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6"¢CVD tlj {GC$Q. ur:E Ode C S <br /> 2025 DEC 22 AH8:117 <br /> Dell Otsuka <br /> Hilo, Hawai'i 96720-4833 <br /> December 20, 2025 <br /> Steven Pavao, Chair <br /> Hawai'i County Salary Commission <br /> 101 Pauahi Street, Suite 2 <br /> Hilo, Hawai'i 96720 <br /> Testimony to the Hawai'i County Salary Commission <br /> Subject: Proposed Salary Increases for Elected and Appointed <br /> Officials-OPPOSED <br /> Agenda item 6 Unfinished Business (for discussion and appropriate action} <br /> Communication No. 25-05.01: Proposed Findings Of Fact By The 2025 <br /> County of Hawai'i Salary Commission. Dated August 28, 2025 <br /> Good Morning Chair, Commissioners, Counsel and Secretary, <br /> Thank you for the opportunity to submit this written testimony for the record. <br /> Again and still, I offer these comments in the spirit of transparency, prudence, <br /> and continued public confidence in the Commission's work, particularly as this <br /> Commission considers proposed salary adjustments for its highest-level elected <br /> and appointed officials. <br /> Charter Process and Voting Thresholds <br /> I respectfully wish to note Section 13-28(f) of the Hawai'i County Charter, <br /> which provides that any salary adjustment exceeding ten percent requires an <br /> affirmative vote of two-thirds of the entire membership of the Salary <br /> Commission. As the Charter does not distinguish between single year and <br /> cumulative multi-year adjustments, I encourage clarity on how this provision is <br /> being interpreted and documented in the Commission's findings, particularly <br /> where adjustments may accrue over multiple years. <br />