Due to a newly enacted state law (Act 165, 2022), all State employees must complete mandatory ethics training offered by the Hawai‘i State Ethics Commission (HSEC). The training is intended to help increase awareness of the Ethics Code and provide an understanding of how the code is interpreted by the State Ethics Commission.

This requirement applies to all RCUH employees, regardless of employment category, status, or FTE (Full-time Equivalent). The State Ethics Code (HRS Chapter 84) has always applied to RCUH employees, who are State, non-civil service employees.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATORS are responsible for ensuring that project staff complete this training once every four years.
• RCUH EMPLOYEES must complete the HSEC training by January 1, 2024*. Effective January 1, 2023, all new employees must complete the training within 90 days of employment. Ethics training for ALL RCUH employees must be completed once every four years.

*Unfortunately RCUH’s existing online training on the Hawai‘i State Ethics Code does not count towards this new law, therefore RCUH’s training will be sunset October 31, 2022. However, if an employee has already completed the Ethics Training course from the HSEC website within the last three years (between January 1, 2020 and December 31, 2022), the 2024 deadline does not apply; certificates should be sent to project supervisors and [email protected] to ensure compliance.

HOW TO COMPLETE THE TRAINING:

State employees who are not required to file public financial disclosure statements (which applies to the majority of RCUH employees), may opt to complete the 30-minute online self-directed training. Individuals may also opt to register for the live videoconference training, which usually runs about 90 minutes long.

IMPORTANT: Upon completion of the online self-directed training, follow the instructions at the end of the program to obtain a Certificate of Completion. Employees must email the PDF certificate to their supervisor(s) and [email protected] to ensure compliance. See screenshot below.