MIN COUNCIL 2025-02-19 2024-2026

Home

Hawaii County Council-7 February 19,2025 MS. ACASIO: Thank you for the question, Council Member Kimball. I am one of eight plaintiffs in a good governance request for the courts to clarify the constitutional language and the practice and procedure of the House of Representatives. And yes, I MS. KIMBALL: How do you envision thisagain, this office requires coordination across the County in coordination with our State partners. How do you envision ensuring that those relationships are going to be repaired? And I am not questioning the good governance aspect of the lawsuit. What I am this is politics. And you know, having had been over there at the square building, you take actions like this and it potentially becomes a barrier to the County for some time. I'm not sure we're getting a response. MS. ACASIO: Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't hear a question. MS. KIMBALL: How do you intend to repair the relationships with the members of the State Legislature? MS. ACASIO: Actually, so my relationships with all of the members are as standing because this is not personal. The address is strictly about the clarification in the Constitution, and it has nothing to do with any personal relationships. I remain steadfast in the same relationships that I have had previously, and engage quite readily with many folks at the State Legislature. CHR. INABA: Thank you, Ms. Acasio. Council Member Kimball, your buzzer went off here. I'll come back to you after Vice Chair Onishi. MR. ONISHL I just wanted to kind of make a comment on what Ms. Kimball had asked you. For legislation, you would need, like the other counties in order to be partners, in order for Hawaii County to come forward with a legislation. Legislators, when they do law, it's not just for a specified island. It's statewide. And so we have to understand that it needs to be a group effort. And maybe, Ms. Acasio, you can comment to that too, or give some detail about it. MS. ACASIO: Absolutely. Your point is very well taken. Collaboration is key, not only with the departments and with the administration and with those of you who sit on the Council, also on the State level working with council members of all islands. I know, last hearing, Council Member Villegas brought up a particular lawsuit, for example, that other counties are engaged in on the higher level for fossil fuel industry and kind of larger environmental impacts. The court system is a tool and when the Legislature and other mechanisms need clarification or direction. So, in that sense, I do have a lot of really close Page 6