The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink AboutComm No 0035.43 - Testimony - CA-18 - PONC Maintenance fundFrom: Debbie H <hecht.deb@gmail.com> Sent: Friday, June 21, 2019 10:52 AM To: Charter Commission Subject: For today's charter commission meeting Sorry to do this so late I thought everyone would be in Kona. Please print and hand out to all the charter commission members and also submit as a Communication Mahalo ALOHA my name is Debbie Hecht, I have been the Campaign Coordinator for the Save our Lands Citizen Committee since 2005. I have been advocating FOR THE 2% Land Fund program without salary, wages or benefits to save Hawaii Island's treasured lands for our keiki and grand children. 63% of voters have voted 3 times to support the land fund. We believe that the aina is the foundation for our tourist industry, which is the biggest employer on the island. If we don't preserve the beautiful places and our ocean shores why would people come here? They could go to Waikiki and go shopping and snorkel on a dead reef. I wrote the existing legislation with Council member Brenda Ford that is in the Hawaii County Code and the Hawaii County Charter. I was appointed by Mayor Kenoi to serve on the Public Access, Open Space and Natural Resources Commission. We learned that the government would not purchase open space and parklands. So we took the extraordinary measure to run a petition initiative drive and collected 9,600 signatures to first get the measure on the Ballot. 63% of voters approved the measure. Then Mayor Kenoi and the Council suspended deposits to the fund for 2 years. We took the next extraordinary measure to move the 2% Land Fund to the charter where it could only be undone by a vote of the people. That is why we took the huge step of setting aside 2% of property taxes each year to purchase open space. THAT is the only reason why over 4,400 acres have been purchased and 2,200 acres will be added soon. Remember, only $5 to $6 million dollars is added to the 2% Land Fund each year. That is 2% of property taxes, but that amount is only 1.5% of the total income stream for the County of Hawaii. That is only $5 million per year which means one maybe 2 properties that could be purchased each year. There is $700,000 added to the Maintenance Fund each year. I believe that if 63% of people vote 3 times to support a program that vote should be honored. I have also been running my own business for 40 years and 1.5% of a budget is a small amount. THE LAND FUND IS NOT WORKING AS WELL AS IT SHOULD, we need one full time person to work only on the Land Fund Program because: 1. There is $22 million sitting in the fund 2. There have been almost 200 properties proposed by citizens for purchase. 3. Only 14 properties have been acquired. 4. Only 1/3 of the money spent to purchase land has been in matching funds at least 50% should be in matching funds to maximize the most important potential of an exsiting land fund. 5. Only 9% of the money depositied in the Maintenance Fund has been received by the non- profits 6. HOW CAN WE DO BETTER? • BY HIRING ONE FULL TIME PERSON TO WORK ONLY ON THE 2% LAND FUND PROGRAM and 1 Comm. No. 35.43 • BY ALLOWING THE STEWARDSHIP GROUPS TO PAY PEOPLE TO WORK ON THE LAND. There were 371 people that sent in email testimony on CA -7, CA -8, CA -13 and CA -27. I counted each communication. There were at least 20 people that took time out of their days to attend each of the 10 charter commission meetings and testify in person that is 200 people. These people represent the 63% of the voting public that voted 3 times to support the Land fund Program. Just like you, they are taking the time to represent the people of Hawaii Island. We have come before you at every meeting of the Charter commission since October of 2018. We have asked you over and over again to improve and empower the 2% Land Fund by hiring just one person to work full time on the land fund and to be paid out of the Land Fund monies. We have asked over and over again to allow the stewardship groups to pay people to work on the Land. Now we have to go to the County Council and ask them to help. How does this serve the people of this island? ON CA -9 WE REQUESTED THAT YOU USE THE CLARIFYING LANGUAGE SO THAT ONLY ONE PERSON IS HIRED TO WORK FULL TIME ON THE LAND FUND. WE WILL RUN A "JUST SAY NO CAMPAIGN" BECAUSE WE DON'T WANT THE LAND FUND TO BE DEPLETED OF PURCHASING POWER BY SALARIES WAGES AND BENEFITS BY MORE THAN ONE STAFF PERSON. The Save our Land's Citizen's Committee has proposed since October that the Department of Finance use part of the 2% Land Fund money to pay ONE person to work ONLY On the Land Fund because more than one salary wages and benefits for a highly qualified person with law or real estate conservation experience would equal $100,000. This is in addition to the staff provided by the Hawaii County Code to assist the PONC commission. We thought this was a compromise to free up a salary staff position in the Department of Finance instead we ended up with open ended language. Our preferred language is underlined in red: (3) "Pay for the salary, wages and benefits of one full -ti ler➢ . fa .r"r➢ep2t .ar .alar➢fgl.oy .a , t yJJ2a Department of Finance dedicated only to advancing administering the activities contained within this section and Section 10-16 of this charter lhfi in a,idditi�. n_tr. a _,Ufa°off_ . er5�. Ir➢_ f rovi ,ledl,for ilr➢ the tgl/Y1➢1! � a: ! he Public Access, -42 a: ➢'➢ :1 Natural 59111: 2§, We have an opportunity to strengthen the 2% Land Fund Program IF there is someone doing the work. An real estate person or attorney qualified in conservation land acquisitions would be able to negotiation more land purchases, acquire more matching funds and help the stewardship non- profit groups obtain more grant funding CA -18- should ALLOW NON -PROFITS TO PAY PEOPLE TO WORK ON THE LAND. PLEASE DO NOT CONFUSE THIS LANGUAGE TO ALLOW BOARD MEMBERS TO BE PAID! 2 There is a safety, a check and balance built into this system. THE DEPARTMENT OF FINANCE AND THE COUNTY COUNCIL HAVE TO APPROVE THEIR STEWARDSHIP GRANT PROPOSAL. IF THEY VIOLATE THIS THEY WILL NEVER BE ALLOWED TO APPLY FOR GRANTS IN THE FUTURE. HERE IS OUR PREFERRED LANGUAGE: [(5)]L6j No officer, board member, or employee of the 501(c) 3 nonprofit organization or the organization that operates under the umbrella of a 501(c) 3 nonprofit organization shall receive a salary or payment for labor or receive any reimbursement for the stewardship work on the project, ii 1!,.' ttIllhuy avr . iiii. 74. ' iii � to u!L` [Ill y ivn avr ( III A w l iii 2� t. 182 1 LIh ail "au t t iii 2 llll. The 501(c)3 nonprofit shall sign an agreement so stating these conditions and submit it with the application. PLEASE CLARIFY YOUR PROCESS GOING FORWARD. I've talked to 3 Council members and they don't understand it either. I asked County Clerk Jon Hendricks to clarify and got back a terse email saying: "The information provided in Comm. No. 51 provides our best effort to delineate the process. I don't believe I can elucidate beyond what is provided" PROBLEMS WITH THE PROCESS- Your process is unclear as delineated in the Report to the Council. 1. I think that the council gets 30 days to respond to your Charter Amendments but what happens after that? 2. The Council can come back with their recommendations. 3. You decide whether to accept or reject the amendments 4. They can "recall" or take back their proposed amendments OR 5. The County council can also decide to put their preferred amendments on the ballot for 2020 PLEASE CLARIFY THE PROCESS AND LINK THE PROCESS WITH THE TIMELINE AND EXACT DATES. • I believe you can still amend the charter amendments before they are sent to the County Council, by suspending your rules. • I believe you can also make changes to charter amendments when the amendments come back from the County Council. PLEASE help us to further strengthen the 2% Land fund Program PLEASE SUPPORT OUR AMENDMENTS. Mahalo, Debbie Hecht Hecht.deb mail.com Debbie Hecht Website: Ramblings, Thoughts and Theories: www.debbiehecht.com 3