Proposed amendments to county attorney

Public wants a more open government, fairer elections

by Nathan Eagle – THE GARDEN ISLAND

Proposed Kaua‘i County Charter amendments addressing government transparency, an ethics provision and mayoral elections moved forward yesterday in the process of being considered for placement on the Nov. 4 General Election ballot.

The county Charter Review Commission unanimously decided to send four items over to the County Attorney’s office for legal review after hearing public input at the Historic County Building.

The commission’s next step, should it decide to proceed after considering the county attorney’s advice, will be to firm up the wording of the ballot questions and educate the public on the pros and cons of each proposed amendment, county Office of Boards and Commissions Administrator John Isobe said.

Voters ultimately decide on any changes to the county’s constitution.

Kekaha resident Bruce Pleas proposed changing the way mayoral races are run by conforming the wording in the charter to reflect the provisions governing County Council elections.

He said the system would be fairer if voters had two choices after the primary election.

“This wording here is simple,” he said. “The top two go on. The top one wins.”

Instead of two non-partisan elections, there would be a primary and a general, he said. The change would go into effect in 2010, the county’s next mayoral election.

He said the amendment would also help avoid disputes, which have happened in the past, over what happens if the mayor fails to receive more than 50 percent of the votes cast, as required by law.

“We wouldn’t have to rely on attorneys to make opinions,” Pleas said.

The commission decided that legal counsel should review the suggestion for the exact wording to accomplish this in an amendment.

Despite public testimony against the measure, the commission is considering a separate amendment that could let voters decide if volunteer county board and commission members should be allowed to represent private business interests before other county departments, agencies or boards except the board or commission on which they serve.

The proposal came forward after the county Ethics Board recently voted unanimously that no conflict of interest exists in one such case. Specifically, Charter Review Commission Chair Jonathan Chun, who was absent yesterday, asked the board to decide if he should be allowed to sit on the commission while serving as an attorney for private businesses appearing before County Council, the county Planning Commission and other agencies.

Pleas and Kapa‘a residents Glenn Mickens and Ken Taylor said they opposed even considering this as a possible charter amendment.

The County Attorney’s office issued a legal opinion on the matter, which relates to charter section 20.02 D, but it has not been made known to the public.

Taylor said the first thing the commission must consider for any proposed charter amendment is how this change benefits the community.

He said he only sees this proposed ethics change benefiting a “handful of people” serving on county boards and commissions.

“You should refrain from making any changes without some good explanation as to why,” he said, noting that there are plenty people on the island who could fill these various seats to avoid conflict of interest problems.

The commission voted to have legal counsel consider a proposed amendment that would add language to the charter’s ethics standards provision specifically allowing board and commission members to wear multiple hats.

Audience member Mickens opposed another charter amendment that would effectively create for him a Catch 22 scenario.

He has fought County Council for the past nine months over how it enters into executive session and what it discusses behind closed doors.

Mickens points to charter section 3.07 E, which allows council to go into executive session only for matters related to claims.

The proposed amendment would strike that provision and refer to the state Sunshine Law, which lists a variety of reasons for government agencies to go behind closed doors.

Mickens said this would allow “greater government secrecy” and he urged the commission to keep the claims-only provision.

The commission referred the proposed amendment to legal counsel.

Commissioner Sherman Shiraishi, clarifying the process of putting a proposed charter amendment on the ballot, said the wording is not set in stone after it is sent to the County Attorney’s office.

The proposals may change when they return to the commission, he said.

Taylor again questioned the motive to consider such an amendment.

Quoting state law, he told the commission that the people are vested with the ultimate decision-making power and government agencies exist to aid in the decision-making of public policy.

“Please help me understand what you are doing to benefit the people of this community,” he said.

The commission also considered an amendment Mickens proposed that would require county attorney’s opinions on questions of law and public policy to be made available to the public within two days of issuance.

He, and other community members, noted the difficulty the public has had in offering informed input because county attorney’s opinions have been unavailable on critical matters such as transient vacation rentals.

“The purpose of this amendment is to protect the people’s right to know and to better understand law and public policy,” Mickens said.

Shiraishi noted concerns over bogging down an understaffed County Attorney’s office, but motioned to refer the proposal to legal counsel.

The commission voted 4-0 to send Micken’s amendment to the county attorney for review.

The commission’s next monthly meeting is at 4 p.m., April 28, in Council Chambers at the Historic County Building. An agenda will be posted at www.kauai.gov

• Nathan Eagle, staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 224) or neagle@kauaipubco.com.