Department of defense
HRS §26-21
in effect26-21. Department of defense
(a) The department of defense shall be headed by a single executive to be known as the adjutant general. The adjutant general shall also be the director of the Hawaii emergency management agency as established in section 127A-3.
The department shall be responsible for the
defense of the State and its people from mass violence, originating from either
human or natural causes.
The devolution of command of the military
forces in the absence of the adjutant general shall be within the military
establishment. The devolution of command of the Hawaii emergency management
agency in the absence of the adjutant general, as director of the agency, shall
be within the agency.
(b) The office of veterans' services and the
advisory board on veterans' services as constituted by chapter 363 are placed
within the department of defense for administrative purposes. [L Sp 1959 2d, c
1, §28; Supp, §14A-27; HRS §26-21; am L 1969, c 122, §1; am L 1981, c 82, §2
and c 135, §4; am L 1988, c 115, §2; am L 2013, c 175, §3; am L 2014, c 111, §4;
am L 2022, c 278, §37]
Source: Hawaii State Legislature (capitol.hawaii.gov), via Internet Archive capturesURL: http://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/Vol01_Ch0001-0042F/HRS0026/HRS_0026-0021.htmFetched: 11/10/2026