County Council Proposes Amendments to County Charter

The Hawai‘i County Charter is the document which sets out the form of local government in the County of Hawai‘i. Two amendments have been proposed to the Charter by the Hawai‘i County Council. The amendments, Proposal “1” and Proposal “2”, will be placed on a ballot in the form of a question, and set before the electorate in the General Election on Nov. 6, 2018.

Pursuant to Section 15-2, Hawai‘i County Charter, the full text for these amendments is published below in ordinance form. In the ordinances, material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken and new material is underscored. In addition, the relevant ballot questions are set out preceding the full text of the proposed amendments.

BALLOT QUESTION

PROPOSAL NO. 1: Public Notice and Voting Requirements for the Salary Commission

Shall Article XIII of the County Charter be amended to require the Salary Commission to publish notification in two daily newspapers in the County, hold at least one public hearing, and provide a detailed report of its findings and conclusions for public inspection, all at least thirty (30) days prior to adopting any increase or decrease of a county elected official or appointed officer’s salary, and to further require that the Salary Commission approve by a two-thirds vote of its entire membership any salary increase or decrease greater than 10%?
If you agree with Proposal No. “1,” vote yes.
If you disagree with Proposal No. “1,” vote no.

FULL TEXT OF PROPOSAL NO. 1 ORDINANCE NO. 18-30

AN ORDINANCE TO INITIATE AN AMENDMENT TO ARTICLE XIII, SECTION 13-28 OF THE HAWAI‘I COUNTY CHARTER (2016 EDITION), RELATING TO THE SALARY COMMISSION. BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE COUNTY OF HAWAI‘I.

SECTION 1. Article XIII, section 13-28 of the Hawai‘i County Charter (2016 Edition), is amended to read as follows:

“Section 13-28. Compensation; Salary Commission.

(a) The salary of all county elected officials and appointed directors and deputy directors of departments and executive agencies shall be established by a salary commission which shall consist of nine members appointed by the mayor with the approval of the council, in the manner prescribed in Section 13-4(b). The members may be removed in the manner prescribed in Section 13-4(b).
(b) One member shall be a resident of each council district. In addition, the director of human resources and deputy director of human resources shall serve as ex -officio members of the commission in an advisory capacity.
(c) The commission shall establish its rules of procedure, which shall provide that it meet at least annually, and adopt rules and regulations having the force and effect of law.
(d) The commission shall review and compensate all county elected officials and appointed directors and deputy directors so that their total salaries and benefits have a reasonable relationship to compensation in the public and private sectors. The salary commission shall consult with those boards and commissions which have appointing authority for department heads.
(e) At least thirty days prior to the approval of any salary adjustment, the salary commission shall:

(1) Publish at least once in at least two daily newspapers of general circulation in the county a detailed account of its proposal, or proposals, including specific increases or decreases in both actual
dollar amounts and percentages,
(2) Hold at least one public hearing in either east Hawai‘i or west Hawai‘i, provided that any public hearing shall be conducted using video conference technology to allow for public participation from
both east and west Hawai‘i; and
(3) Submit copies of a detailed report of the commission’s findings and conclusions used to develop its proposal, or proposals, to the office of the county clerk and the office of the mayor for public
inspection. The public notice required pursuant to this subsection shall include notification that the report of the commission’s findings and conclusions is available for public inspection at the aforementioned locations.

(f) Any adjustment that increases or decreases any salary by more than 10% shall require an affirmative vote of two-thirds of the entire membership of the salary commission.”

SECTION 2. New charter material is underscored. When revising, compiling, or printing these charter provisions for inclusion in the Charter of the County of Hawai‘i, the reviser need not include the underscoring.

SECTION 3. If any provision of this ordinance, or the application thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid, such invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications of the ordinance, which can be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to this end, the provisions of this ordinance are severable.

SECTION 4. Upon adoption of this ordinance, this council, by appropriate resolution, shall provide that this amendment be submitted to the electorate of Hawai‘i County for approval in the 2018 general election.

SECTION 5. The charter amendment proposed in this ordinance shall take effect upon its approval by a majority of voters voting on this legislation in the 2018 general election, as duly certified.

BALLOT QUESTION

PROPOSAL NO. 2: Fiscal Impact Statements for Amendments to the Hawai‘i County Charter

Shall Article XV of the County Charter be amended to require that any proposed amendment to the County Charter be accompanied by a Fiscal Impact Statement that describes the immediate and potential future effects that proposed amendment would have on county revenues, expenditures, taxes, and fiscal liabilities, and that the Fiscal Impact Statements be provided to voters no less than sixty (60) calendar days prior to the election where the proposed change is to be voted on by posting on the county websiteand by being made available for inclusion in any voter information pamphlet on County ballot propositions?
If you agree with Proposal No. “2,” vote yes.
If you disagree with Proposal No. “2,” vote no.

FULL TEXT OF PROPOSAL NO. 2 ORDINANCE NO. 18-76

AN ORDINANCE TO INITIATE AN AMENDMENT TO ARTICLE XV OF THE HAWAI‘I COUNTY CHARTER (2016 EDITION), BY ADDING A NEW SECTION RELATING TO FISCAL IMPACT STATEMENTS. BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE COUNTY OF HAWAI‘I.

SECTION 1. Article XV of the Hawai‘i County Charter (2016 Edition), is amended by adding a new section to be appropriately inserted and to read as follows: “Section 15- . Fiscal Impact Statement.
Fiscal impact statements shall be prepared by the department of finance for all proposed amendments or revisions to this charter. Each fiscal impact statement should, as much as practicable, be written in a manner that can be easily understood by voters and shall include, but not be limited to, an estimate of the immediate and any potential future effects the proposed charter amendment or revision, if enacted, will have on county revenues, expenditures, taxes, and fiscal liabilities. Such statements may also include graphics to illustrate the fiscal impact of the proposed amendment or revision in the context of county resources.

Fiscal impact statements shall be completed at least sixty calendar days prior to the election at which the proposed amendment or revision will be placed on the ballot and shall appear on the county website and be made available for inclusion in any voter information pamphlet which addresses county ballot propositions.

The council may by ordinance prescribe additional requirements or refinements to the brovisions of this section.”

SECTION 2. New charter material is underscored. When revising, compiling, or printing these charter provisions for inclusion in the Charter of the County of Hawai‘i, the reviser need not include the underscoring.

SECTION 3. If any provision of this ordinance, or the application thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid, such invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications of the ordinance, which can be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to this end, the provisions of this ordinance are severable.

SECTION 4. Upon adoption of this ordinance, this council, by appropriate resolution, shall provide that this amendment be submitted to the electorate of Hawai‘i County for approval in the 2018 general election.

SECTION 5. The charter amendment proposed in this ordinance shall take effect upon its approval by a majority of voters voting on this legislation in the 2018 general election, as duly certified.

Copies of the full text and the respective ballot questions relating to Proposal “1” and Proposal “2′ are on file in the Office of the County Clerk in Hilo and the Office of the County Council in Kailua-Kona.