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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMIN COUNCIL 2023-07-26 2022-2024 Hawaii County Council 181h Session West Hawaii Civic Center 74-5044 Ane Keohokalole Highway, Building A Kailua-Kona, Hawaii July 26, 2023 INVOCATION: Pastor Jason Meechan of Kona Faith Center gave the morning's invocation. CALL TO The regular meeting of the Hawaii County Council was called to order at ORDER: 9:17 a.m., in the Council Chambers, Kailua-Kona, by Ms. Heather L. Kimball, Chair. ROLL CALL: Present: Ms. Heather L. Kimball, Chair Mr. Holeka Goro Inaba, Vice Chair Ms. Michelle M. Galimba, Member Mr. Matt Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Member (came in later) Ms. Ashley L. Kierkiewicz, Member(via videoconference from Hilo) Ms. Susan L. K. Lee Loy, Member Ms. Rebecca Villegas, Member Absent& Excused: Ms. Cindy Evans, Member Ms. Jenn Kagiwada, Member PLEDGE OF The Chair directed the Council to the next order of business, Pledge of ALLEGIANCE: Allegiance. (At this time, County Clerk Jon Henricks led the Council in the Pledge of Allegiance.) PETITIONS, The Chair directed the Council to proceed to the next order of business, Petitions, MEMORIALS, Memorials, Certificates of Merit, and Expressions of Condolence. CERTIFICATES OF MERIT, AND (There were none.) EXPRESSIONS OF CONDOLENCE: STATEMENTS The Chair directed the Council to proceed to the next order of business, Statements FROM THE from the Public on Agenda Items. PUBLIC ON AGENDA ITEMS: (There were none.) Hawaii County Council-18 July 26,2023 CHR. KIMBALL: Mr. Clerk, we'll start at the top today. Actually, scratch that. Do we have ? MS. KIERKIEWICZ: Chair, we have commission nominee Trey Livingston here and a member of the Mayor's office. CHR. KIMBALL: Thank you, Council Member Kierkiewicz. Excuse me, Mr. Clerk, let's start with that report,please. Change Order As directed by the Chair and with no objection from the Council Members, the of Business: following items were taken out of order: GOEAC-55 NOMINATION OF TREY LIVINGSTON TO THE LEEWARD PLANNING (Comm. 335): COMMISSION Requires Council Confirmation by: July 29, 2023 (Section 134(k), Hawaii County Charter) Motion to Approve: Ms. Lee Loy moved to adopt Governmental Operations and External Affairs Committee Report No. 55. Seconded by Ms. Galimba. CHR. KIMBALL: We have the nominee in the Hilo Chambers, and I don't know if—do we have anyone over there from the Administration? MS. KIERKIEWICZ: Yes, we do, Chair. We have Pomai Bartolome and Alexy Katko. CHR. KIMBALL: All right, great. I invite you both up to the table, if you'd like to say anything before we begin deliberations. (Note: At this time, Executive Assistant to the Mayor Pomaika`i Bartolome and nominee Trey Livingston came forward to address the members of the Council.) MR. LIVINGSTON: Good morning, Council. Thanks for having me again, and wish we were all face-to-face but glad we have the opportunity at least via camera to make this happen. Somethings that I just wanted to go back on from our last discussion, I'd like to clarify the definition of development to me is much broader than just housing. I think that's a significant part of it, but it really goes into improvement and progress. And we talked about where do I see Kona in 50 years. I think that one came up a few times. Really, I would like to see Kona just as the best place to be a kid, still in 50 years, rather than list out all the improvements that kind of go with that, like good education, good health care and Page 2 Hawaii County Council-18 July 26,2023 infrastructure, etcetera. I think it really just comes down to it was a really good spot to be a kid and I hope it continues to be that way, a good family town, as well as Kohala. And then what I mean by development being much broader, it's not just houses. It's like access to the ocean and having good boat ramps, water, wastewater, all that is taken care of, enough housing so that it's affordable for the whole spread of a community, not just wealthy. It also is beyond just like the hard development and what you see physically. It's having good plans and programs and all of that available to the community. And then lastly, I just wanted to touch that we talked about a lot of my personal beliefs and things last time and my perceptions. I'm a professional and any personal interest or perceived interest is left at the door. And any application in front of me is going to be evaluated based on the facts of the application, any testimony received, and then the laws and applicable codes that might apply to that. And I think I bring a diverse background. I think we all have experience in our area, in our town, but we all see life through slightly different lenses. I see it through a kid that grew up in South Kona, someone who went through the military, but then I also see it through the lens that was formed from my degree. And I think that's unique from what all the other members of the commission have. So that's really beneficial. You've got seven members on there reviewing an application, and we're all bringing something different in so we can have a really good discussion. And I promise that if brought onto the commission, that I'll be prepared, I'll be there, and I will be engaged and engaging. That's all, thanks. CHR. KIMBALL: Thank you very much, Mr. Livingston. And, Pomai, anything to add, Ms. Bartolome? MS. BARTOLOME: Actually, on behalf of the Administration, first and foremost, I just wanted to thank Trey for showing up, and also for his time and effort and willingness and interest to serve on a County board and commission. As you know, it's really not that simple to find volunteers to serve on all of these different boards and commissions. So, on behalf of the Administration, we really appreciate all of our volunteers. So thank you. And then to all of our Council Members, I'm really hoping that you give him a chance to serve on this board and really bring forth all of his expertise, his education. I just have to point out serving in the U.S. (United States) Air Force, my son, right now, is in England serving as a firefighter. And so, as I look at Trey, I think about my son and, you know, again,just giving everyone the Page 3 Hawaii County Council-18 July 26,2023 opportunity and the chance to serve and do what it is that we're asking, we're seeking, and to make an impact and a difference, and to also be an example to the rest of our community. And not to age anyone out, but his generation stepping forward and serving and, again, being that example. So thank you so much, Council Members, and thank you, Trey. CHR. KIMBALL: Thank you, Ms. Bartolome. Okay, at this point, we'll go to deliberations from the body. Any questions or comments on this nomination? Council Member Villegas. MS. VILLEGAS: Aloha, Mr. Livingston. Thank you for taking the time and consideration to kind of recalibrate and redefine some of the terms that we talked about last time. I appreciate your humility and your willingness to serve, and your heart for this community and for future generations to be able to grow up in a similar capacity and with a similar experience to yours. Unfortunately, for my own personal and professional reasons today, I won't be forwarding your nomination or voting in support of your nomination. However, I would like for you to understand that it hasI appreciate you as a person and your willingness to serve and all that it takes to come here and sit in this uncomfortable space. I express my gratitude for my counterparts on the Council who recognize the incredible responsibility and difficult role we play in representing our vote for our constituents for either the Leeward or the Windward Planning Commissions. I would hope that—and I feel it's important and it's valid for us to support one another's perceptions on who and why and how we approve of those that represent the planning commissions on our respective sides of the island, because the decisions made there impact the people that live in those regions very directly, and they have far reaching and far standing consequences. So thank you, Mr. Livingston, for being here. We'll see what the rest of my counterparts say, but thank you again for being here and for your humility and reconsideration on your definitions of things since our last meeting. I yield. CHR. KIMBALL: Thank you, Council Member Villegas. Anyone else? Council Member Inaba. MR. INABA: Thank you. Good morning, Mr. Livingston. Thank you for the opportunity to talk story with you offline since our last meeting. As I shared it, I didn't know how I was going to vote today. And I believe you have the education that nobody else has currently on the Leeward Planning Commission, and obviously professional experience as well, looking at your resume. What I'm concerned about right now is that I feel we are lacking a Hawaiian cultural art. We're lacking Hawaiian cultural knowledge and perspective on the Leeward Planning Commission, which I think is really important. We do have Page 4 Hawaii County Council-18 July 26,2023 one commissioner who brings that perspective, but I don't feel that that's enough right now where we are in Kona and what we're seeing with development and where we're needing to have `ike Hawaii, and that perspective a part of, not just decision-making, but the conversations that happen in the commission. And for that reason, I'm not going to be able to support your nomination or your confirmation today. Mahalo, Chair, I yield. CHR. KIMBALL: Thank you, Vice Chair Inaba. Anyone else? MS. KIERKIEWICZ: Chair? CHR. KIMBALL: Go ahead, Council Member Kierkiewicz. MS. KIERKIEWICZ: Thank you. Trey, thanks for being here. I just wanted to take a moment to let you know that I will continue to be supporting your nomination. I mean you're here before me, local boy just wanting make things better for future generations. So I certainly don't doubt your commitment to this place and for making decisions that ensure that future generations are able to call this place home, and that we have our natural cultural resources protected. I have not doubted you for a single moment, and I think you would add balance and valuable perspective to the body. And so I will continue to support your nomination. Thank you, Chair, I yield. CHR. KIMBALL: Thank you, Council Member Kierkiewicz. Anyone else over here? Council Member Galimba. MS. GALIMBA: I just wanted to say thanks, Trey, for showing up. I think you bring a lot of good things to the community, and I will continue to support you in your nomination, although it doesn't look like you'll have the votes. I do understand the perspective of my other colleagues from Kona about needing more sort of Native Hawaiian perspective on the council. However, I don't feel like that doesn't mean that you're not a good commission member. So I will continue to support you. Thanks again, I yield. CHR. KIMBALL: Thank you, Council Member Galimba. Council Member Lee Loy. MS. LEE LOY: Yeah, thank you, Chair. I wasn't going to say anything, but listening to my colleagues, absolutely, thank you, Trey, for showing up. Oftentimes, a lot of these spaces, people just don't show up and engage enough. So really do appreciate you taking the time out and advancing your name. I also am reflective of what my Kona colleagues are saying about the need, and it's challenging when you want to try and Frankenstein a possible candidate. But here on the Council, we have diverse opinions and we're all here and we all need to learn to work together. I think you being in that space would really broaden Page 5 Hawaii County Council-18 July 26,2023 that discussion, but as Ms. Galimba said, we can read the room a little bit. I will continue to support you. And if there's anything else you want to tackle, please, count on me. I'll be more than happy to help write a letter of recommendation and help advance you in this community. I yield. CHR. KIMBALL: Thank you, Council Member Lee Loy. With that, I'll just also thank you, Mr. Livingston, for taking the time to be here today again. Thank you for your patience with our slow start to the meeting. I think your educational background with the experience in planning as well as GIS (Geographic Information System) lends well to this particular position on the commission. And I'll say, additionally, a few of us had the benefit of being physically present with you during the hearing in Committee, and I have to say, do think it makes a difference; like I could get a better sense of you in person than via video, and I really did get a sense of earnestness. And while I know that there is concern about your chosen profession, I think that there's a lot to be said for you're in a family business, and you've made it clear that you're not seeking development for development's sake or for profit. And I could sense that in our conversation at the last hearing. So I think it's difficult to find people with your expertise that are willing to serve in this voluntary capacity, so I do want to mahalo you for that and for being here and at the previous hearing. With that, I'd like to, Clerk, please do a roll call. Vote on The motion to adopt Governmental Operations and GOEAC-55: External Affairs Committee Report No. 55 failed by Failed the following roll call vote. Ayes: Council Members Galimba, Kierkiewicz, Lee Loy, and Chair Kimball —4. Noes: Council Members Inaba and Villegas —2. Absent: Council Members Evans, Kagiwada, and Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder—3. Excused: None. MR. HENRICKS: The motion fails. CHR. KIMBALL: Thank you, Mr. Clerk. Again,thank you, Mr. Livingston, for being here. And thank you, Ms. Bartolome, for your time. At this point, let's go to Bill 52. MR. HENRICKS: Madam Chair, it was brought to my attention that Ms. Palma- Glennie was able to connect and would you allow her to testify on her items at this point before we move forward on any other items? CHR. KIMBALL: Thank you, Mr. Clerk. To our testifier, given that you were having some connection difficulty earlier, I offer the opportunity to testify on all Page 6 Hawaii County Council-18 July 26,2023 the items here at this point, or you're also welcome to wait until we get to the items on the agenda and speak specifically to the item. We have a fairly short agenda today, so not that I think it will go quickly, but your choice if you'd like to do all of your testimony now or in advance of the item. (Note: At this time, Janice Palma-Glennie, testifier, came forward to address the members of the Council.) MS. PALMA-GLENNIE: Mahalo, Chairwoman. I was only going to testify regarding the appointment. Mr. Livingston, I appreciate that. I'm not going to testify on the rest of the items today. I appreciate that. Thank you very much. (See Comm. 335.4) CHR. KIMBALL: Thank you. Thank you for taking the time to be here. All right, with that, we will move to Bill 52,please, for second and final reading. Bill 52: REPEALS ORDINANCE NO. 98-63, WHICH AMENDED ORDINANCE NO. 95-70, AND REPEALS ORDINANCE NO. 95-70, WHICH AMENDED SECTION 25-86 (NORTH AND SOUTH KONA DISTRICTS ZONE MAP), ARTICLE 3, CHAPTER 25 (ZONING CODE) OF THE HAWAII COUNTY CODE, BY CHANGING THE DISTRICT CLASSIFICATION FROM AGRICULTURAL-TWENTY ACRES (A-20a) TO AGRICULTURAL-ONE ACRE (A-la), AGRICULTURAL-THREE ACRES (A-3a), AGRICULTURAL- TWO HUNDRED ACRES (A-200a), AGRICULTURAL-TWO HUNDRED FIFTY-FIVE ACRES (A-255a), AND AGRICULTURAL—EIGHT THOUSAND ACRES (A-8000a) AT KEALAKEKUA, KILOA, WAIPUNAULA, KALAMA KUMU, AND KALAMAKOWALI, SOUTH KONA, HAWAII, COVERED BY TAX MAP KEYS: 8-2-012:001, 012, 014 (POR.), 015, AND 8-2-001:101 (FORMERLY TAX MAP KEYS: 8-2-012:012 AND A PORTION OF 001) (Planning Director Initiated) (Area: Approx. 11,185.708 acres) Due to the lack of quorum, the Leeward Planning Commission forwards its unfavorable recommendation to repeal the change of zoning district clarification for five parcels located approximately 1.2 miles east of the Hawaii Belt Road in the vicinity of Greenwell Mountain Road and extending approximately 8.6 miles further east. The repeal would revert the zoning of these lands back to the Agricultural 20-acres (A-20a) zoning district. Reference: Comm. 326 Intr. by: Mr. Inaba(B/R) First Reading: July 6, 2023 Motion to Approve: Mr. Inaba moved to pass Bill 52 on second and final reading. Seconded by Ms. Lee Loy. CHR. KIMBALL: Vice Chair Inaba. Page 7 Hawaii County Council-18 July 26,2023 MR. INABA: Thank you. No discussion. I ask for my colleagues' support. Mahalo. CHR. KIMBALL: Thank you. Any other discussion? Seeing none, all those in favor please say "aye." Vote on Bill 52: The motion to pass Bill 52 on second and final reading was (Adopted) carried by the following voice vote: Ayes: Council Members Galimba, Inaba, Kierkiewicz, Lee Loy, Villegas, and Chair Kimball—6. Noes: None. Absent: Council Members Evans, Kagiwada, and Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder—3. Excused: None. CHR. KIMBALL: We'll take it to the top of the agenda, please. Return to Order The Chair directed the Council to return to the order of business. of Business: ORDER OF The Chair directed the Council to proceed to the next order of business, Order of RESOLUTIONS: Resolutions. Res. 196-23: AUTHORIZES THE PAYMENT OF FUNDS OF A LATER FISCAL YEAR AND OF MORE THAN ONE FISCAL YEAR FOR A MULTI-YEAR LICENSE AGREEMENT OF REAL PROPERTY FOR THE COUNTY OF HAWAII DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION WITH EDMUND C. OLSON TRUST, OWNER OF TAX MAP KEY: 2-6-008:026 IN HILO, HAWAII Authorizes the Mayor to enter into a 10-year license agreement commencing on August 1, 2023, and ending on July 31, 2033, for a yearly fee of one dollar for the installation of fencing to restrict access of feral pigs and other wild animals. Reference: Comm. 333 Intr. by: Ms. Kimball Approve: LAAC-24 Page 8 Hawaii County Council-18 July 26,2023 Vote on Res. 196-23: Ms. Lee Loy moved to adopt Res. 196-23 and Legislative (Adopted) Approvals and Acquisitions Committee Report No. 24. Seconded by Ms. Galimba and carried by the following voice vote: Ayes: Council Members Galimba, Inaba, Kierkiewicz, Lee Loy, Villegas, and Chair Kimball—6. Noes: None. Absent: Council Members Evans, Kagiwada, and Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder—3. Excused: None. Res. 199-23: URGES GOVERNOR JOSH GREEN, M.D., TO ISSUE AN EMERGENCY PROCLAMATION TO PROVIDE RELIEF FOR DAMAGES, LOSSES, AND SUFFERING AND TO PROTECT THE HEALTH, SAFETY, AND WELFARE OF THE PEOPLE AFFECTED BY THE HAZARDOUS CONDITIONS AT THE PROPERTY FORMERLY KNOWN AS UNCLE BILLY'S HILO BAY HOTEL Seeks to expedite the removal of blighted structures that pose a risk to the community based on numerous fires, squatters, illegal activity, and security issues that were reported since its closure in 2017. Reference: Comm. 339 Intr. by: Ms. Lee Loy Approve: GOEAC-56 (Note: Comms. 339.12 and 339.13, from Council Member Susan L. K. Lee Loy dated July 17 and 26, 2023, respectively, transmitting proposed amendments to Res. 199-23, were circulated.) Motion to Approve: Ms. Lee Loy moved to adopt Res. 199-23 and Governmental Operations and External Affairs Committee Report No. 56. Seconded by Ms. Galimba. CHR. KIMBALL: Council Member Lee Loy. MS. LEE LOY: Thank you, Chair. We've had a lot of development around this particular resolution and if I could just take a few minutes. I have a couple of amendments that I'd like to introduce. I've asked Judge Strance to help share her analysis and evaluation of the emergency proclamation that was issued by Governor Green and then our Clerk to help us with one of the amendments that I have. Motion to Amend: Ms. Lee Loy moved to amend Res. 199-23 with the contents of Comm. 339.12. Seconded by Mr. Inaba. CHR. KIMBALL: Go ahead, Council Member Lee Loy. Page 9 Hawaii County Council-18 July 26,2023 MS. LEE LOY: Thank you, Chair. Contained within this amendment is just some updated information since the last hearing of this resolution. My staff, thank you again,put together a more accurate number of times that the board met on this matter. And then listening to the testimony and my colleagues' discussion at our last committee meeting, there definitely was a desire to create a listening session about concerns and how to move forward at Banyan Drive as a whole. And so I've added a 14'h "WHEREAS" clause that my office would commit to facilitating up to two listening sessions to involve stakeholder conversation. And then during testimony at that last meeting, there was a desire from other community stakeholders to be part of that conversation. And so I've added in our Planning Director, our Housing Administrator, Friends of Lili`uokalani Gardens, and Friends of Historic Banyan Drive and the East Hawaii Outdoor Circle. Ask for my colleagues' support on this amendment. CHR. KIMBALL: Thank you, Council Member Lee Loy. Any discussion on the amendment? Council Member Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder. MR. KANEALI`I-KLEINFELDER: Thank you very much. I was thinking about this resolution at our Committee meetings, and then I saw the movement by the State and the Governor. And I was like I totally understand why the resolution, and I appreciate the speed in which you brought this forward. And it just ties in well with everything that's going on, so I'll be supporting this. Thank you. CHR. KIMBALL: Thank you, Council Member Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder. Any further discussion on the amendment? Seeing none, all those in favor in amending Resolution 199-23 with the contents of Communication 339.12,please say "aye." Vote on Motion to The motion to amend Res. 199-23 with the contents of Amend: Comm. 339.12 was carried by the following voice vote: (Approved) Ayes: Council Members Galimba, Inaba, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Lee Loy, Villegas, and Chair Kimball—7. Noes: None. Absent: Council Members Evans and Kagiwada—2. Excused: None. Page 10 Hawaii County Council-18 July 26,2023 Vote on Motion to Ms. Lee Loy moved to suspend Council Rule 23 to waive Suspend Council the holdover for the substantive amendment of Res. 199-23. Rules: Seconded by Ms. Galimba and carried by the following voice vote: Ayes: Council Members Galimba, Inaba, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Lee Loy, Villegas, and Chair Kimball–7. Noes: None. Absent: Council Members Evans and Kagiwada–2. Excused: None. CHR. KIMBALL: Again, back to the main motion, Council Member. MS. LEE LOY: Thank you. And trying to stick with current events. Again, thank you to Governor Green and DLNR (Department of Land and Natural Resources) Chair Dawn Chang for their swift response on issuing the Emergency Proclamation. Motion to Amend: Ms. Lee Loy moved to amend Res. 199-23 with the contents of Comm. 339.13. Seconded by Mr. Inaba. MS. LEE LOY: All right, slowly walking everyone through this one. Because of the recent developments—hang on, I'm looking at my colleagues if they all have 13. Great. I've amended the title to actually express our gratitude to Governor Green for issuing the Emergency Proclamation and urge the Department of Land and Natural Resources to communicate the critical pathway and time line to ensure efficient implementation and coordination with the County. I'd actually kindly ask for our Clerk to step in because this is an amendment of the title. And I just want to provide my colleagues with the confidence that this amendment is in alignment with our rules and procedures, and larger policy rules and procedures. Mr. Clerk. (Note: At this time, County Clerk Jon Henricks came forward to address the members of the Council.) MR. HENRICKS: Madam Chair, may I speak? CHR. KIMBALL: Yes, please. MR. HENRICKS: Thank you. Thank you for that discretion to be concerned about these things. We need to be concerned when we're amending titles to bills; not allowed. But resolutions essentially can be amended. There are no restrictions on amendments to resolutions, so I don't see any issue with the proposal in 339.13. Thank you. Page 11 Hawaii County Council-18 July 26,2023 CHR. KIMBALL: Thank you, Mr. Clerk. MS. LEE LOY: If I may continue? CHR. KIMBALL: Go ahead. MS. LEE LOY: Thank you, Chair. In addition to an adjustment to the title, I also made that reflective within the body of the resolution and finally added in another "BE IT RESOLVED"to identify that the Council hereby urges the Department of Land and Natural Resources Chair, Dawn Chang, to communicate the critical pathway, time line, and responsibilities of stakeholders to ensure efficient implementation and coordination with the County of Hawaii. At this time, I'd like to kindly ask Judge Strance to come forward and unveil to this body the emergency proclamation itself and her analysis of what that actually does for this particular property, and how it dovetails nicely, as my colleague Mr. Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder mentioned. It's coagulating real nice. Judge Strance, go ahead. (Note: At this time, Corporation Counsel Elizabeth Strance came forward to address the members of the Council.) MS. STRANCE: Thank you. Good morning. Elizabeth Strance, Corporation Counsel. You folks know by now, following the Committee hearing on the resolution, the Governor issued an emergency proclamation. Prior to the issuance of the proclamation, I was asked for some input on the content. I wasn't given a lot of time to be collaborative. But because I had attended the hearing on this where there were some statements made regarding potential hazards on the property, and some of the other challenges and concerns that were raised, we were able to provide some input that addresses those concerns. I think it's important to understand the time line, and it's reflected in Council Member Lee Loy's amendment, regarding the number of times this matter was heard before the DLNR. And actually up until even this spring, they were looking at remediation of the building itself. And so, since that time, the determination has been made that the building cannot be made safe. And so there's been a sense of urgency to take action to bring down the building because it is a hazardous place, both environmentally and to the health and safety of the trespassers who have gone there and any type of law enforcement or officials that would go on the property to try to enforce laws or to try to make the place a little bit more safe. And so theI think that the proclamation, as written, is pretty thoughtful. It states that the property is now abandoned because the hotel cannot safely be repaired. A particular concern that I had was when I think it was sort of Page 12 Hawaii County Council-18 July 26,2023 expressed at the last hearing, is whether the County is going to get saddled with responsibility. The property itself is state-owned, and so whatever hazards are on the property are its obligation. And so one of the "WHEREAS" clauses states that the State must urgently 1) build a perimeter fence to physically secure the property; 2) demolish and remove the hotel structure and hazardous materials, as repair was determined to be infeasible in an architectural assessment for the property, and in any event cannot be completed in time to reduce the public health and safety risks; and 3) restoration of the site, including hazardous abatement to the extent permitted by the available funds. The resolution also recites, in some detail, the condition of the property that "despite regular security presence, the lack of repairs, maintenance, and operations has contributed to unsafe, unhealthy, and hazardous conditions at the property and abandoned hotel. These include overall structural decay, unabated hazardous materials, fire damage, water intrusion, falling ceilings, exposed rebar, overflowing sewage, mold, and mildew. These unsafe and unhealthy conditions endanger the lives of members of the public, adjoining hotel patrons, and trespassers, as well as law enforcement officers and other first responders who have responded frequently to service/incident calls to the property." And in that context, the emergency proclamation is issued. There is concern about the suspension of State and County laws. I think it's important to take that in context, that the State does not have authority to suspend Federal laws. So to the extent there's worry about ocean pollution, asbestos, or lead, or things like that, there are Federal laws that are governing the State's conduct and demolition of the structure. These emergency proclamations I think are viewed sometimes as, oh, the State's going to come in and completely ignore any public comment or input by County or County officials. My experience through COVID (coronavirus disease) and a number of other state-issued proclamations is that really isn't the case. There is a collaborative process. I think the amendments that Council Member Lee Loy presents, however, is important in terms of asking for periodic time lines and a plan by the State so that the community is aware of what to expect. There are a number of government-stood up working groups that appear to be in various stages of activity. And so I think one of the actions that we can take as a County is to identify what are they and how active are they; and to the extent that they are County groups, that they either be activated or put to rest. And then if there's something else that you want to stand up, to stand up. Because, the whole Banyan Drive is of interest to I know this body as well as a lot of other people. But in terms of the proclamation itself, I think it's well-stated and articulated. It succinctly states what the problem is and what they intend to do, and that there is Page 13 Hawaii County Council-18 July 26,2023 an urgency to make the property uninhabitable so as to remove the attractiveness of it and to begin to address some of the conditions on the property. So, with that, if there's any questions, I can answer them. Hopefully, that's what you were intending from me, Council Member Lee Loy. MS. LEE LOY: Thank you, Judge. Excellent overview. And again, I'm kind of fall forward on this one. So much things have happened since our last meeting, including a weather event that held this over. What I really do appreciate of what Judge Strance mentioned is we all have an active role in this. And we have a number of different advisory boards and commissions that are at different levels of activeness, as she put it. And this would really allow us to bring all of those various boards and commissions together and identify their roles and/or come up with a more focused guideline. And finally, what this amendment does is move the goalpost a little bit more again, asking for the department to come up with that critical pathway and time line so that we can see a lot more action at Banyan Drive that really will benefit all of Hilo. With that, I continue to ask for my colleagues' support on the adjustments to make this resolution reflective of real-time conversations that are happening. I yield. CHR. KIMBALL: Thank you, Council Member Lee Loy. All right, any other discussion on the second amendment to Resolution 199-23 before we go back to the motion? Go ahead, Council Member Galimba. MS. GALIMBA: Thanks. I was just kind of googling "critical pathway" because, yeah, I hadn't really heard that term. And I see here that we have a critical path method for project management. Is that what you're aiming at? MS. LEE LOY: Absolutely. It is a term of art when it's used in identifying various time lines and times to meet different things at different times so that the funding, along with just getting the project done within a respective amount of time, is met. One thing that Judge Strance can confirm is actually this particular emergency proclamation has a sunset deadline of September, and that's four short months, or now three short months, off. And so there is a lot of urgency to get these things done, and that critical pathway and time lines will help us meet those goals and objectives to meet the sunset deadline of the emergency proclamation. CHR. KIMBALL: Thank you, Council Member Lee Loy. Any other discussion on the amendment? All right, let's take care of that. All those in favor of amending Res. 199-23 with the contents Comm. 339.13,please say "aye." Page 14 Hawaii County Council-18 July 26,2023 Vote on Motion to The motion to amend Res. 199-23 with the contents of Amend: Comm. 339.13 was carried by the following voice vote: (Approved) Ayes: Council Members Galimba, Inaba, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Lee Loy, Villegas, and Chair Kimball—7. Noes: None. Absent: Council Members Evans and Kagiwada—2. Excused: None. CHR. KIMBALL: Council Member Lee Loy, another motion to waive the rule. Vote on Motion to Ms. Lee Loy moved to suspend Council Rule 23 to waive Suspend Council the holdover for the substantive amendment of Res. 199-23. Rules: Seconded by Mr. Inaba and carried by the following voice vote: Ayes: Council Members Galimba, Inaba, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Lee Loy, Villegas, and Chair Kimball—7. Noes: None. Absent: Council Members Evans and Kagiwada—2. Excused: None. CHR. KIMBALL: Okay, back to the main motion. Council Member Lee Loy, anything to add before discussion? MS. LEE LOY: Just we have something really nice and tight and wrapped up as best I could. Just adjusting to all the current events. Thank you, Judge Strance, for your analysis. Thank you, Jon Henricks, our Clerk, for working with my office. Thank you to my staff. And a great mahalo to Governor Green and Chair Dawn Chang for their swift response to something that definitely has been a challenge for a long time in Hilo. I ask for my colleagues' support. I yield. CHR. KIMBALL: Thank you, Council Member Lee Loy. Let me go to Council Member Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder first here. MR. KANEALI`I-KLEINFELDER: Thank you, Chair. I'll be lending my support to this. I read through the MOU (Memorandum of Understanding) that was provided from the Governor in his emergency proclamation, and the one thing that stood out to me was the September, I think, deadline for the finish of work. Is that not in there? MS. STRANCE: I see that September date in the proclamation. My suspicion, without knowing more, is that's the statutory expiration date under Chapter 127A. Emergency proclamations have a 60-day life unless extended. And so, normally, Page 15 Hawaii County Council-18 July 26,2023 these are issued and then they are continued. And so it would be surprising to me whether all that needs to be done is going to happen before the end of September, and it wouldn't surprise me if this is extended. MR. KANEALI`I-KLEINFELDER: Understood. I am hopeful. When I read that, I was like, "Wow!" So, three months, they're going to be done, wrap it up. They're not even going to make two months. So, if they do, great. If they don't and they extend it, okay. But the biggest thing was getting some movement on this and taking care of the drug problem and the crime problem in the area, and making that downtown Banyan Drive more safe. So I'll be supporting this today. And I just really appreciate Governor Green taking that quick action towards this issue we've had in Hilo for a long time. Mahalo, Ms. Lee Loy, for bringing this forward. CHR. KIMBALL: Thank you, Council Member. Any other discussion? MS. KIERKIEWICZ: Chair? CHR. KIMBALL: Yes, go ahead, Council Member Kierkiewicz. MS. KIERKIEWICZ: Thank you. I just wanted to take a moment to mahalo nui Council Member Lee Loy. I mean, there's a lot of work that goes on behind the scenes to bring folks together. It's not always easy to work intergovernmentally. So I just want to thank you for all of your hard work to bring everybody together, to really highlight the issue and to get the Governor's office to move so incredibly quickly; and to also get Chair Chang here to just showcase the commitment of DLNR to take some serious action in Banyan Drive, which is really a vibrant hub of our community life for residents and visitors. And I've always considered Banyan Drive to be quite the gem. And it just needs some polishing so that it can fully realize its luster and true potential. So thank you, Council Member Lee Loy. I really look forward to all of the work that is going to be restarted to ensure that we are cherishing our natural/cultural resources, that we are nurturing responsible economic growth, that all of us who have grown up in the islands and frequent Banyan Drive, and to new residents, that we can fully appreciate the transformation of this space. So, well done and thank you very much. I yield. CHR. KIMBALL: Thank you, Council Member Kierkiewicz. Anyone else? Judge Strance, did you have an additional comment you wanted to make quickly before we go to the vote? MS. STRANCE: Not really;just to kind of chime in with Council Member Kierkiewicz. I think you have a good partner with Ms. Chang from DLNR. She Page 16 Hawaii County Council-18 July 26,2023 seems to be very responsive, at least in my (inaudible)proclamation in communicating, at least with me, about the content and that doesn't always happen, and it was very appreciated. CHR. KIMBALL: Thank you. Council Member Galimba. MS. GALIMBA: Briefly, I also just wanted to thank Council Member Lee Loy for her action; very inspirational and definitely needed to get done. So thank you. CHR. KIMBALL: Thank you, Council Member Galimba. Anyone else? Council Member Lee Loy. MS. LEE LOY: Thank you, Chair, for this opportunity. Mr. Kaneali`i- Kleinfelder touched on it. What's contained now in the resolution is that development of the time line. And as Judge Strance mentioned, we can guess that there's going to be a need to extend this. But the time line that gets developed will help the Governor and Chair Chang to really identify how much time is needed and really manage expectations to ensure things get done at Banyan Drive. Again, we continue to collaborate a lot. Judge Strance, along with the mayor, the State Department of Land and Natural Resources, and even members of the Board of Land and Natural Resources have been responsive of identifying things and placing them on the agenda for decision-making. And we have some real momentum right now, and so I'm just really excited and hopeful for Hilo. I yield. CHR. KIMBALL: Thank you, Council Member Lee Loy. With that, all those in favor of adopting Res. 199-23, as amended, please say "aye." Vote on Res. 199-23: The motion to adopt Res. 199-23, as amended to Draft 2, Draft 2 was carried by the following voice vote: (Adopted) Ayes: Council Members Galimba, Inaba, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Lee Loy, Villegas, and Chair Kimball—7. Noes: None. Absent: Council Members Evans and Kagiwada—2. Excused: None. Page 17 Hawaii County Council-18 July 26,2023 Res. 200-23: TRANSFERS/APPROPRIATES AN APPROPRIATION OUT AND FROM A DESIGNATED FUND ACCOUNT AND CREDITS SAME TO A DESIGNATED FUND ACCOUNT TO PROVIDE A GRANT TO BIG ISLAND RESOURCE CONSERVATION AND DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL TO SUPPORT THE 37TH ANNUAL BIG ISLAND PRO-AM SURFING TRIALS EVENT Transfers $1,500 from the Clerk-Council Services —Contingency Relief account (Council District 2); and credits to the Department of Liquor Control, Other Current Expenses account. Reference: Comm. 356 Intr. by: Ms. Kagiwada (Note: Comm. 356.1, from Council Member Jenn Kagiwada dated July 24, 2023, transmitting proposed amendments to Res. 200-23, was circulated.) Motion to Approve: Ms. Lee Loy moved to adopt Res. 200-23. Seconded by Ms. Galimba. CHR. KIMBALL: Council Member Lee Loy, I believe you have an amendment from Jennifer's office. Motion to Amend: Ms. Lee Loy moved to amend Res. 200-23 with the contents of Comm. 356.1. Seconded by Ms. Galimba. CHR. KIMBALL: I think this is pretty straightforward. I don't know that you have anything to add to the discussion, Council Member Lee Loy. So it looks like it's just the changing of the account name here. All those in favor of the amendment, please say "aye." Vote on Motion to The motion to amend Res. 200-23 with the contents of Amend: Comm. 356.1 was carried by the following voice vote: (Approved) Ayes: Council Members Galimba, Inaba, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Lee Loy, Villegas, and Chair Kimball—7. Noes: None. Absent: Council Members Evans and Kagiwada—2. Excused: None. Page 18 Hawaii County Council-18 July 26,2023 Vote on Motion to Ms. Lee Loy moved to suspend Council Rule 23 to waive Suspend Council the holdover for the substantive amendment of Res. 200-23. Rules: Seconded by Ms. Galimba and carried by the following voice vote: Ayes: Council Members Galimba, Inaba, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Lee Loy, Villegas, and Chair Kimball—7. Noes: None. Absent: Council Members Evans and Kagiwada—2. Excused: None. CHR. KIMBALL: Back to the main motion. With the Council's leeway, I will just mention this is an event happening any time the waves are up here in the next month. So keep your fingers crossed. This would be at Honoli`i, so we'll keep our eyes out and let folks know when it's taking place. But both Council Member Kagiwada and I were eager to support this really fun and local activity. All those in favor of adopting Resolution 200-23, as amended, please say "aye." Vote on Res. 200-23: The motion to adopt Res. 200-23, as amended to Draft 2, Draft 2 was carried by the following voice vote: (Adopted) Ayes: Council Members Galimba, Inaba, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Lee Loy, Villegas, and Chair Kimball—7. Noes: None. Absent: Council Members Evans and Kagiwada—2. Excused: None. CHR. KIMBALL: Resolution 200-23 is adopted. Res. 205-23: TRANSFERS/APPROPRIATES AN APPROPRIATION OUT AND FROM A DESIGNATED FUND ACCOUNT AND CREDITS SAME TO A DESIGNATED FUND ACCOUNT TO PROVIDE A GRANT TO BIG ISLAND RESOURCE CONSERVATION AND DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL FOR THE 37TH ANNUAL BIG ISLAND PRO-AM SURFING TRIALS Transfers $2,500 from the Clerk-Council Services —Contingency Relief account (Council District 1); and credits to the Department of Liquor Control, Public Programs account. Reference: Comm. 366 Intr. by: Ms. Kimball Motion to Approve: Ms. Lee Loy moved to adopt Res. 205-23. Seconded by Ms. Galimba. Page 19 Hawaii County Council-18 July 26,2023 CHR. KIMBALL: Again, this is a CRF (Contingency Relief Fund) from my district. I hope for my colleagues' support. Any further discussion? Seeing none, all those in favor please say "aye." Vote on Res. 205-23: The motion to adopt Res. 205-23 was carried by the (Adopted) following voice vote: Ayes: Council Members Galimba, Inaba, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Lee Loy, Villegas, and Chair Kimball—7. Noes: None. Absent: Council Members Evans and Kagiwada—2. Excused: None. CHR. KIMBALL: Resolution 205-23 is adopted. Res. 206-23: APPROVES THE NOMINATION OF MEMBERS TO THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF COUNTIES (NACo) BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND THE WESTERN INTERSTATE REGION (WIR) BOARD OF DIRECTORS Requests the Council's approval of the following slates of officers: NACo— KipuKai Kuali`i, Kauai County; Tommy Waters, City and County of Honolulu; and Ashley L. Kierkiewicz, Hawaii County; and WIR—Shane Sinenci, Maui County, and Susan L. K. Lee Loy, Hawaii County; for terms beginning on July 1, 2023. Reference: Comm. 368 Intr. by: Ms. Kimball Waived: GOEAC Motion to Approve: Ms. Lee Loy moved to adopt Res. 206-23. Seconded by Ms. Galimba. CHR. KIMBALL: Any discussion? This is just a procedural resolution for our HSAC (Hawai`i State Association of Counties) membership. But I just wanted to mahalo Council Member Kierkiewicz and Council Member Lee Loy for serving on our behalf at the national level on these two boards. So thank you very much for your service for us. MS. KIERKIEWICZ: Chair, could I just mention a couple things? CHR. KIMBALL: Sure. Of course. MS. KIERKIEWICZ: Since Council Member Lee Loy and I are just fresh back from Texas, attending the National Association of Counties Annual Conference, I Page 20 Hawaii County Council-18 July 26,2023 also happen to vice chair the Policy Steering Committee for Community, Economic and Workforce Development. I had advanced a couple of policy resolutions. One was related to permanently reauthorizing the CDBG-DR (Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery) disaster recovery program because during and following a disaster is not the time to be setting up the bureaucratic channels to process paperwork and funding. And Hawaii County has great experience in that, and we want to make sure that, going forward, those DR (disaster recovery) allocations go straight to the County. And so that resolution was adopted, and that's something that NACo (National Association of Counties) is going to be advocating for in the halls of Congress. In addition to that, I have put forward another resolution related to WIOA, the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, asking for reauthorization and also increased investment. We just have to do abetter job as a country, ensuring that there are mechanisms and supports in place to help youthopportunity, youth, veterans, disabled, any member of our community that is looking to upscale and advance into the various emerging industries, to ensure that America stays on the leading edge. So I'm happy that those resolutions passed, and we were able to attend a variety of workshops that are geared towards ensuring that our counties are resilient and we are remaining with as much home rule power as possible. So just really appreciate the opportunity to share Hawai`i's perspectives in those national conversations and be able to shape policy at that level. Thank you. I yield. CHR. KIMBALL: Thank you so much, Council Member Kierkiewicz. Council Member Lee Loy. MS. LEE LOY: Thank you, Chair. As Ms. Kierkiewicz mentioned, I think we're still a little j etlagged from Texas. But that being said, in my area within the Western Interstate Region, there definitely was a lot of conversation and advancement around our farm bill that's being heard right now at the Federal level. And again, thank you to you, Chair. The listening session with the Department of Defense went incredibly well. They really did listen to the concerns of members of the entire State, and also the REPI (Readiness and Environmental Protection Integration) Program, which offers a lot of funding opportunities for those within the Department of Defense to be good neighbors, not only inside the fence but outside the fence. And finally, I really want to take a minute. I don't know if any of my other colleagues know, but Council Member Kierkiewicz was given, by NACo, an achievement award for her work in the arts and cultural space. It's a huge Page 21 Hawaii County Council-18 July 26,2023 recognition in which all the counties across all the states advance different programs. And it was Ms. Kierkiewicz' program in Puna and the use of art for healing that community. I would love for her to take a minute to share. But I want to acknowledge no one from the State of Hawaii over all of our time at NACo has ever accomplished this and received this recognition. And Ms. Kierkiewicz is the youngest policymaker within NACo of its inception to have received such a distinguished honor. Incredibly proud of her. And having our Managing Director Lee Lord there to share in it was wonderful. Ms. Kierkiewicz, please take a few minutes and share about your award. CHR. KIMBALL: Please, Council Member Kierkiewicz. Congratulations, of course. MS. KIERKIEWICZ: Thank you. CHR. KIMBALL: If you'd just briefly share with us what the purpose of the award was and the project. MS. KIERKIEWICZ: Sure. So the Americans for the Arts is a national arts organization that fights like hell to ensure that there's money that's going to National Endowment for the Arts, National Endowment for the Humanities because arts are so important in elevating culture and values. And so the award I received was from AFTA (Americans for the Arts), and it was the Public Leadership in the Arts Award for County Leadership. They also recognize governors and mayors every year at their respective conferences. So I had the opportunity to receive the award twice, first with my arts and culture commission at this wonderful museum in Austin, Texas, and then also the next day at the achievement awards luncheon with like 4,000 people; and was able to kind of just give remarks and talk about how art has been used to help our community recover from the volcanic eruptions and the pandemic in a way to heal and foster dialogue and build bridges and break down barriers, and also celebrate the diversity that exists in our community. And just using art as a way to create spaces where people feel valued and a sense of belonging. So to be able to carry those messages to a national audience was an incredibly humbling and privileged experience. So I'm just stoked to be able to note that the work that is happening in the middle of the Pacific Ocean in the Puna region is being recognized and celebrated across the country. So it was definitely an honor. And I'm so happy that I was able to accept that on behalf of our community and dedicate it back to every single person that has contributed to all of our projects and to transforming our community. Thanks, Chair, for that latitude. Page 22 Hawaii County Council-18 July 26,2023 CHR. KIMBALL: Of course. Thank you. Anyone else? All right, I'll just wrap up. Again, thank you both for your service on the western region board as well as the NACo board, as well as the council members on the other islands that also serve in our NACo leadership positions. And again, congratulations, Council Member Kierkiewicz. What an honor for our island and for your community. With that, all those in favor of adopting Resolution 206-23, please say "aye." Vote on Res. 206-23: The motion to adopt Res. 206-23 was carried by the (Adopted) following voice vote: Ayes: Council Members Galimba, Inaba, Kierkiewicz, Lee Loy, Villegas, and Chair Kimball —6. Noes: None. Absent: Council Members Evans, Kagiwada, and Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder—3. Excused: None. CHR. KIMBALL: Resolution 206-23 is adopted. BILLS FOR The Chair directed the Council to proceed to the next order of business, Bills for ORDINANCES Ordinances (First Reading). (FIRST READING): Bill 51: AMENDS CHAPTER 24, ARTICLE 10, DIVISION 1, OF THE HAWAII COUNTY CODE 1983 (2016 EDITION, AS AMENDED), RELATING TO SPEED LIMITS Amends Section 24-256, Schedule 3 by adding Kalaniana`ole Street, James Kealoha Park Access Road to Leleiwi Street to decrease the speed limit from 30 to 25 miles per hour, and removes the same from Section 24-256, Schedule 4. Reference: Comm. 321 Intr. by: Ms. Lee Loy Approve: PCIA-1 Motion to Approve: Ms. Lee Loy moved to pass Bill 51 on first reading and adopt Policy Committee on Infrastructure and Assets Report No. 1. Seconded by Ms. Galimba. CHR. KIMBALL: Council Member Lee Loy. MS. LEE LOY: Just ask for my colleagues' support. CHR. KIMBALL: Any further discussion? Seeing none, all those in favor please say "aye." Page 23 Hawaii County Council-18 July 26,2023 Vote on Bill 51: The motion to pass Bill 51 on first reading and adopt Policy (Approved) Committee on Infrastructure and Assets Report No. 1 was carried by the following voice vote: Ayes: Council Members Galimba, Inaba, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Lee Loy, Villegas, and Chair Kimball—7. Noes: None. Absent: Council Members Evans and Kagiwada—2. Excused: None. CHR. KIMBALL: Bill 51 is adopted at first reading. At this time, I'd like to have us go to Bill 44. But before we do that, please let the record reflect I'll be yielding the chair to Vice Chair Inaba. Relinquish Chair: At this time, Chair Kimball relinquished the chair to Acting Chair Inaba. Change Order As directed by the Acting Chair and with no objection from the Council of Business: Members, the following item was taken out of order: Bill 44: AMENDS CHAPTER 19, ARTICLES 1 AND 7, OF THE HAWAII COUNTY (Draft 3) CODE 1983 (2016 EDITION, AS AMENDED), RELATING TO COMMUNITY FOOD SUSTAINABILITY USE ASSESSMENTS AND NONDEDICATED AGRICULTURE USE ASSESSMENTS Seeks to implement recommendations of the Real Property Tax Review Working Group and Agricultural Committee's September 2019 Final Report and the 2021 Annual Report of the Real Property Tax Board of Review by: establishing a sunset date for the definition of"Nondedicated agricultural use assessment"; adding a new definition for"Community food sustainability use"; establishing a sunset date for Section 19-57 of the Hawaii County Code; and establishing a new section titled "Community food sustainability use assessment". Reference: Comm. 218.6 Intr. by: Ms. Kimball and Ms. Galimba Postponed: May 17, 2023 First Reading: June 21, 2023 Postponed: July 6, 2023 (Note: There is a motion by Ms. Kimball, seconded by Ms. Galimba, to pass Bill 44, Draft 2, as amended, on second and final reading.) ACTING CHR. INABA: Chair Kimball. MS. KIMBALL: Thank you, Vice Chair Inaba. First of all, I really want to thank our LRB (Legislative Research Branch) and our staff in Council Services for Page 24 Hawaii County Council-18 July 26,2023 helping basically break this bill into two other bills, which perhaps one would argue I should have done in the first place. So Bill 44 includes both the sunset of the nondedicated ag program as well as the creation of the community food sustainability program. Given that we have passed Bill 43, which creates the short-term dedicated program, and there was still some concern about whether or not the community food sustainability program made sense, what I've done is broken apart the sunset of the nondedicated program and the creation of the community food sustainability program into two new bills. So (Bill) 57 is the sunset of the nondedicated ag program; (Bill) 58 is just the creation of that community food sustainability program. And so what this allows us to do is actually just deliberate those and vote on those independently. And so what I would like to do at this time, given that our rules would prevent us from—if we voted Bill 44 down, then we would not be able to take up Bill 48, I'm sorry, (Bills) 57 and 58 because the content is similar, or one could argue that they are. That would be a decision for the body to make. I'm going to make the proposal to postpone Bill 44, and in this case I'm going to do it to the call of the Chair. And then, with that, we can lay this aside and take the two sections up independently. Vote on Motion to Ms. Kimball moved to postpone Bill 44, Draft 3, to the call Postpone: of the Chair. Seconded by Ms. Lee Loy and carried by the (Approved) following voice vote: Ayes: Council Members Galimba, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Kimball, Lee Loy, Villegas, and Acting Chair Inaba—7. Noes: None. Absent: Council Members Evans and Kagiwada—2. Excused: None. ACTING CHR. INABA: Bill 57, please, Mr. Clerk. Return to Order The Acting Chair directed the Council to return to the order of business. of Business: Page 25 Hawaii County Council-18 July 26,2023 Bill 57: AMENDS CHAPTER 19, ARTICLES 1 AND 7, OF THE HAWAII COUNTY CODE 1983 (2016 EDITION, AS AMENDED), RELATING TO NONDEDICATED AGRICULTURAL USE ASSESSMENTS Seeks to implement recommendations of the Real Property Tax Review Working Group and Agricultural Committee's September 2019 Final Report and the 2021 Annual Report of the Real Property Tax Board of Review by establishing a sunset date for the definition of"Nondedicated agricultural use assessment" and for Section 19-57 of the Hawaii County Code. Reference: Comm. 369 Intr. by: Ms. Kimball and Ms. Galimba Waived: FC Motion to Approve: Ms. Kimball moved to pass Bill 57 on first reading. Seconded by Ms. Galimba. ACTING CHR. INABA: Ms. Kimball. MS. KIMBALL: Thank you. Again, this is the identical content to what was in Bill 44 with respect to the sunset of the nondedicated ag program. It's just been decoupled from the community food sustainability program. I want to mahalo Keita Jo and Lisa Miura for all of their help in developing this legislation,putting together all the fabulous slides for you folks, the different analyses about how this would impact taxes for individual property owners. It was a heavy lift, and that was a lot of data-crunching. So really want to thank you for that, and want to, of course, mahalo Council Member Galimba for her help in putting the final touches on this for this term. So, with that, I'm happy to take any additional questions. But my recommendation is, since we have created the short-term dedicated ag program, which was in response to the Real Property Tax Working Group and Ag Group Report from 2019, that we proceed with the sunset of the nondedicated ag program. And then we can go ahead and talk further about the community food sustainability program. Thank you. I yield. ACTING CHR. INABA: Thank you. Any further discussion? MS. KIERKIEWICZ: Chair? ACTING CHR. INABA: Council Member Kierkiewicz. MS. KIERKIEWICZ: Thank you. I just wanted to mahalo nui Council Members Kimball and Galimba for putting this forward. I think one of the suggestions a number of us had was to bifurcate community food sustainability and nondedicated ag use from Bill 44, and you've done that. And so I appreciate the work that's gone into putting this bill forward, and all of the work happening Page 26 Hawaii County Council-18 July 26,2023 behind the scenes at RPT (Real Property Tax)to start standing up these new programs. So I will be supporting this measure as it's written today. Thank you. I yield. ACTING CHR. INABA: Any further discussion? All those in favor of passing Bill 57 at first reading, please say "aye." Vote on Bill 57: The motion to pass Bill 57 on first reading was carried by (Approved) the following voice vote: Ayes: Council Members Galimba, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Kimball, Lee Loy, Villegas, and Acting Chair Inaba—7. Noes: None. Absent: Council Members Evans and Kagiwada—2. Excused: None. Bill 58: AMENDS CHAPTER 19, ARTICLES 1 AND 7, OF THE HAWAII COUNTY CODE 1983 (2016 EDITION, AS AMENDED), RELATING TO COMMUNITY FOOD SUSTAINABILITY USE ASSESSMENTS Seeks to implement recommendations of the Real Property Tax Review Working Group and Agricultural Committee's September 2019 Final Report and the 2021 Annual Report of the Real Property Tax Board of Review by adding a new definition for "Community food sustainability use" and establishing a new section titled "Community food sustainability use assessment." Reference: Comm. 370 Intr. by: Ms. Kimball and Ms. Galimba Waived: FC Motion to Approve: Ms. Kimball moved to pass Bill 58 on first reading. Seconded by Ms. Galimba. ACTING CHR. INABA: Ms. Kimball. MS. KIMBALL: Thank you. So the proposal for this program came out of the lengthy conversations that we had with RPT, that by sunsetting the nondedicated ag program, even with the creation of the short-term dedicated program, there may be folks that were contributing to our food systems that would be left out. And so this was a mechanism that we played with that we hoped would address that issue. We want to continue to incentivize food production even if it's not at the commercial scale. Some of the things that differentiate this program from the nondedicated ag program is that a farm plan or some sort of documentation is still required. That is currently not required for nondedicated ag. It only pertains to the area that is Page 27 Hawaii County Council-18 July 26,2023 being used to produce the food. And so one of the things that came up as a discussion point last time is, if I had three avocado trees and I was selling those avocados, would I get this break? Yes, you would but you would only get that break for the area in which those avocado trees were growing. It's not going to apply to the whole property. It's also not the same scale of a break. So it's 30 percent of the market value. And the reason that that's really important to bring up is that in areas where property values are lower, this is going to be a bigger benefit. And then in other areas where property values are higher, that benefit is less significant. And so it's more of a progressive approach towards this. Again, I know that there may be some concerns that this is just creating another opportunity for loopholes. And I tend to hope that I know that there are people that are genuinely, like, they make it their business to try to skirt the law and figure out the loopholes and things like that. But then there are also people out there that are genuinely contributing to the food systems in our community, and we want to support and incentivize that. That's the impetus behind this bill. So I hope you consider it. And I again want to mahalo the folks at Real Property Tax for all the work that went into this, and my colleague Council Member Galimba. Happy to answer any questions. Thank you, I yield. ACTING CHR. INABA: Thank you. Mr. Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder. MR. KANEALI`I-KLEINFELDER: Thank you, Chair. Ms. Kimball, I'll be supporting this today for a couple reasons. One being, in Puna and across the island, there's a number of people starting to do ag, and in different forms; and maybe not a full-blown farm, but working towards that. And I know a few of them, they need the support. If we're going to push towards getting less reliant on Mainland shipments coming in, we have to support ag. Our Senator Richards used to say the same thing. If there's a big cry for this across the State sustainability, resiliency this bill plays into that well. And I like that, under the community food sustainability use definition, the pasture, which was in the previous definition, was removed. Pasture and slow rotation forestry. There were some comments by a testifier, saying this is just another loophole that could be abused. I completely understand that statement, but I also prefer to nurture small businesses that are starting, versus disincentivizing that small ag sector. So, with that said, I will be supporting this. I like the take effect date as well. Thank you. ACTING CHR. INABA: Thank you. Ms. Galimba. Page 28 Hawaii County Council-18 July 26,2023 MS. GALIMBA: Thank you. I also wanted to thank RPT for being willing to do this because I know it's going to be a lot of work, having to ferret out what actually is being used for the agricultural production. So a lot of on-the-ground work. So just thank you so much for being willing to give this a try. I'm going to be supporting this, obviously, but I just wanted to highlight that progressive element that Chair Kimball brought up. But I think this is something that incentivizes food production, but it also helps that part of our citizens that have land to help with the affordability, which is such a crisis right now. So I think that is another really important piece of this. So thanks and I yield. ACTING CHR. INABA: Mahalo, Ms. Galimba. Any discussion further on this bill? MS. KIERKIEWICZ: Is Real Property Tax there, Chair? ACTING CHR. INABA: Yes. Assistant Administrator Keita Jo is here and will be making his way up to the front. MS. KIERKIEWICZ: Thank you. (Note: At this time, Assistant Real Property Tax Administrator Keita Jo, Finance Department, came forward to address the members of the Council.) ACTING CHR. INABA: He's here now. You can proceed with your question. MS. KIERKIEWICZ: Thank you very much, Chair. Aloha, Keita. Thank you for joining us. MR. JO: Hello. MS. KIERKIEWICZ: Hi. So we've asked you to do quite a bit of shifts very recently with the passage of a number of bills related to tax assessments. Should this continue to move forward, I want assurances that this is something you folks can handle and can take on, and that you have clear direction on how to administer this program. I'm seeing testimony come in around let's pump the brakes on this a little bit; let's see how we're able to transition more folks into the short-term ag category. So just would really appreciate your honest thoughts and sentiments about should we be advancing this measure; what is the impact to your office in terms of implementation. MR. JO: Thank you. Keita Jo, Assistant Administrator for Real Property Tax. I think the biggest question is how many people are going to be transitioning into these various programs, because we have over 8,000 properties in our nondedicated ag use program. Without knowing what that picture looks like, we don't know whether it's going to be a heavy lift or otherwise. I think a lot of the Page 29 Hawaii County Council-18 July 26,2023 clarity the Code provides a good basis for us to move forward. The additional parity will come through establishing those rules and regulations in the next few months to a year. And then that will give us a pretty good idea in terms of moving forward. When we start seeing the applications in 2024 for this new program, we'll definitely get a good sense of whether we need to bring on some additional resources to help support this transition. MS. KIERKIEWICZ: Okay. So I'm hearing we can advance this, but it's really a wait-and-see game at this point. MR. JO: Correct. MS. KIERKIEWICZ: Okay. I just want to make sure that you folks are feeling supported, but also members of the public that are contributing to our food systems do get the tax breaks and incentives. Because, they are playing a valuable role in ensuring that we have food to sustain ourselves and our neighbors in our communities. Thanks, Keita. Appreciate it. Chair, I yield. ACTING CHR. INABA: Mahalo, Ms. Kierkiewicz. Bringing it back here to Kona. Okay. I just had one question. When we look at Section (d)with regards to the deferred or rollback tax, Keita Jo, foroh, is that Subsection 1(B)? If a property is converted to a County zoned district other than ag, residential and ag, family ag, intensive ag, anything ag basically, they will be subject to a deferred or rollback tax. Can you explain a little bit about that just so we're clear? MR. JO: If the landowner petitions for a change in zoning that would preclude it from receiving this benefit, then the rollback tax would be implemented. It would be subject to rollback tax. If there's action by the County or the Planning Department to change the zoning, the taxpayer would not be penalized for that change. So the rollback tax would not be assessed in that situation. They would be precluded from applying for the program in the future and getting that benefit in the future because of the zoning change, but we wouldn't penalize them for that. ACTING CHR. INABA: Could you give us an example? So if someone has you can just make up numbers. But give us an example of what would happen if somebody was a part of this program and then came to the County to rezone and do something that's not ag. MR. JO: Yeah, so, for example, if there was a, let's say, a ten-acre parcel in Pepe`ekeo; the market value, let's say, is 500,000. That property, if it meets the criteria for the community food sustainability, would get the food sustainability benefit and, in all likelihood, would probably be subject to a tax of, if I threw out a number, $1,800 a year. Page 30 Hawaii County Council-18 July 26,2023 If, on the second year of this particular program, their participation in this program, if they petition the Planning Department to change the zoning to, let's say, residential zoning, RS-10, they would be subject to the rollback tax. And we would go back and assess the difference between what was actually paid because they're receiving a benefit, and what should have been paid at that 500,000 market value. The difference in the taxes would be assessed as a rollback tax as well as a 10 percent penalty. We would go back as far as the current plus two years, so as far as three years back, on that rollback. So that's the implication of somebody going to the Planning Department and actively petitioning that change in zoning. And I think the initial reason why this language was placed in the Code, and it comes from the nondedicated program, the existing program, was to prevent land banking, utilizing agricultural use as a means to landbank And you'll see that same thought process on the other rollback tax implications if it's subdivided into a parcel less than five acres. Those are those components that kind of speak to the land banking protection. ACTING CHR. INABA: Perfect. Thank you so much for covering that for us and for the public. That's all the questions I have. With that, there's a motion on the floor. Or any further comment by the makers? No? Okay, there's a motion on the floor to approve Bill 58 at first reading. All those in favor,please say Ic aye. Vote on Bill 58: The motion to pass Bill 58 on first reading was carried by (Approved) the following voice vote: Ayes: Council Members Galimba, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Kimball, Lee Loy, Villegas, and Acting Chair Inaba—7. Noes: None. Absent: Council Members Evans and Kagiwada—2. Excused: None. ACTING CHR. INABA: Thank you, Mr. Jo, for being here today. I believe that brings us to the end of our agenda. ORDER OF The Acting Chair directed the Council to proceed to the next order of business, THE DAY Order of the Day (Second or Final Reading). (SECOND OR FINAL READING): (Note: Items in this category were taken up previously, out of order.) REPORTS: The Acting Chair directed the Council to proceed to the next order of business, Reports. (Note: Items in this category were taken up previously, out of order.) Page 31 Hawai`i County Council-18 July 26,2023 OTHER The Acting Chair directed the Council to proceed to the next order of business, BUSINESS: Other Business. (There were none.) ANNOUNCE- The Acting Chair directed the Council to proceed to the next order of business, MENTS: Announcements. (There were none.) ADJOURN- There being no further business, at 10:40 a.m., Ms. Lee Loy moved to adjourn the MENT: meeting. Seconded by Ms. Galimba and carried by the following voice vote: Ayes: Council Members Galimba, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Kimball, Lee Loy, Villegas, and Acting Chair Inaba—7. Noes: None. Absent: Council Members Evans and Kagiwada—2. Excused: None. ACTING CHR. INABA: Meeting is adjourned at 10:40 a.m. Mahalo. SEP 0 6 2023 Council Approval: COUNTY CLERK JH/jm Page 32