Hawaii
Hawaii’s Law Enforcement Standards Board (LESB) has not yet certified any officer: Act 107 of 2026 moved the start of certification to July 1, 2028, and the board has adopted no rules. Since 2023 the State has required every agency to keep a use-of-force policy with a duty to intercede, required the board and covered agencies to consult the National Decertification Index before certifying or hiring (from July 1, 2026), and enacted pursuit and vehicle-shooting limits that apply to officers from January 1, 2027. County police chiefs must report suspensions and discharges for misconduct to the legislature and identify the officers.
- Sources checked
- Part of
- Officer Ledger
At a glance
- Certifying body
- Hawaii Law Enforcement Standards Board (LESB), placed within the Department of the Attorney General for administrative purposes. It covers county police and officers of the Departments of Law Enforcement, Land and Natural Resources, Taxation, and the Attorney General (HRS 139-1 to 139-3). As of October 20, 2026 the board has issued no certifications; certification begins July 1, 2028 (Act 107, SLH 2026). Its administrative rules are still drafts.
- Statute
- HRS chapter 139, Law Enforcement Standards (139-1 to 139-13, including 139-8.5), created by Act 220, SLH 2018 (HRS ch. 139). The online HRS (files dated January 5, 2026) has not been updated for Act 107; the text as amended by Act 107, with 2028 dates, is the current law.
- Minimum standards
- After June 30, 2028, no person “shall” be appointed or employed as a law enforcement officer without board-approved basic training, training to minimize excessive force (legal standards, de-escalation, crisis intervention, mental health response, implicit bias, and first aid), and the board’s qualifications. The board issues certifications beginning July 1, 2028, and 139-7 bars employment after June 30, 2028 without one (HRS 139-6(a)–(b), 139-7(a), as amended by Act 107). The board has adopted no rules setting age, education, or other qualifications. Until it does, hiring standards are set by each employing agency; this is an inference, and no statute says so.
- Decertification
- The board “may deny or revoke” the certification of an applicant or officer who fails to meet or maintain the 139-6(a) standards (139-6(c)). It “shall adopt rules” setting criteria for denial, suspension, or revocation, including knowing falsification, any felony conviction, and interference with a board investigation. Revocation for a felony conviction before hire that was fully disclosed to the employer requires the employing agency’s agreement (139-8). No such rules have been adopted, and no certifications have been issued.
- Public decertification list
- No LESB list exists. County police chiefs must report to the legislature each year on misconduct that led to a suspension or discharge, and must disclose the officer’s identity (HRS 52D-3.5). Under the public records law, names, findings, and discipline for suspensions and discharges become public after the grievance process ends, plus 90 days for county police (HRS 92F-14(b)(4)). Both provisions were last amended by Act 47, SLH 2020.
- National Decertification Index
- Required by statute since July 1, 2026. Before certifying or employing any law enforcement officer, the board and the employing agency “shall consult” the Index. The board “shall report” to the Index each suspension or revocation, voluntary relinquishment, lapse, and opening of an investigation into whether an officer meets minimum standards. Every six months the board must check whether the Index accepts other records, and if so adopt reporting rules within three months (HRS 139-8.5, Act 246, SLH 2024). With no certifications before July 1, 2028, only the hiring-time consultation clearly operates now. Whether investigation reports can occur before certification begins is unclear.
- Continuing training
- The board “shall” establish and require continuing education (139-3(8)), but has adopted no program. For vehicular pursuit, the board “shall require” officers and supervisors to complete in-service pursuit training every two years (139-13(m)); the pursuit standards for officers apply from January 1, 2027.
Changes, 2023 to 2026
National Decertification Index checks before certifying or hiring; board reporting to the Index
Before certifying or employing any law enforcement officer, the board and the employing agency “shall consult” the Index. The board “shall report” to the Index suspensions, revocations, voluntary relinquishments, lapses, and the opening of a minimum-standards investigation. Every six months from July 1, 2026, the board must check whether the Index accepts other records and, if it does, adopt reporting rules within three months. The act defines “law enforcement agency” as the county police departments and the Departments of Law Enforcement, Land and Natural Resources, Taxation, and the Attorney General. Because no certifications can issue before July 1, 2028, suspensions, revocations, and lapses cannot yet be reported.
For officers: Before a covered agency hires you, it must check the National Decertification Index.
Certification requirement postponed to July 1, 2028
The act replaces “June 30, 2026” with “June 30, 2028” in 139-6(a) and 139-7(a), and “July 1, 2026” with “July 1, 2028” in 139-6(b). It also changes “may” to “shall” in 139-6(a): “No person shall be appointed or employed.” As a result, no officer needs LESB certification today, and the board does not yet issue certifications. The board’s July 9, 2026 draft minutes record that it now has “two years to establish the certification system, including the administrative rules.”
For officers: You do not need LESB certification before July 1, 2028.
Governor’s message and Act 107 SB 2519 status LESB draft minutes, July 9, 2026
Statewide pursuit limits and a ban on firing at or from moving vehicles, applying to officers from 2027
From January 1, 2027, officers may pursue only for listed serious offenses, when the pursuit is necessary and its safety risk is outweighed, with supervisor notice and oversight. Officers may not fire at, into, or from a moving vehicle unless necessary to stop an imminent risk of serious harm that cannot be avoided otherwise. These are operating rules, not crimes; violations lead to agency discipline (139-13(n)), and the Attorney General may bring civil actions (139-13(o)). From January 1, 2027, agencies must report all pursuits to the Attorney General each year, and the Attorney General must publish the data. Duties with earlier deadlines are already in force: by July 1, 2026 the Attorney General was to adopt data rules and the board was to develop a model policy, and the LESB approved its model pursuit policy on January 15, 2026. By January 1, 2027 agencies must adopt and publish conforming policies. The board “shall require” in-service pursuit training every two years.
For officers: From January 1, 2027, pursue only for listed serious offenses with a supervisor’s oversight, and do not fire at or from a moving vehicle except to stop an imminent risk of serious harm.
Certification deadline set at July 1, 2026 (since postponed); board restructured
The act struck Act 220’s requirement that the board “finalize its standards and certification process by December 31, 2021.” It set new dates: no person may be appointed or employed after June 30, 2026 without meeting 139-6(a), the board issues certifications “Beginning on July 1, 2026,” and 139-7 bars employment without certification after June 30, 2026. The act also exempted the board administrator from civil service, revised board membership, and directed the board to consider existing studies, including the Act 124 (2018) study, and to conduct its own. Act 107 of 2026 replaced the 2026 dates with 2028 dates; the 2026 deadline never operated.
For officers: The July 1, 2026 certification date in this act no longer applies; see Act 107.
Goal of 30 percent women officers by 2030
The act sets a State goal that each law enforcement agency raise its share of female officers to 30 percent by 2030, measured from its January 1, 2023 benchmark, and increase the number of officers who do not adhere to the gender binary. Each agency “shall recruit” officers from diverse backgrounds. Section 139-12 uses the HRS 78-52 definition of “law enforcement agency,” not the 139-1 definition. Certification and background-check standards are unchanged.
For officers: This is a recruitment goal; it does not change what you must meet to be hired.
Statewide minimum use-of-force policy, duty to intercede, and duty to report excessive force
Every agency employing law enforcement officers “shall maintain” a use-of-force policy with 19 required elements. They include de-escalation when feasible, proportional force, a duty to report potential excessive force to a superior, a duty to “intercede” when observing force “clearly beyond that which is necessary,” and guidelines on when firing at or from a moving vehicle may or may not be permitted. Agencies must make the policy public, and the policy and training are admissible in use-of-force proceedings. New 139-11 requires an officer who observes excessive force to notify the division head in writing; the division head must investigate and report up the chain, and retaliation for good-faith reports is barred. The act also added training to minimize excessive force to the 139-6(a) certification prerequisites, which apply once certification begins.
For officers: If you see force clearly beyond what is necessary, you must intercede and report it in writing to your division head.
Not yet in force and pending
- Pursuit and vehicle-shooting limits (Act 210): officer and agency duties apply from January 1, 2027.
- Certification (Act 107): the board begins issuing certifications July 1, 2028, and employment without certification is barred after June 30, 2028.
- LESB administrative rules: a nine-chapter draft covers certification, instructors, a code of conduct, due process for certification actions, and records. On September 17, 2026 the board dissolved its rule-review groups and said it would reconsider its approach. No rule has been proposed under HRS chapter 91. Minutes, September 17, 2026
- LESB proposals for 2027: on September 17, 2026 the board voted to submit a bill giving it access to criminal history records. A draft identification and impersonation bill and a draft model policy on officer identification were discussed on July 9, 2026. None has been introduced. LESB page
These 2026 bills were not enacted: HB 1886, HB 2540, SB 2203, and SB 3322 (officer face coverings and identification; reached conference or disagreement in April 2026, with no final draft), and HB 2129, SB 2179, SB 2290, SB 2772, SB 3251, and SB 3265 on the same subject (stalled in committee); and SB 2593 (civil service exemption for new LESB positions; died in the House). Other chapter 139 and 52D bills from 2023 to 2026 were not enacted, including SB 922 and SB 813 (duty to report criminal misconduct by officers), HB 355 and SB 1159 (wider misconduct reports under 52D-3.5), HB 278 (52D data collection), and HB 2230 (officer health program).
The 2026 session laws are not yet compiled. The 2026 review used the governor’s messages for Acts 1 to 266 and bill texts on data.capitol.hawaii.gov; capitol.hawaii.gov blocked automated access.
Checked and unchanged
- HRS 139-8 (rules on denial and revocation criteria): text unchanged since Act 220, SLH 2018.
- HRS 52D-3.5 (annual police misconduct report naming suspended or discharged officers) and HRS 92F-14(b)(4) (public disclosure of suspension and discharge records): last amended by Act 47, SLH 2020.
- Not counted: Act 141, SLH 2026 (SB 2057) limits state and county participation in immigration enforcement but does not address officer certification, identification, or masks. Act 17, SLH 2025 gives surviving family members a police closing report and does not concern misconduct records.
Last updated October 20, 2026Source: United States Council for Law & InvestigationCite as: United States Council for Law & Investigation, “Hawaii officer certification: Officer Ledger,” uscli.org/officer-certification-tracker/hawaii (last updated October 20, 2026). Text licensed CC BY 4.0.