2006-07-06 Cost of Government Commission Minutes

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everything and to have their employees in every office. On one hand it sounds good, but on the other hand, there may be problems regarding who to report to. Ms. Nicholson said she wanted to be able to listen to Mr. Yugawa. Ms. Garson said to note the agenda had a typo, that the Communication is 2006 -40, not 2005 -40. Motion and Vote: Ms. Nicholson moved to file away the communication, Ms. Stremski seconded the motion, and all members voted aye. 7. DISCUSSION /ACTION ON FINANCE DEPARTMENT RESPONSE TO THE COMMISSION'S LETTER DATED APRIL 10, 2006 The Chair said he would like to ask Mr. Takaba how the splitting of the County would affect his department, as West Hawaii is adamant about bringing this topic up. He said it would seem to go against everything they are trying to establish, and he would like a general statement from him on that. The commissioners discussed the different divisions within the Department of Finance and whether they need to speak with each division. Finance currently has five divisions: Accounts, Budget, Purchasing, Real Property Tax, and Treasury. Ms. Garson explained that the Public Access, Open Space, and Natural Resource Preservation Commission (PONC) is not a division, but is a commission attached to the Finance Department. It was attached to Finance because it was to be intricately tied into funds and negotiating purchases, and Finance is the department familiar with the acquisition of property. Mr. Sakaguchi questioned the response on the issue of consolidating services, regarding removing the Motor Vehicle Registration section and placing it within the Police Department. He felt the police were needed to enforce the law more than keep records. Ms. Garson explained that the issue of combining Motor Vehicle Registration with the Police Department has come up a lot and may be worth exploring. The Police Department currently handles drivers' licenses, and it may be more convenient for the community to be able to handle weight tax and registration at the same place as license renewal. Mr. Sakaguchi wondered whether the Police Department would want to take on the registration of vehicles, and the Chair felt it would, as it already keeps records on people, including their photographs and fingerprints. He noted that the Police Department is also on their list of priorities. Ms. Nicholson asked who they wanted to talk to from the Finance Department, and whether they should have the Director give an overview and then decide what division heads they should talk to. The Director could give them an idea on how the divisions interrelate to each other, which would be helpful in deciding which division heads to focus on. Ms. Provalenko said she liked that idea. 10