Comm No 0007.04.1 - Dept of Water Supply - response to Comm No 7.4

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DEPARTMENT OF WATER SUPPLY • COUNTY OF HAWAII 345 KEKUANAO'A STREET, SUITE 20 • HILO, HAWAI'I 96720 TELEPHONE (808) 961-8050 • FAX (808) 961-8657 October 5, 2018 Mr. Douglass Shipman Adams, Chair 2018-2020 Hawai`i County Charter Commission 25 Aupuni Street Hilo, HI 96720 Dear Chair Adams and Members of the 2018-2020 Hawai`i County Charter Commission Subject: Communication No. 7.4 The Department of Water Supply, County of Hawai`i, respectfully opposes Communication No. 7.4 which seeks to amend the County Charter and dismantle the Department of Water Supply in an effort to create a new Department of Water Sustainability. Since the inception of semi -autonomous water management in Hawai`i, efforts to amend or remove it from City and County Charters have surfaced before. For the most part, these efforts were not carried forth for very good reason. Decision makers of the past have learned that water infrastructure requires extensive long-range planning beyond the usual term limits of both the Legislative and Executive Branches of government. While the overall political systems of both these branches are sufficient to carry forth all other public service within 2 - 8 year term limits, successful water management needs a much longer span of oversight to stay ahead of current and future demands for water infrastructure. The long-standing and effective solution of semi -autonomous governance of water management in Hawai`i was enacted in 1949 when the Territorial Legislature realized the need for an entity that would be entrusted with the responsibility of providing dependable, high-quality drinking water to the people of Hawai`i Island. Thus, Act 86 created the Board of Water Supply of the County of Hawai`i to ensure all water revenues would be reserved for water distribution improvement. Prior to this Act, water revenues were comingled with County General Funds, and, because County funds were always under extreme demand, water improvement priorities were neglected. This resulted in water supply not keeping up with growth of the County. Additionally, until the Board of Water Supply was created, these funds were subject to political influence and special interests. The semi -autonomous governance structure of the Water Board over the Department has served the public well. The Water Board ensures the Department adheres to the mission and vision by making consistent, well-informed, and focused decisions in alignment with the Department's 20 -year Water Master Plan. The Water Board and the Department also collaboratively use other tools to assess and evaluate the progress of the Department's vision and mission. These tools include the ongoing and dynamic: ... Water, Our9Kost Precious R source ... WaiA Kane ... Comm. No. 7.4.1 The Department of Water Supply is an Equal Opportunity provider and employer.