COM 0149.002 2018-2020 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home

fir.$959 N t t 1:1(+ i { STATE OF HAWAII DAVID Y.IGE OFFICE OF INFORMATION PRACTICES CHERYL KAKAZU PARK GOVERNOR NO.1 CAPITOL DISTRICT BUILDING DIRECTOR 250 SOUTH HOTEL STREET,SUITE 107 HONOLULU.HAWAII 96813 Telephone: (808)586 1400 FAX: (808)586-1412 EMAIL; yvww.o!p.hawai)•aov April 3,2019 VIA EMAIL Joseph K. Kamelamela, Esq. Corporation Counsel,County of Hawaii Re: Hawaii County Council's Proposed Creation of Investigative Group to Investigate the Budget (CORR 2019-04002-1) Dear Mr. Kamelamela: The Office of Information Practices(OIP)received your email dated April 1,2019, in which you asked for advice regarding potential Sunshine Law concerns raised by the Hawaii County Council's(Council)proposed creation of an investigative group to investigate the Hawaii County (County)budget. I'm writing with general advice under the Sunshine Law,part I of chapter 92, Hawaii Revised Statutes(Sunshine Law) (HRS). You indicated that the Council's Committee on Finance(Finance Committee)has formed a budget ad hoc committee(Ad Hoc Committee)of four members, i.e., less than a quorum of the Finance Committee's membership, for a proposed three phase review and analysis of the County budget. Based on our telephone discussion on April I, I understand that the Ad Hoc Committee was formed with the intent that it would operate as a permitted interaction group under section 92-2.5(b)(1), HRS,rather than as a temporary subcommittee holding open meetings,hearing public testimony, keeping minutes,and otherwise following the Sunshine Law's open meeting requirements in the same way the Finance Committee itself does for its own meetings. See OIP Op. Ltr. No. 03-07 at 6(a committee meeting is subject to the Sunshine Law like a meeting of the full board). You also indicated that in 2011,when a similar investigative group regarding the budget was proposed,then- Corporation Counsel Lincoln Ashida was advised by OIP Staff Attorney Lorna Aratani that even if the proposed investigative group met the statutory requirements for the relevant permitted interaction, it would arguably be prohibited under section 92-5, HRS, as a use of a permitted interaction to circumvent the spirit or requirements of the Sunshine Law, (Although OIP's former paralegal Dawn Shimabukuro sent the email from O1P's account, the advice was provided and signed by Ms. Aratani.) The schedule for the Ad Hoc Committee described in your email would have the Ad Hoc Committee reporting back to the Finance Committee three times regarding each of three phases of its assigned subject matter,with discussion by the Finance Committee at a separate meeting after each