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have to. We also cut positions. We cut 55 positions the first year. We cut 70 this past
<br />year, this current year for 125, two years.
<br />Submitted my budget on March 1,we cut another 100. That person has 225 positions
<br />cut in the County of Hawai‘i. In addition, the number has moved because we just took
<br />in a Fire recruit class. But we’ve actually, in addition to cutting 225 positions that saves
<br />$7.1 million over two years, we also have reduced by the body count of county
<br />government by 121 warm bodies through attrition, meaning when somebody retired,
<br />when somebody was terminated, somebody transferred. If Eileen retired, we had not
<br />a
<br />filled the position for example, as an example. When somebody leaves for reason,
<br />illustration, we try not to fill the position if we can. But you know, people say, you just
<br />got to freeze government. That’s impossible. Impossible. You cannot administer a
<br />government that provides 24-hour service across 4,028 square miles to 185,000 people
<br />by freezing. You have something as small as the recreation position was proposed cut
<br />that,for Paauilo. They can go Honokaa. You can go Laupahoehoe. No you cannot.
<br />You cut that one position, they provide youth services and daily senior services. So you
<br />eliminate services for seniors and children in an entire community if you don’t fill that
<br />one position. That’s irresponsible of county government. A wastewater position –
<br />people flush their toilets 24 hours a day. We lose a wastewater treatment operator, we
<br />got to fill the wastewater treatment operator. You take a position like Real Property
<br />Taxes for example. Finance Department will come in and say, hey we need a Real
<br />Property Tax appraiser, we have to keep up with our appraisals. You might get a $10
<br />million property appraised at $100. You talk about me notwalking in an office and try to
<br />not fire somebody. I’d say everybody hold you in the office –no let the Mayor go to the
<br />Finance Department. What the hell is going on over here? But the leadership requires
<br />one, sacrifice –leadership by example and two, hiring good people, trusting good
<br />people. You know no more inaudible. You have Warren Lee running Public Works.
<br />One of the more challenging departments in all of county government. Proud to have
<br />the president of HELCO. Worked 20 years. Understands management, cost cutting,
<br />private industry. Randy Kurohara -Research and Development. Under Research and
<br />Development is tourism, agriculture and energy. Three critical initiatives to the quality of
<br />life to Hawai‘i Island. Randy is a small business owner in economic development. You
<br />should have somebody who’s challenged, paying taxes, having the employees,
<br />understanding the sacrifices that private business and private enterprise makes. He’s
<br />not a lifelong bureaucrat. It’s the first time working for government. But that’s the guy I
<br />want overseeing economic development in the community. He’s the president of the
<br />Japanese Chamber of Commerce. He’s the head of a rotary. That’s the kind of people,
<br />you know its fresh eyes. So we try to hire the best.
<br />And I was at the APEC security summit a couple of months ago. The guess keynote
<br />speaker was the CEO of 45,000 employee company. And I was just telling him, I have
<br />2,600 employees. What’s your key to effective leadership and management, BASF,
<br />subsidiary, 45,000 employees. He goes, I try to pick people and entrust them with an
<br />assumption of competence. Because the contrary is micromanagement. And
<br />micromanagement leads to ineffective leadership and management, and a stifling of
<br />innovation and creativity. Ultimately we can cut cost, we can raise revenue, but the
<br />measurement of public services, what do you do for the people? What do we get done?
<br />When I talk to my department heads, tell them you know, if I was a CEO for a company,
<br />and we had to answer the shareholders and the community, there would be one bottom
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