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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMIN GOREDC 2021/03/16 2020-2022 Committee on Governmental Operations, Relations, and Economic Development 5th Session Hawaii County Building 25 Aupuni Street Hilo, Hawai i March 16, 2021 CALL TO The regular meeting of the Committee on Governmental Operations, Relations, ORDER: and Economic Development was called to order at 2:30 p.m., in the Council Chambers, Hilo, by Ms. Heather L. Kimball, Chair. ROLL CALL: Present: Ms. Heather L. Kimball, Chair Ms. Ashley L. Kierkiewicz, Vice Chair Mr. Aaron S. Y. Chung, Member Ms. Maile Medeiros David, Member (via videoconference from Kona) Mr. Holeka Goro Inaba, Member (via videoconference from Kona) Mr. Matt Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Member (came in later) Ms. Susan L. K. Lee Loy, Member Ms. Rebecca Villegas, Member (via videoconference from Kona) (came in later) Mr. Herbert M. "Tim" Richards, III, Member STATEMENTS The Chair directed the Committee to proceed to the next order of business, FROM THE Statements from the Public on Agenda Items. PUBLIC ON AGENDA ITEMS: (There were none.) CHR. KIMBALL: We'll begin at the top of the agenda with Comm. 157. Mr. Clerk. COMMUNI- The Chair directed the Committee to proceed to the next order of business, CATIONS: Communications. Comm. 157: NOMINATION OF BREEANI SUMERA-LEE TO THE REDISTRICTING COMMISSION From Mayor Mitchell D. Roth, dated February 17, 2021, requesting the Council's review and confirmation. Requires Council Confirmation by: April 10, 2021 (Section 13-4(k), Hawaii County Charter) GOREDC-5 March 16,2021 Vote on Comm. 157: Ms. Lee Loy moved to recommend confirmation of the (Approved) appointment of Ms. Breeani Sumera-Lee to the Redistricting Commission. Seconded by Mr. Richards and carried by the following voice vote: Ayes: Committee Members Chung, David, Inaba, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Lee Loy, Richards, Villegas, and Chair Kimball—9. Noes: None. Absent: None. Excused: None. Executive Assistant to the Mayor Pomaika`i Bartolome came forward and provided a brief narrative of the nominee's background and experience. Committee Members spoke in favor of the appointment. Chair Kimball informed Ms. Sumera-Lee that she does not need to appear before the full Council for final confirmation. CHR. KIMBALL: Alright moving on to our next item on the agenda Comm. 170. Mr. Clerk. Comm. 170: REQUESTS TO PROVIDE AN UPDATE REGARDING THE HAWAII STATE ASSOCIATION OF COUNTIES' LEGISLATIVE PRIORITIES AND PLANS FOR THE 2021 ANNUAL CONFERENCE From Council Member Heather L. Kimball, dated March 4, 2021. (Note: Comm. 170.1, from Council Member Heather L. Kimball, dated March 15, 2021, transmitting the draft minutes of the Hawaii State Association of Counties Special Executive Committee Meeting on Legislative Session Updates of March 9, 2021 was circulated.) CHR. KIMBALL: Can I have a motion to close file on Comm. 170? Motion to Approve: Ms. Kierkiewicz moved to close file on Comm. 170. Seconded by Ms. Lee Loy. CHR. KIMBALL: So the purpose of the communication, of course, is to abide by the requirements of Sunshine Law to have an open discussion about topics that may be in front of us as a board at some point in time. And that would include bills at the State Legislature at this time that may result in action coming from this committee or the Council as a whole in the near future. Page 2 GOREDC-5 March 16,2021 So I'm going to just run briefly through the bills that HSAC (Hawai`i State Association of Counties) has been tracking. There's two sets of legislation. One is the package that was submitted which you all voted on, I believe, back in November. The status of those bills for the ones that are still alive; and then the bylaws of HSAC also give us the ability to start working on either supporting or opposing pieces of legislation that either have to do with home rule or with County revenue. And so we've added some things to what we're doing in the last couple of weeks based on that. And I should mention that we do have—HSAC does have a lobbyist working on our behalf, Jon Okudara. So, I'm just going to walk through these real quick and then if you have any questions afterwards. So with regard to vehicle registration, there are two pieces of legislation HSAC is supporting. One is House Bill (HB) 160. That is relating to the registration of vehicles, and basically it subjects rental vehicles to the same motor vehicle registration fees as all other motor vehicles. Under current rule HRS (Hawai`i Revised Statutes)they have a slightly different registration amount. So that is related also to HB 161,that would allow the Director of Finance of a county to require payment of outstanding charges owed to a county for towing, removal, or disposal of abandoned derelict vehicles within the county before issuing a motor vehicle permit or certificate of registration. There are exemptions provided in this legislation that if the vehicle was stolen or taken without permission, the registered owner would not have to be responsible for those required payments. The next item which was not part of the original HSAC package but has been added is House Bill 803, which is relating to Electric Vehicles that would allow each county to adopt ordinances to enforce HRS 291-71, which would allow us to establish penalties if there's a failure to comply with maintenance of electric vehicle charging stations and keeping them in working order. There's also an increase in the number of required parking spots for electric vehicles from one space to five for parking areas with over 100 stalls. So that is still moving, and the companion bill is also moving in the Senate, that is Senate Bill (SB) 756, and that actually has a slightly different amendment to it that would be 10 spaces by 2030; and five spaces by 2025 for those parking structures with 100 stalls or more. And then, moving on to taxation and TAT (Transient Accommodation Tax) related bills, House Bill 321, relating to the Transient Accommodation Tax repeals the allocation of access transient accommodation tax revenues to the Turtle Bay Conservation Easement Special Fund for the operation of the Page 3 GOREDC-5 March 16,2021 Hawaiian Center and the Museum of Hawaiian Music and Dance to the counties and to a Special Land and Development Fund. The primary reason that we're watching this, anything with a header relating to Transient Accommodation Tax could be used at some point as a vehicle for other things. So relating to that, we're keeping an eye on that because there was another House Bill, 1314, also relating to taxation that would repeal the TAT to the counties and authorize us, the County, to levy a surcharge on the TAT if we met some certain property tax requirements. And that one has been referred back to Finance, so it's basically dead for this session. So we're watching 321 as the primary vehicle to have something happen as far as transient accommodation tax to the counties. House Bill 485, also relating to taxation increases the amount of Rental Motor Vehicle Surcharge tax from five to eight, effective 2023. HSAC is actually proposing an amendment to this piece of legislation because that increased surcharge at this point would all go to the State, and so we're proposing that a portion of that to build the amendment so that a portion of that would actually come to us in the counties. Let's see, Senate Bill 775 is also relating to Transient Accommodation Tax. It provides for a mechanism to adjust the TAT rate based on visitor arrivals for the calendar year. Again, another one that we're watching primarily because of the header and, you know, it may change as it continues to move forward. We'll see what happens with that. House Bill 1146, also relating to Taxation extends the period in which the County may adopt a surcharge on the State Tax, which we have done under certain conditions. So that's extending out to 12/31/2021. And then it authorizes those surcharge revenues to be used for workforce housing or affordable housing infrastructure. And that failed to make the final deadline, so that is dead for this session. And, I'm sorry, the partner to that, Senate Bill 645 is still alive and has gone to the House and has been referred. It's gotten a quintuple referral so it's basically dead as well. I wanted to draw attention to Senate Bill 1034 which is relating to Sunshine Law. This would allow our Boards and Commissions to continue to include conference technology as a way to meet beyond the emergency orders relating to COVID. And then there were a couple of other bills relating to Sunshine Law. One that would have allowed us to caucus during Council meetings that never moved. So, we'll see what happens. I mean they were introduced and if it's still out there for discussion. Moving on to House Bill 497. This is one of the ones we're watching. It was brought to HSAC's attention by Council Member Waters from City and County Page 4 GOREDC-5 March 16,2021 of Honolulu. It has to do with relating to counties' zoning ordinances. It would prohibit counties from requiring as part of the counties' zoning ordinances or county rule. A developer with more than one residential unit to obtain the approval of any State agency unless that approval is expressly required by law. We're watching this and seeking additional information as to whether or not this would actually have a significant impact. The Office of Planning is opposing this legislation at this time. And that's not our Planning Department. That's the State Office of Planning, to make sure I'm clear on that. House Bill 486 relating to Transportation. It specifies that a government agency does not assume ownership or jurisdiction of disputed roads solely through maintenance and repair activities; authorizes the State to transfer ownership of roads in favor of counties by quit claim if requested by the County. DLNR (Department of Land and Natural Resources) is saying that this bill is unnecessary because they've determined that at the State level, there's no such thing as a road in limbo. And that, I think, covers everything that has been on our recent agenda. You were provided with the—we had our update last week Wednesday, so you were provided with the draft minutes. Those minutes have not been approved by the HSAC body as a whole, but I did want to give those as a primary. So at this point, I'll take a quick break and if you have any questions or comments, I'll take those and then I'll mention briefly the plans for the HSAC Convention this year. Council Member Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder. MR. KANEALI`I-KLEINFELDER: Thank you, Ma'am. I just want to say, mahalo for putting all of this together and for your very thorough explanation of what's happening. We have Susan Caseria in LRB (Legislative Research Branch) who's been running the constant, kind of refreshers of what's happening at the Legislature as well as what we all track individually. But I'm glad to see you putting this together for us and just giving us an update of what's happening and where we stand with the other counties. So thank you for your time and for putting all this together and I really appreciate it. Thank you. CHR. KIMBALL: Sure, no problem. Anyone else here in Hilo? Council Member Kierkiewicz. Thank you. MS. KIERKIEWICZ: Thank you and thanks for your work on this. Having served on HSAC I know that there is a lot of time and energy that goes into this, especially during Legislative Sessions. So thank you. I think you're doing excellent. Page 5 GOREDC-5 March 16,2021 I was just curious, how your work has been with the Lobbyist, Mr. Okudara, and if any of the items were in the approved package, if he's getting a sense, you know, any signals from Legislature as to whether or not they're going to be approved? CHR. KIMBALL: Okay, thank you. I'll go ahead and respond to that. Yeah, working with him has been very good. He's very receptive and when we wanted to add things to track, and if we've noticed something that meets the criteria of either affecting our revenue or home rule, adding that to his list of things that he's watching and advocating for or against. The other items that I didn't list that were a part of the HSAC package are essentially dead for this session. So the ones that—I've restricted—what I spoke about was to the things that are alive. As far as receptiveness from the State Legislators to items in the County package, that's not something I've discussed with them, but I will take that back and get some information on that for you to provide for our next meeting. MS. KIERKIEWICZ: Yeah, thank you. Just thought it would be really helpful. I know that Mr. Okudara is really respected in the square building. He comes with a lot of knowledge and expertise in this arena. I love his approach. He's a real pragmatic, no BS kind of guy; straight shooter, and I appreciate that a lot. You know,just one thing in my brief time here on the Council that I noticed with the development of the HSAC package, it just seems so restrictive. I hope that there are ways in which the body can consider elevating themes and concepts and working in partnership with our State delegation who has a whole department that this there dedicated to actually crafting the legislation. So it takes the burden off of the counties to do that, so just food for thought going forward next cycle, working with our delegation to advance these concepts and then putting it on them to craft legislation that they know is going to be solid and actually maybe make it through some committees. Because putting together a good bill is quite difficult, and I don't know if we as Council Members have the wherewithal to be able to do that. Anyway, thank you. CHR. KIMBALL: Thank you, and thank you for that comment, and it's timely. Before our meeting today, I did make sure to sit down with Corporation Counsel and understand how this body could interact around legislative items, because it's a very quickly moving process, and because of our limitations with regard to Sunshine Law, you know, we have to agendize something to be able to talk about it. But one of the pieces of information that Judge Strance provided to me was a recommendation for processes that we could put in place as a Council, that would Page 6 GOREDC-5 March 16,2021 allow us to advocate and take action on themes rather than particular items. So that is something you're likely to see coming from me in the near future to set us up better for 2022, and to advocate and to draft on themes rather than having to bring everything as individual bills before this committee. Anybody in Kona have comments or questions? MS. DAVID: Chair Kimball, this is Maile. CHR. KIMBALL: Yes. MS. DAVID: Hi. Just wanted to before I have to leave, I just wanted to thank you for just stepping in this position as our HSAC person and doing a great job. So thank you very much, and that's all I have to say. Mahalo. CHR. KIMBALL: Thank you, Chair David. Any other comments from Kona? Alright. Oh I'm sorry, Council Member Lee Loy. MS. LEE LOY: Thank you, Chair. You know, I agree. I think not only the themes, but procedurally how we talk about it. All too often, we get emails from, you know, our respective representatives and they're asking for support. And, you know, Council Member Chung talks about a resolution. Why can't we just do a minute resolution that this Council supports something like that? And if it means taking a look at our Rules and Procedure, I think that's one more piece that we could lean into so that we could have support for the work that's being advanced at the square building. You know, I had a note here on House Bill 803 and Senate Bill 756. And I just want to be clear if this one still alive? CHR. KIMBALL: Those are the two EV bills, yes? MS. LEE LOY: Yes. CHR. KIMBALL: Yeah, those are both still alive. MS. LEE LOY: And so, I'm reading this but I'm actually scaling back. Because, you know, the support for this step forward to being more sustainable and using alternative energy is a goal. But then this becomes one of those barriers related to affordable housing because the infrastructure for some of this that needs to go into some of these spaces and places then ends up creating a higher cost of infrastructure whereby not truly providing affordable housing at the affordable point. And you know, I've been watching some of this and I think in addition to all of the work that we're doing collectively as policy makers and legislators, I think we Page 7 GOREDC-5 March 16,2021 also have to take a real good hard look at what we're really pushing on and how it actually translates back down into the counties that have to kind of deliver some of this. And so just maybe some costs associated with this is a great idea. I think it's excellent, right, but to drag in the infrastructure for something like that comes at a cost. We had a long conversation about hydrogen busses and not having the infrastructure for it, and then who do we partner with, right? Because at the end of the day, we'd actually maybe made that barrier for entry just too high at some point. And that was just my only thought. Not so much support or opposition one way or another,just the more holistic look. Because when we talk about themes, if a theme is affordable housing how are we really advancing legislation that accelerates that while giving incentives to develop it, but not putting in more and more bureaucratic red tape to advance that? And again, it's just to wanting to look at more energy efficient globally for our State, but you know, how's the balance? And that was just my only thought, and I just wanted to use that as an example. Because as we go and do this next year, like you said, it goes fast, and we need to start advancing legislation that helps. Thank you. CHR. KIMBALL: Thank you for that. Council Member Richards. MR. RICHARDS: Thanks Heather for putting this forth. And I'm listening and will be very interested in what you have from Corp. Counsel and the advancement of themes. Because as Sue just said, it happens very quickly and it's kind of paradoxical, we as a Council should be either advocating for or campaigning against something that we as a Council believe are in our direct interest, yet by the rules that have been established for us, we're not allowed. We don't have the methodology to do that because by the time we actually could get it agendized, discussed, and voted on, it's passed. So I'm looking forward to that because there's some stuff in here that we as a Council should have supported and/or objected to,but we can't because we don't have that metrics in place yet. So I'm looking forward to that, thank you. CHR. KIMBALL: Yeah, thank you Council Member Richards. And yeah, this is certainly something that I recognized to be critically important. And this session is actually moving faster than the typical session would as well, you know, and we're behind. And we could argue that that's intentional, right? MR. RICHARDS: I didn't want to bring that up. Page 8 GOREDC-5 March 16,2021 CHR. KIMBALL: Who's watching? No but, it would behoove us to—and that's why I took the time to have the conversation with Corp. Counsel, that it would behoove us to have mechanisms in order to respond a little bit more nimbly to things that are changing quite rapidly at the State when it comes to legislation that affects us during the session. MR. RICHARDS: And the community as a whole. That's why we need to. So I look forward to figuring that one out, because it happens very quickly and some of this stuff—you know, one of my big things from the start was TAT. And that was completely pulled away. And now, you know, what you're talking about it's like, let's go back and understand why it was initially put in place. It was an impact fee to help the counties. That's the reason it was put there. We start veering away from it, it shouldn't even exist then. So anyway, I yield. CHR. KIMBALL: Thank you. And to your last point there about TAT and Ms. Kierkiewicz's earlier question about our lobbyist that was actually one of the points that he's made. And HSAC's testimony on these TAT bills was looking back at the past allegations and the original purpose of that tax. And we all know how critically important the maintenance of infrastructure is from the impacts of visitors to our community. Without any other further comments on that aspect of it, I just want to you all got an email to save the date for October 25h and 26h of this year as the dates for the HSAC Convention. And we will be hosting it here, and we are planning at this point for some sort of in-person event, understanding that there's a lot of uncertainty about what that may actually look like. Right now, the primary options in terms of venue are actually here in Hilo, and highlighting our local area, at Nani Loa; or at Hapuna. So we'll be providing more information on that shortly. The theme is "Recovery and Resilience." And so, Ms. Kierkiewicz's point earlier today about wanting to shuttle everybody around in electric or hydrogen busses, that's all going to be part of that theme. So if everybody can be brainstorming about how we might contribute to that theme. Good speakers to bring in; field trips that we can take our neighbor island guests to while they're here. And lastly, it will be an all-hands-on-deck sort of situation. My Legislative Assistant, Jennifer Kagiwada is taking the lead on this, but she's going to need the help of all your staff and you folks, and the Clerk's Office to help pull this off. We're thinking that everybody's going to be ready to get together by October and are hoping that the COVID restrictions will allow us to do so. Any questions about that again, early phases? And this is just an attempt to notify you folks about what the plans are. Alright, great. Thank you. Can I go ahead and call for the vote then on Comm. 170, all those in favor? Page 9 GOREDC-5 March 16,2021 Vote on Comm. 170: The motion to close file on Comm. 170 was carried by (Filed) the following voice vote: Ayes: Committee Members Chung, Inaba, Kaneali'i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Lee Loy, Richards, Villegas, and Chair Kimball— 8. Noes: None. Absent: Committee Member David— 1. Excused: None. ORDER OF The Chair directed the Committee to proceed to the next order of business, Order RESOLUTIONS: of Resolutions. (There were none.) BILLS FOR The Chair directed the Committee to proceed to the next order of business, ORDINANCES: Bills for Ordinances. (There were none.) CHR. KIMBALL: Alright, with that I will take a motion to adjourn. ADJOURN- There being no further business, at 3:10 p.m., Mr. Richards moved to adjourn MENT: the meeting. Seconded by Ms. Lee Loy and carried by the following voice vote: Ayes: Committee Members Chung, Inaba, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Lee Loy, Richards, Villegas, and Chair Kimball—8. Noes: None. Absent: Committee Member David— 1. Excused: None. CHR. KIMBALL: Alright, with that, we are adjourned. Mahalo. Approved: April 29, 2021 ii,,,,,,,,c12,, eather L. Kimbaair (Date) Government Operations, Relations, and Economic Development Committee HK/dt Page 10