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COUNTY OF HAWAII <br />ORDINANCE NO. <br />STATE OF HAWAII <br />BILL NO. 152 <br />(DRAFT 2) <br />AN ORDINANCE TO INITIATE AN AMENDMENT TO ARTICLE III, SECTION 3-6, <br />AND ARTICLE VI, CHAPTER 5, SECTION 6-5.5, OF THE HAWAII COUNTY <br />CHARTER (2010 EDITION), RELATING TO SPECIAL COUNSEL AND COUNCIL <br />STAFF ATTORNEYS. <br />BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE COUNTY OF HAWAII: <br />SECTION 1. Purpose. The purpose of this ordinance is to initiate an amendment to the <br />Hawaii County Charter to grant the County Council the right to employ special counsel and <br />Council staff attorneys without express limitation. <br />SECTION 2. Article III, section 3-6 of the Hawaii County Charter (2010 Edition) is <br />amended to read as follows: <br />"Section 3-6. Organization of the Council; Officers; Employees. <br />(a) Definitions. For the purpose of this section, the following definitions apply: <br />"Constituted authority" means the legislative, executive, and judicial departments <br />officially and rightfully governing a municipality properly appointed or elected <br />under organic law, such as a constitution or charter. <br />"Express" means clearly and unmistakably communicated; directly stated. <br />"Imperative authority" means an authority that is absolutely binding on a court. <br />"Limitation" means the act of limiting; the state of being limited; a restriction. <br />"Organic Law" means the body of laws (as in a constitution) that define and <br />establish a government; fundamental law. <br />"Primary authority" means the authority which issues directly from a law -making <br />bodeslegislation and reports of litigated cases. <br />"Without express limitation" means that 1) since the Hawaii County Charter <br />established the council as a constituted authority, 2) the council members' election <br />occurs under organic law, and 3) because the council's legislative, primary, and <br />imperative authority is absolutely binding on a court of competent jurisdiction, then <br />the council clearly and unmistakably has the right to engage staff attorneys and <br />special counsel without restraint or restriction, and without the concurrence, <br />