HI HB2214

Establishes a five-year pilot program within the Department of Public Safety requiring social workers to accompany public safety officials to respond to reports of disorderly conduct and other offenses when substance addiction, mental illness, homelessness, or other catastrophic afflictions are indicated.

Social workers are assigned to join response teams during or prior to dispatcher notification when relevant conditions are present, with participation optional for detained individuals who may choose not to interact with the social worker.

Detained individuals may opt to participate in the pilot program and follow the social worker's recommendations in lieu of arrest or citation if deemed appropriate.

Requires the Department of Public Safety to notify the lieutenant governor, attorney general, public defender, county prosecuting attorneys, Department of Human Services, Hawaii State Bar Association criminal justice section members, and homeless service providers of the program's existence.

Appropriates unspecified funding for fiscal years 2022-2023 and 2023-2024 to establish 5.0 full-time equivalent public safety social worker positions; requires interim reports to the legislature in 2023, 2024, 2025, and 2026, and a final report by 2027 with recommendations on making the program permanent.