Hawaii County has spent nearly $5 million on expenses relating to the standoff at Maunakea Access Road, but reimbursement should be coming soon.
Hawaii County has spent nearly $5 million on expenses relating to the standoff at Maunakea Access Road, but reimbursement should be coming soon.
More than 100 days since the county began incurring costs relating to the standoff between the state and opponents of the yet-to-be-constructed Thirty Meter Telescope, the state Department of the Attorney General signed an agreement that will reimburse the county for the majority of those costs.
During a recent meeting of the County Council Committee on Finance, Corporation Counsel Joseph Kamelamela said the state’s reimbursement money should be transferred to the county in the next two weeks.
Police expenses account for the vast majority of the total expenditures, which reached $4.9 million as of Nov. 1. A breakdown of the costs reveals that police overtime and fringe benefits alone total more than $4.5 million, with fire department costs the second-largest expense at $150,000. The remaining costs, approximately $325,000, will have to be paid by the county.
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West Hawaii Today
