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HomeMy WebLinkAboutBIL 180 Draft 01 2020-2022 AN ORDINANCE TO INITIATE AN AMENDMENT TO ARTICLE VIII OF THE HAWAI‘I COUNTY CHARTER (2020 EDITION), RELATING TO THE WATER BOARD AND THE DEPARTMENT OF WATER SUPPLY. BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE COUNTY OF HAWAI‘I: SECTION 1. Article VIII, section 8-2, of the Hawaiʻi County Charter (2020 Edition) is amended to read as follows: “Section 8-2. Water Board. The water board shall consist of nine members who shall be appointed by the mayor with the approval of the council in the manner prescribed in Section 13-4. Each of the nine council districts shall be represented by a resident appointed from that district. The manager-chief engineer of the department of water supply, a Department of Hawaiian Homelands representative, the planning director and the director of public works or their designated representatives shall serve as ex-officio members of the water board without power to vote. The water board shall: (a) Manage, control and operate the waterworks of the county and all property thereof. (b) Adopt rules and regulations which shall have the force and effect of law relating to the management, control, operation, preservation and protection of the waterworks of the county. (c) Adopt an annual operating and capital budget for the department, subject to the hearing and advertising provisions of Section 10-4. (d) Have the power to acquire by eminent domain, purchase, lease or otherwise, and to sell, lease, or otherwise convey real property in the name of the water board. (e) Have the authority to issue revenue bonds under the name of the water board. (f) Have such other powers and duties as may be provided by law. (g) Act in accordance with Section 13-29 and the relevant Public Trust Doctrine provisions of the Constitution of the State of Hawaiʻi.” SECTION 2. Article VIII, section 8-3, of the Hawai‘i County Charter (2020 Edition) is amended to read as follows: “Section 8-3. Manager-Chief Engineer and Deputy. (a) The manager-chief engineer of the department of water supply shall be appointed by the water board and may be removed by the water board. Any motion for removal of the manager of the department of water supply must contain a statement of reasons, and the board shall not vote to remove the manager of the department of water supply unless the manager of the department of water supply has been given an opportunity to respond to the statement of reasons at a hearing before the board. (b) The deputy shall be appointed by the manager-chief engineer with the confirmation of the water board and may be removed by the manager-chief engineer with the approval of the water board. (c) The manager-chief engineer shall be a registered engineer and shall have had a minimum of five years of experience in an administrative capacity. (d) The manager-chief engineer shall provide an annual report to the council within ninety days after the close of each fiscal year. The report shall include but not be limited to department priorities, annual budget, an inventory of real property held by the department as fee simple or lease, any proposed updates to the department rules and regulations, and the status of any applicable updates to the Hawaii water plan, and the County water use and development plan.” SECTION 3. Article VIII of the Hawai‘i County Charter (2020 Edition) is amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read as follows: “Section 8- . Native Hawaiian Water Rights. The contents of this article shall not be construed to amend or modify rights or entitlements to water as provided for in section 221 of the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act, 1920, as amended, or the rights customarily and traditionally exercised by Native Hawaiians for subsistence, cultural, and religious purposes in accordance with Article XII, Section 7, of the Constitution of the State of Hawaiʻi.” SECTION 4. Article VIII of the Hawai‘i County Charter (2020 Edition) is amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read as follows: “Section 8- . Water Board and Department of Water Supply Staff Training Requirements. In addition to any other training, each water board member, all staff assigned to support the water board, and management-level personnel of the department of water supply shall attend a Native Hawaiian law rights training course administered by the Office of Hawaiian Affairs or its official affiliates. Such training shall occur within one year of a water board member’s term of appointment or, in the case of department staff or management-level personnel, within one year from the date of hire. The manager-chief engineer may approve a twelve-month extension to complete this training when the manager-chief engineer determines that extenuating circumstances prevented the timely completion of training.”