and/or deputy director and other appointed positions for state departments.
Green, who was elected in November, has identified a director for every state department and filled 40 of 45 cabinet-appointed positions. The appointees include, for the first time, two Native Hawaiian women leading the Department of Land and Natural Resources.
“[The] nominees and appointments join a group of high-caliber individuals with strengths in their respective fields,” Green said in a release from his office. “Together the cabinet will work to make housing more affordable, bring down the cost of living, and work every day to make government more efficient through strong communication and collaboration.”
The director appointments, according to the release, are Sharon Hurd to chair the Department of Agriculture; Dawn Chang to head the Board of Land and Natural Resources, and Ikaika Anderson to chair the Hawaiian Homes Commission.
Additional appointments include Morris Atta, deputy to the chair for the Department of Agriculture; Laura Kaakua, first deputy for the Department of Land and Natural Resources; Katie Lambert Ducatt, deputy to the chair for the Hawaiian Homes Commission; and Dean Hazama, deputy director for the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs.
Also Gordon Ito, insurance commissioner for the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs; Tammy Lee, first deputy for administration for the Department of Transportation; Dre Kalili, deputy director for harbors for the Department of Transportation; Robin Shishido, deputy director for highways, Department of Transportation; William Oku, deputy director for law enforcement for the Department of Public Safety; and Michael Vincent, deputy director for administration for the Department of Law Enforcement.
Also named were Mark “Dutch” Hanohano, sheriff for the Department of Law Enforcement; William Kunstman, deputy director for the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations; Kristen Sakamoto, deputy director for the Department of Taxation; Scott Glenn, director of the Office of Planning and Sustainable Development; and James Koshiba, governor’s coordinator on homelessness.
Green, according to the release, is also working to develop advisory councils for his housing strategies. He's forming a special team that will advise and implement the spending plan for the $600 million appropriation to the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands.
Green, his office says, has displayed his appreciation for state workers by authorizing two full days of administrative leave on Dec. 23 and Dec. 30, for all such workers with executive memorandum fully outlining the new policy.