Hawai’i libraries typically struggle to fill some positions because of a lack of qualified applicants.

In the case of administrative assistants, the state’s libraries consider this issue more of a structural constraint than a lack of available people to fill these jobs. So the state’s Librarian, Stacey A. Aldrich, is among those now lobbying legislators to reclassify that systemwide administrative-assistant job to make it easier to fill.

House Bill 2399, which has been referred to the House Finance Committee for vetting of its economic implications, and companion Senate Bill 3088, would make the job “exempt,” meaning it no longer had to meet the more-stringent hiring process of other civil servants and also would not receive the same benefits.

“It has to do with money,” said Rep. Justin H. Woodson , chair of the house committee on education. “So it will give the state librarian more flexibility with how they can hire this individual employee, and it will also be cheaper for the state.”

Some librarians consider this bureaucratic move an unnecessary downgrade.

“There’s got to be ways within the civil service to encourage new people to come in and gain experience,” said Jodie Mattos, a Hawai’i Collection Librarian at University of Hawaii’s Hamilton Library. She instead would like to see more initiatives proposed, for example, that would increase the number of qualified workers in Hawai’i libraries, not lower the bar for their entry.

“I think the legislature is very supportive of libraries,” state Librarian Aldrich said. “They know their communities rely on them as community hubs. We’re grateful that we’ve over the years been able to get more funding to do important projects to help improve our services.”