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Ms. Provalenko said it is being looked into, and it would be good to avoid the <br />unnecessary double steps that are taken now. The abandoned vehicles become derelict because <br />they are destroyed. <br />Ms. Nicholson said it seemed funny to have the citizens make the reports on the <br />abandoned vehicles and questioned whether it should be the DEM's job to check the vehicle <br />identification numbers. Someone needs to verify the information in the reports, and it does not <br />seem like it should be the DEM's job. She empathizes with Deputy Chief Kubojiri's frustration <br />on the delays, but the idea is not fully conceptualized, so she would not feel comfortable making <br />it a recommendation on their list. <br />Mr. Sakaguchi said he likes the idea. He feels the Police should only have to deal with <br />safety and security issues. He feels the handling of these vehicles should be taken away from the <br />Police. Who it should go to and how to do it would be for the Council and Mayor to decide. <br />Ms. Nicholson questioned what would be gained if the program were just stuck into <br />another department, and Mr. Sakaguchi said it would make the Police Department more efficient <br />so it could use its resources to provide public safety. It currently has to handle things that are not <br />in its domain. Ms. Nicholson said she is not sure that placing the program into the DEM would <br />be handling it more efficiently, and Mr. Sakaguchi said that is not our responsibility—it is the <br />responsibility of the Mayor and Council to make sure the government works. <br />Mr. Joseph said it is a Police problem, because it is against the law to abandon a vehicle, <br />and that is why they receive citations. If the responsible party is identified, he /she will have to <br />pay a fine. It is a law enforcement problem. The Police may not want to deal with it, but it falls <br />within their realm. <br />Mr. Sakaguchi said other locales must do it differently. Police are asked to arrest a crazy <br />person, yet the care of that person is with another agency. The Police could still issue the <br />citations. Perhaps when people buy vehicles they should have to pay something for disposal of <br />the vehicle at the end. <br />Ms. Nicholson said she would support a motion to make a recommendation that the <br />system of dealing with abandoned and derelict vehicles be streamlined. She does not want to <br />support just passing the responsibility onto another department. <br />The Chair said he would support the motion. He agrees that the process takes too long. <br />Deputy Chief Kubojiri's letter says the process is done by Oahu's environmental management <br />department, which must have already addressed all of this. He called for a vote. <br />Vote: Voting in favor of the motion were Ms. Provalenko, Mr. Sakaguchi, and the Chair. <br />Voting against the motion were Mr. Joseph and Ms. Nicholson. The motion passed. <br />Mr. Sakaguchi asked if he could comment. In hearing the past testimonies, clearly many <br />departments are being asked to do many different things, and the level of support they have for <br />such a wide range of duties is sometimes minimal. He feels there needs to be an effort to re- <br />examine the government and study what functions are assigned to each department, for possible <br />11 <br />