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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0049.002 2018-2020 JtYOF HL,,'• VALERIE T. POINDEXTER 'cP,.'�� Phone: (808)961-8018 Council Member ' y► �''?/: `, Fax: (808)961-8912 Chair, Committee on Parks and Recreation -. :=►ter. • Email:valerie.poindexter@hawaiicounty.gov Council District I *f.pc ,w;:;: HAWAII COUNTY COUNCIL County of Hawai i Hawai`i County Building 25 Aupuni Street, Suite 1402 Hilo, Hawai`i 96720 m =c— DATE: February 11, 2019 -- -- --s TO: Aaron S. Y. Chung, Council Chair and Members of the Hawai`i County Council FROM: Valerie T. Poindexter, Council Member- District 1 • SUBJECT: Minutes of the Hawai`i State Association of Counties Executive Committee Meetings held on September 17, 2018, October 4, 2018, and January 15, 2019 Attached are the minutes`of the Hawai`i State Association of Counties Executive Committee meetings that were held on September 17, 2018, October 4, 2018, and January 15, 2019. Please place this items on the agenda for the next available Governmental Relations and Economic Development Committee meeting. Thank you. VTP/sc att. Comm. No. '2 Ref. To: ED(./ Hawai`i County is an Equal Opportunity Provider and Employer Ref. DateFEB 1 1 2019 1IXTE ASs '`i Hawaii State Association of Counties (HSAC) ;`��`� °c�9; Counties of Kaua`i,Maui, Hawaii and City & County of Honolulu I _ 111) 200 S. High Street,Wailuku,Hawaii 96793 (808) 270-7665 MVI!hicounties.com 1 7� , °A.CO NAV MINUTES • HSAC EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEETING Monday, September 17, 2018, at 10:00 a.m. Honolulu Hale, Committee Meeting Room 530 South King Street Honolulu, Hawaii 96813 I. CALL TO ORDER The HSAC Executive Committee was called to order by HSAC President Dru Kanuha /gar , at 10:10-:a:'m.; The following,meMbers comprising a quorum were present: JF% County of Hawaii: ''.. President Dru Kanuha Councilmember, Hawaii County Council County of Kauai: Vice President Derek Kawakami Councilmember, Kauai County, Council County of Maui: Secretary Stacy Crivello Presiding Officer Pro Tempore, Maui County Council City and County of Honolulu: Treasurer Ikaika Anderson Councilmember, Honolulu City Council Others Present: Riki Hokama, Councilmember, Maui County Council Leinani Wessel, Legislative Assistant to C,ouncilmember Dru Kanuha, Hawaii County Council' Aida Kawamura, Legislative Assistant, Office-of..Council Services, Kauai County Council Francisco Figueiredo, Office of Councilmember Ikaika Anderson, Honolulu City Council Saumalu Mataafa, Legislative Analyst, Office of Council Services, Maui County Council Alan Texeira, Office of Councilmember Ikaika Anderson, Honolulu City Council Brandon Mitsuda, Office of Councilmember Ikaika Anderson, Honolulu City Council Kamakana Watanabe, Office of Council Services, Honolulu City Council Scott Ishikawa, Becker Communications n II. APPROVAL OF AGENDA %StpSEASy�'• Page 2 ( SAi) - •'Op COUNt�� _ ..... Treasurer Anderson moved to approve the agenda. The motion was seconded by Secretary Crivello and was unanimously carried. III. MINUTES Treasurer Anderson moved to approve and file the minutes from July 12, 2018 HSAC Executive Committee meeting. Treasurer Anderson moved to approve and file the minutes. The motion( was seconded by Secretary Crivello and was unanimously carried. IV. REPORTS A. County Reports 1. County of Maui Report. Secretary Crivello reported Maui County had to brace for Hurricane Olivia. The storm brought heavy winds and rain to Lanai and Molokai. The east and west side Molokai did not have electricity for three days. The County of Maui was shut down. Secretary Crivello said the Housing, Human Services, and Transportation Committee recently recommended passage of a resolution on first reading relating to the County's First-Time Homebuyers Program. The program will offer grants to eligible residents to purchase their first homes. More than $2 million was appropriated for the program. Corporation Counsel advised that the program could not be limited to people who have been residents for at least five years. She said the committee also heard findings from SMS Hawaii, an independent audit, on Maui County's affordable housing policies. The analysis suggested timing, uncertainty, and rate of return were major barriers to affordable housing development and policies should be drafted to address those concerns. Maui County needs over 12,400 housing units by 2025 and 75% should be for rental housing. Committee will vet proposals to streamline the County's permitting process and implement a strategic affordable housing plan. Secretary Crivello said a live skunk was found in an international shipping container on Maui recently. She said although the counties have minimal jurisdiction on shipping matters, there should be more scrutiny on the State's shipping practices so invasive species introduction is under control. 2. County of Kauai Report. 300EASSpC a Page 13 SAl,\\,„..",p, ? Vice President Kawakami reported Kauai's 2019-2021 Kauai Tourism Strategic Plan was recently released. He reported the major finding from the study concluded that Kauai is over capacity as it relates to tourism. Visitor arrivals have affected affordable housing and traffic. He said short term vacation rentals have increased greatly over the past ten years and has contributed to the affordable housing crisis. The amount of TVRs on Kauai equal to about three major resorts. One in eight homes on Kauai is a TVR. He said the county, state, and federal governments have operated independently on matters relating to managing tourism and has negatively affected quality of life on Kauai. Collaboration needed among different agency. Need mass transportation to reduce rental cars. - 3. City and County of Honolulu Report. Treasurer Anderson reported the City and County of Honolulu continues to work on the short-term vacation rental issues. He said five different legislative proposals have been submitted to the Planning Commission to address illegal short-term rentals. He said Mayor Kirk Caldwell also submitted his proposal on addressing enforcement of short term rentals which makes it illegal to advertise your short-term rental without a permit. Currently it's only illegal to rent your short-term rental without a permit. Mayor's proposal allows only for owner-occupied bed and breakfasts, including apartment districts. Treasurer Anderson said he introduced a resolution to oppose the recent constitutional amendment which proposes an establishment of a surcharge on investment real property for educational purposes. The resolution also urges Honolulu voters to vote against the measure. He said he remains committed to HSAC's position against the measure. 4. County of Hawaii Report. President Kanuha reported Hawaii County recently received a positive referral of the Council's short-term vacation rental legislation from the Windward Planning Commission. The Leeward Planning Commission will submit its recommendation after it meets on Thursday. Big Island is the only County that doesn't regulate short-terms vacation rentals. President Kanuha said the Council received a presentation by Lisa Miura and Deanna Sato on the constitutional amendment relating to the establishment of a surcharge or investment real property for educational purposes. Many community and meeting and forums are being scheduled. President Kanuha said the Council passed a bill to allow veterans who are 100 percent disabled or unemployable the ability to pay only 50 percent of the minimum real property tax ($200). The legislative proposal stems from a finding from the Real Property Tax Task Force. V. • Page 14 SAS: County damage done to county property in Hilo from recent storms was assessed to be $20 million. President Kanuha said the Council will need to figure out ways to fund the recovery. Request to state legislature for funding due to volcano eruptions, before, during, and after, was estimated to be approximately $850 million. Secretary Crivello made a motion to file the County reports. Vice President Kawakami seconded the motion and it was unanimously carried. B. National Association of Counties (NACo) Report Councilmember Riki Hokama NACo is monitoring legislation at the federal level relating to the Department of the Interior, Farm Bill, Core of Engineers, wastewater. Counties may want to apply funding. C. Western Interstate Region,(WIR) Report - Councilmember Riki Hokama said there is a meeting scheduled for WIR next month. V. NEW BUSINESS A. 2019 HSAC Legislative Package President Kanuha presented the 2019 HSAC Legislative Package to HSAC's Executive Committee as described on the HSAC Executive Committee Agenda. Each county representative described their proposed legislation, including the purpose and intent. Secretary Crivello moved to accept and approve the 2019 HSAC Legislative Package. Treasurer Anderson seconded the motion and it was unanimously carried. VI. OLD BUSINESS A. Senate Bill 2922 Constitutional amendment update President Kanuha said many meetings and forums to educate the community on what they are voting for. Councilmember Riki Hokama said the Maui County Chair posted a proposed resolution to urge the state auditor to conduct a performance and fiscal audit of the State Department of Education. He said the last audit on the Department was in 1973. He said fiscal management was a key area of concern within the audit and in subsequent reports. 'SSPSE As N. PageI 5 ( SA. Councilmember Hokama said he has spoken with the various unions to urge them to talk to HSTA because this proposed tax could impact the way the public views collective bargaining agreements. Pay checks come from real property taxes. He said Maui County assembled an educational flyer on the constitutional amendment relating to the establishment of a surcharge on investment real property for educational purposes and is being planned for release to Maui County's residents soon. Mr. Scott Ishikawa said the counties are doing well with publicity of the constitutional amendment and HSAC's positions against it. He said HSAC should continue to publicize its position that the county will lose much needed revenue if the constitutional amendment passes. Real property taxes are the counties main funding source. He presented a list of talking points that the counties should publicize to the public. President Kanuha questioned what is an investment property, will funds generated actually be used for education, and is this the best way to fund education. Secretary Crivello said HSAC should continue to educate the public on the potential impacts of the constitutional amendment. She said the recent natural disasters have stressed the counties' emergency services greatly and if the constitutional amendment passes it may cut into those services even more. She said she supports teachers, but other methods need to be developed to support them. Vice, President Kawakami said Kauai has a number of groups educating the community on the unintended consequences of this constitutional amendment. Councilmember Hokama and Finance representative coming to committee meeting to provide further information to community and councilmembers. Members discussed whether HSAC's efforts would trigger campaign spending laws. Councilmember Hokama requested HSAC Executive Committee members work with their respective mayors to create a list of impacts for their islands if the measure were to pass. He said these impacts would help the counties develop a stronger argument against the proposed measure. People are talking about a 25% impact on county revenues. Pubic should consider what operations will be reduced to reflect the reduction. He urged President Kanuha and Treasurer Anderson to be the face of HSAC. Oahu's million votes will determine whether the constitutional amendment passes. Each county should make public a list of all the education programs the county supports. Treasurer Anderson moved for HSAC to oppose the constitutional amendment derived from Senate Bill 2933, urge residents to vote against the measure on the upcoming general election ballot, and create an educational campaign on the 7Sp.1E AS% Page 6 SA�,F `•��COUNt��.' . potential impacts of the measure. Secretary Crivello seconded the motion and it was unanimously carried. Mr. Ishikawa said the HSAC Executive Committee should consider opinion editorials to publicize its position. Mr. Ishikawa said he would work on the material, reach out to newspaper, radio, and television stations. Need to focus on early voters because that's who will decide vote. He made three recommendations to the committee: Editorial boards, op ed agreed to by all four counties, TV/radio appearances. Committee agreed to recommendations. Councilmember Hokama shared information from the Public Access Room and Scott Nago on how blank votes are treated for the Constitutional Convention and Constitutional amendments. VII. ANNOUNCEMENTS President Kanuha said the next HSAC Executive Committee would be held on - October 4, 2018 at 10 a.m. VIII. ADJOURNMENT A. President Kanuha adjourned the meeting at 11:30 a.m. ocs.pro/:hsc,c:F7-°019:ni,rtrtt,rs:16091 iRIrnuhss .05E qss,., Hawaii State Association of Counties (HSAC) a cr. °��.9'• Counties of Kaua`i,Maui, Hawai`i and City & County of Honolulu z z 200 S. High Street,Wailuku,Hawaii 96793 (808) 270-7665 wwwhicounties.com • ; * * , 5 , MINUTESt.��C°Uti • HSAC EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEETING Thursday, October 4, 2018, at 10:00 a.m. Honolulu Hale, Committee Meeting Room 530 South King Street Honolulu, Hawaii 96813 I. CALL TO ORDER The HSAC Executive Committee wascalled to order by HSAC President Dru Kanuha at 10:15 The following memberscomprising a quorum were present: 4 County of Hawaii: President'Dru Kanuha Councilmember, Hawaii County Council County of Kauai: Vice President Ross Kagawa . ., Councilmember, Kauai County'Council County of Maui: Riki Hokama Councilmember, Maui`Cd ilii Council City and County of Honolulu: Treasurer Ikaika Anderson Councilmember, Honolulu City Council Others Present: Leinani Wessel, Legislative Assistant to•Councilmember Dru Kanuha, Hawaii County Council Scott Ishikawa, Senior Account Executive,'Becker' Communications, Inc. Aida Kawamura, Legislative Assistant, Office of Council Services, Kauai County Council Francisco Figueiredo, Office of Councilmember Ikaika Anderson, Honolulu City Council Maggie Clark, Legislative Analyst, Office of Council Services, Maui County Council Michele Yoshimura, Budget Legislative Analyst, Office of Council Services, Maui County Council Alan Texeira, Office of Councilmember Ikaika Anderson, Honolulu City Council Brandon Mitsuda, Office of Councilmember Ikaika Anderson, Honolulu City Council Kamakana Watanabe, Office of Council Services, Honolulu City Council Radiant Cordeiro, " Office of Councilmember Joey Manahan, Honolulu City Council Page 12 °(iSAs:' _ _ II. APPROVAL OF AGENDA Treasurer Ikaika Anderson moved to approve the agenda. The motion was seconded by Councilmember Riki Hokama and was unanimously carried. III. MINUTES None IV. REPORTS -A. Treasurer's Report for August 2018 Treasurer Anderson reported that HSAC started the month of August 2018 with a balance of $235,605.48 with expenses of $4,976.14 and deposits in the amount of $1,311.23, ending the month of August with a balance of $231,940.57. Councilmember Riki Hokama made a motion to approve and file the report. Vice President Kagawa seconded the motion and it was unanimously carried. B. County Reports 1. City and County of Honolulu Report. Treasurer Anderson requested that the report from the City and County of Honolulu be filed with the minutes since it is lengthy. He said the Council adopted Resolution 18-194 accepting gift from Randy and Jan Iwase. Council also passed CR 312 review and evaluation of neighborhood commission. Treasurer Anderson introduced Resolution 18-193 opposing the proposed constitutional amendment allow state legislature to establish tax surcharge on investment real property to support public education. Resolution passed unanimously as amended to remove language urging Honolulu voters to vote no due to legal concerns raised by their Corporation Counsel. Councilmember Hokama questioned why the state attorney general's office can use taxpayer funds to oppose a federal law in court and the counties cannot use taxpayer funds to oppose something that they consider is bad for the community. He said the standards should be same for the state and county. 2. County of Kauai Report. Vice President Kagawa said Joe Kim from Grassroots Institute of Hawaii presented a report on how to resolve Hawaii's public pension debt crisis. • Mr. Kim said Kauai's public safety (fire and police) were the worst abusers of pension spiking. Management needs to address spiking issues Page I3 .� SAl:; sr •'•�FCOUNS�f'' and how to prevent it from happening in the future. May need to work with State legislature because other sectors such as in Department of Education do not get overtime. 3. County of Maui Report. Councilmember Hokama said Maui County appropriated $250,000 of matching County funds to State for Front Street Apartments, an affordable housing project. Councilmember Hokama and Real Property Tax Administrator Scott Teruya went to Kauai to present information on the proposed constitutional amendment allowing the state legislature to establish a tax surcharge on investment real property to support public education. Councilmember Hokama has been interview by Hawaii Public Radio. Corporation Counsel advised that Council could not take a position but Council expended funds to produce an educational mailout. State taxpayers should be angry that state hasn't used state tax funds to , properly fund education and should ask for an audit. Union has not served teachers well. Maui County makes community aware of how much the County funds education related programs. Tax payers should question why we DOE isn't being audited. Superintendent just gave raises to top administrative officials. Maui County received Certificate of Excellence from International Association of Real Property Assessors. Maui County having major issues with payroll transition. This will be Councilmember Hokama's fourth payroll system in 20 years. He would like the County to go paperless for payroll. 4. County of Hawaii Report. President Kanuha said the Big Island is still dealing with lava issues and hurricane Lane. They are working with the State on funding issues. Hurricane Lane damage to County property was 20-plus million dollars. Budget won't be good in future. Puna community requesting lava viewing sites to bring back tourists to the area. Difficult due to the hazardous gases. Volcano National Park reopened. Still dealing with vacation rentals. Recommendations from planning commissions to be heard by Council on October 16. Thank you to Maui County for donating two buses. Trying to upgrade mass transit system. Only about a dozen buses operating on the entire island. County receiving a quarter percent GET to be used for mass transit. SSpSEAS• yO Page 14 SAN* •. coup Councilmember Hokama made a motion to file the County reports. Vice President Kagawa seconded the motion and it was unanimously carried. C. National Association of Counties (NACo) Report Councilmember Hokama said all counties dealing with natural disasters issues. Minibus bill (opposite of omnibus) will address wastewater and safe drinking water Drainage funding in Farm bill. Counties may be interested in Department of the Interior for Home funds and NAP funds. NACo got full allotment for SRS schools for Native American nations. PILT funding for federal lands used by military in Hawaii. October 31 NACo sponsoring webinar on Affordable Housing which will consider land use and zoning responsibilities at the county level. December 5-8 Large Urban Caucus and full board meeting in San Diego. Need to continue participating in NACo. Younger ones need to network or Hawaii won't have appointments in the future. President Kanuha emphasized to Tim Richards who was appointed by President Cox for NACo seat and importance of being present and building relationships. D. Western Interstate Region (WIR) Report Mason Chock will be there representing Hawaii. Councilmember Hokama unable to attend. White House has reached out on West. Coast intergovernmental affairs for midterm elections. Very political time for White House. If can attend express uniqueness. NACo will host dinner for those who attend. Attendees need to prepare for security measures for White House. Councilmember Hokama is not going. It's two weeks before election. - I Councilmember Hokama made a motion to file the NACo and WIR Report. Vice President Kagawa seconded the motion and it was unanimously carried. V. NEW BUSINESS A. Report of the 2018 HSAC Annual Conference. Treasurer Anderson said the report was distributed. HSAC received $118, 500 in sponsorship money. Total revenue received was $ 168,073.18, which included registration and sponsorships. Total conference expenses and golf was $110,489.45. Net profit was $57,583.73, not including Transportation Network Companies totals. Net profit including Transportation Network Companies is $66,086.49. Still waiting for checks from both Transportation Network Companies. Treasurer Anderson thanked his staff, Honolulu Office of Counsel •`SSPSE AS,T�C , Page 15 '.5 SAs. Services, and staff from Councilmember Monahan's office. Councilmembers Hokama and Kagawa thanked Honolulu for the successful conference. Councilmember Hokama made a motion to accept the 2018 HSAC Conference report. Vice President Kagawa seconded the motion and it was unanimously carried. B. Audit Status Memo dated 9/26/2018 from Carbonaro CPAs & Management Group. CPA has been given the information! 2017-2018 audit numbers still being worked on. Vice President Kagawa said there is a timing issue with Quickbooks. Francisco Figueiredo said checks were entered when expended or cleared, and not when checks were written. CPA recommendations aren't in HSAC bylaws, but the recommendations would be followed. Vice President Kagawa said the recommendation seemed odd given the Generally Accepted Accounting Principles. Councilmember Hokama made a motion to file the status memo. Vice President Kagawa seconded the motion and it was carried. unanimously c a VI. OLD BUSINESS Update on Senate Bill 2922 Constitutional Amendment. Scott Ishikawa said early ballots will be mailed out October 17. Early absentee voting on site on October 23. Need to confirm dates. Other organizations have been carrying momentum. Mayor Kim and Caldwell holding press conference. HSAC jumping in with Op-Ed article. There is a 600-word limit. All counties should review and comment by next week. Publish in Sunday paper. Star Advertiser cleared to commit and reaching out to neighbor island papers. Once Op-Ed is run, will need everyone's support to keep momentum going. Putting together media interviews. HPR wants to focus on Big Island for a taped phone interview due to the natural disasters there. Scott will keep everyone up to date by emails. Scott wondered if anyone knew what Caldwell and Kim were saying during press conference. Councilmember Kagawa asked what the referendum history was for tax increases. Treasurer Anderson said the language for the railing funding was called a surcharge. Rail wasn't voted on, it was legislation. There may have been a few others but can't recall any that passed. Scott's talking points based on input received from last month's meeting: • Real property taxes are main funding source • Vague, lacks detail •;'SSPTE AS,tO•• .$p 9A Page I6 .1 SAM.' i • Public should know how much money the state DOE would receive, how is current DOE funding spent, audit DOE • Would affect public and all homeowners • Funding shortfall for counties There will be one joint Op-Ed signed by the four counties in solidarity. Counties can submit their own individual Op-Eds to support joint Op-Ed. Councilmember Hokama suggested revision to clarify that the State DOE is one system unlike mainland districts. Councilmember distributed educationalpiece being mailed to residents. Cost was $50,000. The first of two mailers will go out when absentee ballots mailed around October 12. Second piece will be mailed around October 16-18 before walk in voting. Three articles being published: October 7, 21, and November 4. Maui County also passed resolution urging state audit of DOE. Councilmember Hokama said Kauai brought up a good point about how this tax increase would affect their affordable housing program. How will they give credits if no funds? How will HHFDC going to do their job? Investment taxation will make all costs higher. Locals cannot liveat home. Maui open to suggestions from other counties. Taxpayer has no idea how much more they will pay. VII. ANNOUNCEMENTS President Kanuha said a telephone conference call would be held between October 22- 26. The meeting will take place later in November. VIII. ADJOURNMENT - Councilmember Hokama made a motion to adjourn the meeting and Vice President Kagawa seconded the motion. President Kanuha adjourned the meeting at 11:50 a.m. • ocs.proj:/isac:FY_.019:mi ri u tes:181004Mi nirles Hawai`i State Association of Counties (HSAC) ; �`� °c',sA ; Counties of Kaua`i,Maui, Hawaii and City & County of Honolulu z 200 S. High Street, Wailuku,Hawaii 96793 (808) 270-7665 www.Izicowities.com * * COUtil MINUTES -• HSAC EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEETING Tuesday, January 15, 2019, at 1:00 p.m. Honolulu Hale, Committee Meeting Room 530 South King Street Honolulu, Hawaii 96813 I. CALL TO ORDER The HSAC Executive Committee was;called to order by HSAC President Valerie Poindexter at 1:09 p.m.;` The following members comprising a quorum were present: - 4 County of Hawaii: President Valerie rPoindexter Councilmember, Hawaii County Council County of Kauai: Vice Presidene:Ross Kagawa Vice Chair, Kauai,.Co`n ty Council County of Maui: Secretary Kelly King Chair, Maui County Council City and County of Honolulu: Joey.Manahan Councilmember, Honolulu City Council 4 Others Present: Karen Eoff, Vice Chair, Hawaii County. .Council Maile Medeiros David, Councilmember, Hawaii County Council Rebecca Ville gas, Councilmember, Hawaii County Council Keani Rawlins-Fernandez, Vice Chair, Maui County Council Riki Hokama, Councilmember, Maui County Council Sunshine Carter, Legislative Assistant to Councilmember Valerie Poindexter, Hawaii County Council Aida Kawamura, Legislative Assistant, Office of Council Services, Kauai County Council Traci Fujita, Legislative Attorney, Office of Council Services, Maui County Council t Page 1 2 ` � SA0*.-2° ,,cou"vo., Trinette Furtado, Executive Assistant, Office of Councilmember Keani Rawlins-Fernandez Radiant Cordero, Chief of Staff, Office of Councilmember Joey Manahan Francisco Figueiredo, Office of Councilmember Ikaika Anderson, Honolulu City Council Alan Texeira, Office of Councilmember Ikaika Anderson, Honolulu City Council Brandon Mitsuda, Office of Councilmember Ikaika Anderson, Honolulu City Council Kamakana Watanabe, Office of Council Services, Honolulu City Council IL APPROVAL OF AGENDA Vice President Kagawa moved to approve the agenda. The motion was seconded by Councilmember Manahan and was unanimously carried. III. MINUTES Councilmember Manahan moved to approve and file the minutes from the December 20, 2018 HSAC Executive Committee meeting. The motion was seconded by Vice President Kagawa and was unanimously carried. IV. REPORTS County Reports Councilmember Manahan moved to file the county reports. The motion was seconded by Vice President Kagawa and was unanimously carried. 1. City and County of Honolulu Report Councilmember Manahan gave the City & County of Honolulu report. He said the Council elected Councilmember Kobayashi as its interim chair. Councilmember Menor is Vice Chair. Councilmember Fukunaga is floor leader. Pending a decision by the Hawaii Supreme Court, Honolulu has an eight-member council for now. 2. County of Hawaii Report Page 1 3 . SAIL') President Poindexter presented the County of Hawaii report. A copy of the report is attached hereto. 3. County of Kauai Report Vice President Kagawa presented the County of Kauai report. He said Kauai has general excise tax surcharge concerns because some businesses did not know to implement it. More public education is needed by the State. If businesses are not charging the tax surcharge, they will have to pay the surcharge out of their own pockets. Kauai implemented the tax surcharge because the State capped the counties' share of the transient accommodations tax. 4. County of Maui Report Secretary King presented the County of Maui report. The styrofoam ban went into effect in Maui county. There is an issue with pre-packaged foods, such as Cup Noodles, because such items were included in the Styrofoam ban but businesses were initially informed such items were not included. Businesses are being given additional time to deplete their existing supplies. The Lt. Governor is working with Maui County to provide funds for a mobile hygiene unit for homeless in south Maui. He has a $12M fund and is looking for neighbor island projects to fund. The Mahi Pono group bought 41,000 acres of agriculture land from A&B. The Canadian pension group is required to have 5% of its 'holdings in agriculture. The acquisition will ensure continued use of the lands for agriculture. The Maui County Council will be approving all mayoral director positions pursuant to a new Maui County Charter provision. Maui County was successful in defending an educational flyer for the constitutional amendment regarding a real property tax surcharge. The Hawaii Campaign Spending Commission originally asked the County to register and report as a ballot issue committee. The Wailuku Civic Center received an additional appropriation of funds but the bond authorization was withheld. ``SSpSE Ass,; 1 Page I4 *� SAN;: '`• fOUNS�`.'J. The HSAC conference will be held on Maui this year, most likely in south Maui. Tentative dates are June 9-12. The conference theme will be Hot Topics in Sustainability. A mayoral panel is being considered. A golf tournament will be planned at the Waiehu municipal golf course. Alternate activities such as an escape room and Maui Ocean Center are being considered to take place during the golf tournament time. V. NEW BUSINESS A. Kauai County Resolution 2019-17, adopted December 19, 2018, as amended by Resolution 2019-18, adopted January 9, 2019, appointing Ross Kagawa as HSAC representative and Arthur Brun as alternate The motion to approve and file the revised resolution was made by Vice President Kagawa. The motion was seconded by Councilmember Manahan and was unanimously carried. The purpose of the amended resolution was to correct the date. B. Maui County Resolution (Comm. No. 19-10), appointing Kelly King as HSAC representative and Riki Hokama as alternate, pending Maui County Council Meeting on January 11, 2019 The motion to approve and file the resolution was made by Vice President Kagawa. The motion was seconded by Councilmember Monahan and unanimously carried. A copy of Resolution 19-15, as adopted by the Maui County Council on January 11, 2019, was distributed. C. Discussion of Press Release Scott Ishikawa from Becker Communications began the discussion. He suggested the committee continue to take a more "behind the scenes" approach and use media only when necessary. In the past, press conferences were used only when our "backs were against the wall" (lifeguard issues, constitutional amendment). He suggested to hold off a press release until the legislative briefing. In the meantime, councilmembers could speak to legislators individually. President Poindexter suggested a joint press release with both the House and Senate. Secretary King suggested producing a booklet of bills and include the county bills. It was pointed out that the county bills should be kept separate from the HSAC bills. (1SAI?) Page 15 Councilmember Hokama said President Kouchi is willing to prioritize the cesspools issue. If a bill is drafted by the deadline, President Kouchi will introduce it. The cesspool legislation needs to be drafted and will be a short-form,bill for funding. A TAT bill was not included in HSAC package. Maui County included a TAT bill in its legislative package. When Mayor Kawakami was on the HSAC executive board, he believed pushing the TAT issue was a lost cause. All 4 counties must agree on the HSAC package. Perhaps a good approach is to ask legislators how best to approach the TAT issue. Secretary King will speak with Speaker Saiki and the Lt. Governor. President Poindexter will speak with Representative Luke and Vice Speaker Nakashima. Councilmember Hokama will speak with President Kouchi. The cesspools bill and TAT bill will be added to the HSAC legislative package. Section 13C of the HSAC by-laws allows the executive committee to add legislative proposals to the HSAC package during the legislative session. New bills will not be added to a press release at this time. Maui will transmit its TAT bill to Councilmember Manahan's office. Councilmember Monahan's office will take the lead in drafting the cesspools and TAT bills to be added to the HSAC legislative package. D. Discussion of Press Conference Scott requested a conference call before the legislative briefing on January 24. A conference call was scheduled for Tuesday, January 22 at 11:30 am. Brandon will set up the conference call. The Committee will discuss who will do what at the legislative briefing. President Poindexter would like all committee members to participate. VI. OLD BUSINESS A. 2016-17 HSAC Audit Draft Review and Approval There was a motion to defer approval of the audit by Vice President Kagawa. Secretary King seconded the motion and it was unanimously carried. The purpose of the postponement was to give new members additional time to review the audit. There was a motion to approve the proposal and engagement letter from Carbonara CPAs by Vice President Kagawa. The motion was seconded by Councilmember Manahan and it was unanimously carried. •.`StptE AS,{0`• ,S♦P Page 16 .+ SAs ; v•'��tOUNt��� B. Discussion of 2019 HSAC Legislative Package Briefing on January 24, 2019 at 11:30 a.m. in Conference Room 224 at the Hawaii State Capital Alan and Sunshine worked together to reserve the conference room for the legislative briefing. Currently, the RSVPs are 22 yes, 3 no. Brandon is ordering lunch from Tanioka's. Water, coffee, and ice will also be provided. Take out--boxes will be available for those unable to stay for lunch. Booklets with the HSAC legislative package will be produced by Councilmember Ikaika's office and President Poindexter's Office. Members discussed a new cover for the booklet. Secretary King will propose ideas to President Poindexter's office before the conference call on January 24. A suggestion was made to add to the booklet contact information for the HSAC executive committee and county councilmembers. VII. ANNOUNCEMENTS A. President Poindexter said the next HSAC Executive Committee meeting will be held on February 21, 2018 at 10:00 a.m. at Honolulu Hale. B. Other announcements President Poindexter said the HSAC website is down. She had difficulty getting access to the old Go Daddy account to fix the website. President Poindexter opened new website account at a cost of $25 per month. The website service needed to be paid $300 up front, so she used her personal funds and seeks reimbursement. The new website address is Hawaiicounties.com. Secretary King moved to reimburse $300 to President Poindexter. The motion was seconded by councilmember Manahan and was unanimously carried. VIII. ADJOURNMENT Vice President Kagawa made a motion to adjourn the meeting. The motion was seconded by Councilmember Manahan and was unanimously carried. President Poindexter adjourned the meeting at 2:34 p.m. ocs:proj:h•sac:FY2019:minutes:190115Minutes ti