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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0283.343 2024-2026COUNTY CLERK COUNTY OF HAWAII Jul 171h, 2025 2025 JUL 17 Ali 8: 19 Dear Council Member Galimba, I strongly encourage you to vote NO for Bill 51. There is a much better path to addressing this complex issue and this bill is not the solution. Criminalizing the only volunteers who are actively trying to address the cat colony situation is not the right answer. I believe we as a community can do better. My intention is to share some insights and recommendations based on my experience how best to approach what Bill 51 attempts to address. I am a graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point with a Bachelor of Science, and also have earned a Master of Science Degree specializing irrArmy Operations and National Security. I am a retired U.S. Army Special Operations Lieutenant Colonel with numerous combat deployments to Afghanistan across 24 years of active military service. I have taught at the Department of State Foreign Service Institute and worked with USAID in Africa. I have extensive training in areas that include advanced negotiations and cross-cultural communications. I do not say these things to be braggadocio but rather to provide a bona fides, of sorts. Full disclosure, I am a published Hawaii endemic bird photographer, and volunteer with island bird counts and rat trap maintenance activities. I am also a volunteer cat colony caretaker and participate in Trap -Neuter -Vaccinate - Return -Manage (TNVRM) clinics. Bill 51's ultimate intent is to protect the Hawaii native birds but at the peril of other animals on the island. While this bill does not single out a specific animal its direct aim is just the continuation of a narrative to inhumanely affect cat colonies on the island. The metrics from the July 8` committee meeting are clear. There were 251 opposed written and oral testimonies to 64 supporting. Seven out of eight county council members voted to support this bill with the eighth council member no voting over an enforceability concern. While it is not unprecedented for a single representative to go against the majority of their constituents, it is for seven county council members to vote against their respective district's constituent majority. It is commendable that the influential members of the birding community lobbied successfully behind closed doors as evident during initial voting, the shortfall of this action has caught the entire island's cat caretaker community by surprise. This legislation should be paused. The closed -door meetings and being shut out of conversations regarding this bill have created a sense of distrust in the legislative process. I believe this is an opportunity that can be capitalized on to build the momentum for a joint solution that both the bird and cat communities are amicable to. I will not reemphasize the many points that council members, county officials and both sides of the table attested to during the July 91" meeting. The bill falls short in addressing many second and third order effects that it will cause. It will only result in both sides sharpening their pitchforks more and digging in their heels even deeper. We need to implement a whole -of community approach to addressing this problem set. I think everyone will agree that there is COMM.M Red.. kef. Date JUL 2.3 2025 something that needs to be done both to protect the native birds as well as address the cat colonies on the island. Nobody wants to see an animal be treated inhumanely but the passion and ambition to one's cause can be blinding. Last year on Oahu an unleashed dog killed a newborn monk seal pup. Not widely publicized, a few years ago a pack of wild dogs killed over 20 nene goslings in a single day here on a refuge. I have rescued a kitten that received 75% burns from hot oil thrown on it at a graduation party. Island breeders have dumped purebred cats at the colony I caretake due to undesirable characteristics. I have been spoken to about evidence that hunters have shot palila on Mauna Kea to prevent losing access to the ungulate hunting land. I have found a dog hanging from a tree out hiking with my wife. We do not have an animal problem; we have a people problem. No animal asked for the state we have put them in. This situation divides the island community which I believe warrants direct action. I advise recommending to the mayor that he authorize a task force chaired by his chief of staff, or other neutral party. The only way this works is if every stakeholder is permitted professional representation at the table. This task force needs to be void of stovepipes and have flat communications, transparent to all parties. This will help build the foundation for follow-on cooperative work. The minimum deliverables of this task force should be a memorandum of understanding signed by all stakeholders supplemented with a 1, 5, and 10-year strategic plan. Expectations. These need to be managed. Results and solutions are not going to come overnight. A more pragmatic approach will lead to a better outcome. Organizations and personnel will change overtime, but the memorandum of agreement and strategic documents will keep everyone on azimuth, giving way together working towards that unified goal. Accountability. Resources to enforce are limited but mechanisms need to be implemented to enable enforcement when able. Consider license requirements, chipping and neutering requirements going forward for all dogs and cats that are brought to the island. Require all island breeders to apply for licenses and renew registrations annually. Colony caretakers have access to chip readers. When a new cat shows up at their colony it can be reported as well as efforts made to return the cat safely to its owner. Metrics and Lessons Learned. The U.S. Army does not do everything well but one of its greatest achievements is what it accomplishes through its after -action review processes and lessons learned. In other words, it reviews and capitalizes on successes and learns what is not working and makes course corrections where required. It is all about the metrics and data. What are they telling us? What do we need to sustain and improve? Keeping these accurate records and soliciting feedback from the experts in the field implementing the strategy is crucial. It is incumbent on the leaders to make the adjustments to the plan where necessary. The birding community does a great job at tracking data on bird populations on the island. Implement a county training program that certifies colony caretakers. These caretakers currently self -fund food, medicine, and veterinary visits. They are absolutely committed to the health and welfare of their colonies. Implement standardized reporting requirements from both the bird and cat communities. See which populations are growing and which are diminishing and leverage this data to further refine the plan. Media and Public Information. The media arm of each organization needs to be leveraged in support of this task force. Platforms needs to address animals in humane ways that support the strategic objectives. We need to ask the influential social media accounts to stop vilifying animals in support of their cause. Solidarity is paramount. I have seen various organizational displays that utilize photoshopped photos in their education material. We need to ask these managers to stop this practice. I have been told by individuals who have seen my bird photography that they were not aware of endemic birds on the island. I have provided many people who were unaware with the information on the free/low-cost animal clinics. Information is power; let's share each other's operations and clinics across all platforms. Many people are unaware that some of the pet non -profits are partnered with airlines and sanctuaries on the mainland and are always looking for travelers to transport animals at no cost to them. The Kona Cat Cafe has been extremely successful in adopting kittens from colonies to be kept indoors, and many of the customers are cruise ship travelers who have their new pet flow back to the mainland. These are just some of the tools available that need to be shared throughout the community. The public needs to be kept informed of the on -going efforts and resources available to them. Budgeting and Sharing of Resources. Strategic implementation in the budgeting cycle will undoubtedly take time. Funds are always tight and nobody likes to cede resources. In 2022, Hawaii U.S. Senator Schatz secured more than $14 million dollars to protect threatened and endangered native birds from extinction. Let's explore ways to share future monies with the animal non -profits on the island because what they are accomplishing is directly positively impacting native bird populations. Volunteers are always in short supply. Let's put our differences aside and help each other. Forging relationships will go a long way to achieving goals. Animal non -profits on the island have continued to look for suitable land to build sanctuaries and those coastal cat colonies could be prioritized for relocation. Sanctuaries alone are not the answer, just as TNVRM clinics alone are not the answer. But both are very important parts of the multi -faceted solution to humanely reduce cat colony populations on the island. The extent of their operations are often limited by support and availability of resources. Bill 51 is NOT the answer. There is a much better way to approach this than adding an unenforceable bill. Hopefully, I have succeeded in providing you insight and some recommendations for consideration. I believe you are the right person at the right time to champion this whole -of -community approach amongst your peers. Please feel free to share this letter with your fellow council members. Thank you for your time. Sincerely,