Caroline Anangaran

The meeting agenda included the establishment of a quorum and public comment periods. Key discussion topics involved reports from the Executive Director, which covered the Fiscal Year 2025 Annual Report, updates on the 2026 Hawaii Women's Coalition Bill Package regarding maternal health and violence against women, potential collaboration for public service announcements on non-discrimination laws, and leadership resource identification. Commissioners provided updates on community issues, including the Women's Conference, Breast Cancer Awareness event, and local efforts. Ex-Officio members provided an update from the Department of Education regarding menstrual product distribution in public schools. The commission planned to discuss advancing awareness on the status of women and held a discussion regarding the Equality in Flames Report on the Lahaina Fires. The commission also confirmed the date and time for the next meeting where the Executive Director's annual performance evaluation results would be discussed.

The agenda for the public meeting included establishing quorum, public comment period, and discussion/vote on the approval of the July 7, 2025, and August 25, 2025, meeting minutes. Key discussion topics covered reports from the Chair and Executive Director (ED) regarding legislative session debriefs, preparation for the 2026 session, updates on collaboration efforts, and administrative matters like the ED monthly summaries. Significant time was dedicated to budget and procurement, specifically discussing expenses for the National Association of Commissions for Women (NACW) conference and the need for HSCSW swag. Other major items included establishing commissioner preferences for website updates, granting the ED signatory authority for Memorandums of Understanding/Agreement related to student internships, and establishing the process for the ED's annual performance review and employment extension based on SCR143. Later discussions covered participation in Honolulu PRIDE events and confirmation of the next meeting date to discuss the ED's performance evaluation results. The subsequent Special Public Meeting focused on establishing the ED's annual performance review template, incorporating edits suggested by a public testifier regarding 'Professionalism' to include 'empathy' and 'compassion,' and discussing the establishment of the ED's salary for July 1, 2026, relative to state compensation structure. Additional reports covered county committee updates, Department of Education's menstrual product implementation, and advancing awareness of the status of women.

The meeting included discussion of recent federal actions and the commission's response, legislative session updates, collaborations, committees, coalition updates, budget and procurement, administrative assistant recruitment, ex-officio members, state commissioners, county committees, UH Commission, Commission staff and members' roles and scope, Commission National Association of Commissions for Women (NACW) annual 2025 conference attendees and membership dues, website update preferences, new commissioner onboarding and lessons learned, and establishment of the next commission meeting day and time.

This Annual Progress and Services Report (APSR) for Federal Fiscal Year 2026 details the State of Hawaii's progress towards its Child and Family Services Plan (CFSP) for 2025-2029. The plan is guided by the vision of a thriving Hawaii, focusing on encouraging self-sufficiency and supporting the well-being of individuals, families, and communities. Key strategic priorities include strengthening the child welfare workforce, enhancing child safety through assessments and interventions, promoting timely permanency via reunification, relative placements, adoption, and guardianship, and fostering family engagement and child well-being. The report highlights efforts in data analysis, stakeholder collaboration, and continuous quality improvement to achieve these outcomes.

The committee received updates on the Grants in Aid process and the Department of Emergency Management, including information on Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (VOAD). The committee discussed the Paid Family Leave project, including finalizing a poll and sharing results. The committee decided not to send a letter of support to the Hawaiʻi State Commission on the Status of Women at this time. The committee discussed following and supporting bills during the legislative session, including meeting with legislators and other committee chairs to share data. The committee discussed potential areas of focus for the upcoming year, including developing women as leaders, pay wage equity, and accountability. The committee discussed succession planning for committee members, including how members could refer candidates. The committee discussed the frequency of committee meetings, including the possibility of meeting every other month.