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CA -7, Recall Procedures, I support this. Taking the number back to 25% of the valid <br />votes cast, rather than 25% of the total number of persons who registered in the last <br />election is a more reasonable number. I honestly don't think the public has the power to <br />abuse that process. I think when there is legitimate concern for a public official to be <br />recalled or impeached that is a different story; you can get the public behind you. But, to <br />actually put your name down, and have it verified on a petition saying that you want this <br />person recalled from office, that is a pretty big political statement, and I just don't think <br />the general public takes that lightly. So, I believe in the rare occasion where that does <br />need to happen I think it's good to reduce that threshold. <br />CA -12, I support this, the Initiation of Amendments or Revisions. I mainly like <br />increasing the amount of time the county clerk has to examine the petition for sufficiency <br />from 20 working days to 30 working days. <br />CA -14, Legislative Auditor, Draft 2, I support with the amendment, I just gave the <br />amendment a cursory perusal, and it seems to be a fairly reasonable compromise to <br />address the need where there truly can be a need for an independent counsel. Recently, <br />I've been testifying and observing some of our commissions and I will say that at that <br />level, there are abuses that are occurring right now. Previously I spoke in favor of having <br />corporation counsel just deal with this. It seems that they have the mechanisms and the <br />means to stay truly independent, but I've got to say that since the last time I testified <br />there, I have seen cases of abuse. You can pick this up on the internet reading through <br />the minutes, where you will find that the deputy corporation counsels go far beyond <br />giving legal advice or making sure that the committee, which is generally made up of <br />community members, don't stray off of the legal straight and narrow. A lot of times they <br />will move into areas of policy, and they kind of mask it as procedurally you shouldn't <br />allow this testimony or procedurally you shouldn't do something. So it is a little bit of a <br />dangerous slippery slope, and I think for purposes of the legislative auditor's office, it is <br />important that - - -I like the amendment. <br />CA -15, the Land Fund, I guess I'll preface my comments on this particular amendment <br />by stating that, you know I'm just a nobody. I'm just a guy with a big mouth that comes <br />out and tries to open it once and a while knowing that I have this personality defect. I try <br />to use it for good purposes, and if there is anything noble in my character, maybe it's that. <br />If I were truly noble, I would try working on this habit of talking too much. But, it's not <br />about me, what I want to bring up is that at a former mayoral debate, I spoke with Dan <br />Boylan, who moderated the event at the Naniloa Hotel. I posed the question to him, and <br />to the mayoral candidates about that we know economic hard times are here, what will <br />you do with the existing infrastructure, about his hot topic, highway safety. As we <br />conversed about that, later on, he said, "You know Tim, there is one thing that scares me <br />about the mayoral candidates here. It seems nobody here realizes how much the Big <br />Island has this wonderful economic opportunity to enhance what we still have; that is lost <br />from Maui; that is lost from Oahu." This was Dan Boylan. You folks all know who he is <br />from Island Insights on P.B.S. He is a history professor, Oahu Community College, I <br />believe or West Oahu Campus of the U.H. So I preface it with that opening comment. <br />9 <br />