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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMIN CHC 1990-01-19 l• i I ' t Minutes of Regular Meeting 1, of the HAWAII COUNTY CHARTER COMMISSION January 19 , 1990 I. CALL TO ORDER: Chairman Bethea called the meeting to order at approxi- mately 9 : 09 a.m. at the Hawaii State Library, Waimea, Hawaii . II . ROLL CALL: Members Robert E. Bethea, Chairman Present: Sherwood Greenwell , Vice Chairman Pamela F. Cushnie Francine Duncan David Fuertes James O. Juvik H. Peter L'Orange Aileen Lum Steven T. Nishikawa Akira T. Omonaka Patricia M. Poppe Attorney: Christopher Yuen Secretary:R. Marie Jacobs III . APPROVE MINUTES OF 01/05/90: Upon motion made by Ms. Lum and seconded by Mr. Omonaka, the minutes were approved. All were in favor (Tape 1: 1:43) . IV. PUBLIC TESTIMONY: None was offered. V. AGENDA ITEM NO. 5: Police Commission Budget A. Discussion: Bethea: Referred to Mr. Yuen' s letter on the subject dated 01/19/90 (Exhibit A) . Investigative authority was discussed at previous meeting. Mr. Yuen recommended one sentence be added to Sec. 7-2. 2(d) , as previously drafted (Exhibit B) : "There shall be budgeted sufficient funds in the annual budget of the police department for use by the police commission to fulfill the intent of this section. " 772 Poppe: Questioned the use of the words "submit a written report" and "summary of charges" , etc. (Exhibit B, #7-2. 2(d) ) , and whether or not the report also goes to the mayor. She feels a copy should go to the mayor as well as to the Police Chief and questioned whether that needed to be mandated in the Charter. Lum: Commission would do a report on members of, the department , not the chief. Juvik: The chief serves at the pleasure of the mayor. B. Motion No. 1/Count : Ms. Poppe made a motion to approve the sentence added by Mr. Yuen in Sec. 7-2. 2 (d) (Exhibit A) . The motion was seconded by Dr. Juvik. All were in favor. Motion carried. VI . AGENDA ITEM NOS. 6 .a) and b) : Boards/Commissions A. Discussion on Sec. 13-4(i) and (j ) : Bethea: Referred to letter of 01/15/90 (Exhibit C) from Mr. Yuen. Need to get vacancies filled as quickly as possible. It was agreed previously that Sec. 13-4 (i) needed to be changed. Yuen: But exact language wasn' t agreed upon and should be voted on for submission to the County Clerk. Poppe: Discussed advisory commissions in connection with quorum needed to take action. Does it mean majority of those present , or majority of the number of positions available for appointment? Yuen: Suggests additional wording: "No board or commission should conduct any business without a quorum, which is the majority of members to which the board or commission is entitled" (whether filled or unfilled positions) (Tape 1 : 1: 35) . Sec. 13-4 (i) does not solve the problem of advisory commissions . Bethea: Sec. 13-4 (j ) (see the Charter) could be modified also. Yuen: Correct; and the language could be: "A quorum shall be the majority of members to which the commission is entitled. " Juvik: Agreed. B. Motion No. 2/Count: Omonaka: Moved the change be made. Juvik: Seconded the motion. Bethea: Repeated the motion' s wording: Sec. 13-4(j ) in the Charter would read: "Each board and commission shall have power to establish its rules of procedure necessary for the conduct of its business , which rules shall contain the time and place of all regular meetings ; and which shall specify that a quorum shall consist of a majority of the members to which the commission is entitled. " All were in favor of the motion. Motion was carried. 773 B. Discussion: Bethea: Need a specific motion with respect to Sec. 13-4 (i) . Motion No. 3/Count : Juvik: Motions that Sec. 13-4 (i) be adopted , as it was drafted by Mr. Yuen (see Exhibit C) . Poppe: Seconded the motion. All were in favor. Motion carried. C. Discussion: Bethea: Yuen recommended that either the chair report to the mayor if a commissioner missed three consecutive meetings or missed more than 50% of the meetings in a six-month period. Could also include that Council must take action to approve/reject nominees within 45 days. Juvik: Feels the mayor should know whether his/her appointees are attending meetings. Greenwell: Some commissions only meet quarterly and should be compelled to meet. Bethea: Questioned whether a further qualification should be added to Sec. 13-4 in the form of an additional subparagraph. Yuen: Yes . Bethea: Possible wording: "The chairman of each board or commission shall submit a report to the mayor when a commission member misses three consecutive meetings or 50% of the meetings in a six-month period. " Omonaka: Suggested amending paragraph (i) to include absenteeism. Bethea: Suggested it could go in (j ) also. L'Orange: Suggested it should be included in some section. Juvik: Feels there should be an annual report to the mayor. Cushnie: Agrees that a quarterly report should go to the mayor. Does not like the wording "three consecutive meetings" because maybe the commission only meets four times a year; but the commission has still wasted the whole year if members aren' t present to vote. Cushnie/Poppe: Prefers report to be submitted more often than only if three consecutive meetings are missed . Greenwell : Suggested including that each board or commission set up language to create rules to insure the attendance of members of their commission (Tape 1 : 1: 21) . Yuen: Suggested a report to the chair after every third scheduled meeting. L'Orange: Suggested reporting "chronic absenteeism" to mayor. Yuen: Commission needs a fixed rule to prevent prejudice. Motion No. 4/Count: L'Orange: Moved that the wording be that a report goes to the mayor "if three consecutive meetings are missed or 50% of the meetings in a six-month period _ " Juvik: Seconded. All were in .favor , with the exception of Mr . Omonaka, who opposed the motion. Motion carried. 774 Further Discussion: Yuen: Questioned whether it would be a rolling six-month period . Bethea: Several preferred that it not be a rolling six-month period. Bethea: So report would not go to mayor unless the requirements for attendance were not met. Mr . Yuen can draft exact wording for the next meeting. Omonaka: Questioned what should happen if the chairman set meetings when someone was not able to attend; prefers the board or commission to set their own rules of attendance. L'Orange: Each commission member is able to complain to the mayor now. Poppe: Commissions try to accommodate membership. Cushnie: New appointees should search out information on how often the board or commission meets prior to accepting the appoint- ment . Juvik: Not suggesting someone be thrown off a commission, only referring an absentee problem to the mayor. D. Discussion: Bethea: There is no way to hurry up the mayor ' s nominating commission members unless you have the Council chairman appoint if the mayor doesn' t (Tape 1 : 2:42) . Juvik: Suggests inserting words to the effect that the mayor shall submit names to fill vancancies 60 days prior to expiration of the term. Greenwell: Sixty days is too long. L'Orange: Number of commissioners needing to be appointed is extensive when a new mayor comes on board. Omonaka: Suggested having board and commission members ' terms expire six months after an election. Poppe: Terms are all staggered, so that won' t work. Greenwell : Suggested new appointees take positions by April of each year. Bethea: New mayors know they have won in November; so they have enough time to replace commission members by March. Could consider a 45-day carryover for when new mayors are elected. Juvik: Suggested 30-day carryover. Cushnie: Extending deadlines is usurping powers of new mayor. Would rather have new mayor submit names 30 days in advance. Greenwell : Suggested 30-day extension for new mayor to come up with list of appointees. The old appointees would then continue on commissions . Appointing powers have a one-month grace period. Bethea: But that doesn' t speed up appointing process ; need time limit . Motion No. 5/Count: Poppe: Made a motion that only after an election year , commission members would continue in positions until January 31st . Motion seconded by Dr. Juvik. All were in favor of the motion. 775 Further Discussion: Omonaka: January 31st is more than 30 days , because mayor takes office the first Monday in December. E. Discussion: Bethea: Should mayor be put under pressure to make nominations to fill vacancies? If mayor doesn' t do it , appointing power can pass to Council chair. Questioned what should happen if Council doesn' t act--institute a 45-day limit? Yuen: Council only needs to vote on it one time on floor (Tape 1: 2: 30) ; it would be by resolution. If Council rejects an appointment , filling a vacancy would take longer. Motion No. 6/Count : Poppe: Makes a motion that Council have 45 days to approve/reject apointee names from when mayor sends letter to Council . Dr. Juvik seconded the motion. All were in favor. VII. AGENDA ITEM NO. 7 .a) : Single-Member Districts A. Motion No. 7/Count: L'Orange: Motioned that the matter of the nine single-member districts be removed from the table and be put back on the floor for discussion. Seconded by Mr. Greenwell. All were in favor. Motion carried. Discussion: Cushnie: Mr. L'Orange could withdraw the motion made at the previous meeting and create a new one. Mr. L'Orange agrees to withdraw his motion. Motion No. 8/Count: Juvik: Makes a motion to amend the Charter to allow for the election of Councilmembers to come from nine single-member districts. The motion was seconded by Mr. L'Orange: All 11 members present were in favor. Motion carried. VIII . AGENDA ITEM NO. 7. b) : Length of Council Term A. Discussion: Omonaka: Questioned whether Council terms would remain four years . Bethea: Yes. Omonaka: There would need to be a transition period if this amendment passes. Yuen: If this were passed by the 1990 voters , the 1992 election would involve single-member districts . Motion No. 9: Mr . Greenwell made a motion that Council terms be set for two-year periods . The motion was seconded >-by Ms. Poppe. 776 Further Discussion: Yuen: This is in conjunction with the single-member district motion passed. Greenwell: Two-year terms will give opportunity to districts to make changes sooner and gives the electorate greater opportunity to participate in government (Tape 1: 2: 21) . Juvik: Opposes two-year period. Single-member districts will decrease campaign costs and time, but two-year terms will again increase campaign costs and time. Cushnie: Productivity would increase with four-year terms. Also, emotional issues can work them- selves out in four years. Lum: Opposed to two years because of expenses. Motion No. 9 Count: In favor: Fuertes Opposed: Cushnie Greenwell Duncan L'Orange Juvik Omonaka Lum Bethea Nishikawa Poppe Motion failed. B. Motion No. 10/Count: Ms. Poppe made a motion that the length of Council terms be four years. The motion was seconded by Dr . Juvik. In favor: Cushnie Opposed: Omonaka Duncan Bethea Fuertes Greenwell Juvik L'Orange Lum Nishikawa Poppe Motion passes. IX. AGENDA ITEM NO. 7. c) : Council Residency Requirements A. Discussion: Juvik: Questioned residency require- ments. Yuen: Existing today: Live one year in the County and 90 days in the particular district you are running in. This is constitutional . It ' s in Sec. 3-3 . 777 Motion No. 11/Count: Dr. Juvik made a motion to retain existing residency requirements , seconded by Ms. Lum. All were in favor . Further Discussion: L'Orange: Would like Mr. Yuen to check out how "residency" is defined in more exacting way. Lum: More important question is , what happens if they leave the district . Juvik: Also questioned what should take place if the districting changes. Would relocation be allowed? Yuen: People would probably be allowed to serve out terms if district lines change; they should also have opportunity to relocate if district lines are redrawn. Yuen: Discussed reapportionment if district lines change. It creates opportunity for special election because Councilmember no longer lives in district in which he was elected. Bethea: Mr . Yuen will prepare some information re reapportionment , and include this topic on next agenda (Tape 2: 1 : 45) . X. AGENDA ITEM NO. 7.d) : Selection of Council Chair A. Motion No. 12/Count : Mr. Greenwell moved that Sec. 3-7 be retained in the Charter as is . The motion was seconded by Ms. Lum. All were in favor. Motion passed. Note: Ms . Poppe and Mr. Omonaka left meeting before this motion was made. XI. AGENDA ITEM NO. 8: Art. V: Mayor/Executive Agencies A. Discussion: L 'Orange: Were considering changing this if Charter Commission elected to have some at-large and some district Council representatives , but that is void now. Cushnie: If mayor died, mayoral position passes to the managing director. Should that office be held by non-elected official? Bethea: Sec. 5-1 . 3 was discussed and settled previously. Yuen: Discussed previously whether to include mayor ' s salary under Salary Commission, but idea was rejected. Bethea: Questioned whether a change was needed on Sec. 5-1 .4 (b) . Yuen: Mr. Luke/Civil Service submitted proposed amendment . Yuen: Suggested deleting second sentence. These positions do not have civil service protection. 778 Motion No. 13/Count : Dr. Juvik made a motion to eliminate the second sentence in Sec. 5-1 .4 (b) . The motion was seconded by Ms. Lum. All were in favor. Motion carried. B. Discussion: Bethea: Next section to be discussed is Sec. 5-1 . 5 . Questioned the inserting of the word "next" : " . . .next state or state and county election and seated. " Motion No. 14/Count: Dr. Juvik made a motion to insert the word "next" before the first "state" word in Sec. 5-1 . 5. The motion was seconded by Ms . Lum. All were in favor. Motion carried. Further Discussion: L'Orange: Doesn' t see the need for the change though. C. Discussion: Lum: Questioned whether commission members would prefer managing director to take over (Sec. 5-1 .7) if something happened to the mayor. Commission also discussed Sec. 12-1 . 1 , recall . Greenwell: Adminis- trative assistant should stay in for continuity. Yuen: Managing Director ' s position is just an appointed posi- tion that would be filled upon vacancy (Tape 2: 1: 29) . Lum: Suggests Mr. Yuen prepare wording for a special election in case mayor is removed/leaves position. Juvik: Would like Mr. Yuen to do the same for provisions for Council positions . Lum: Can qualifications be addressed for the managing director? Lum/ Juvik: Would like wording to include mayoral vacancy created via death also. D. Discussion on Sec. 5-2: Corporation Counsel: Bethea: The main problem addressed here is that Corp. Counsel cannot function until he has been confirmed by the Council. Of course, Corp. Counsel is supposed to represent the mayor and the Council . Yuen: Defer making the decision on this until Charter Commission deals with the question of confirmation of department heads. E. Discussion: Bethea: Special counsel situation needs to be addressed also (Tape 2: 1: 10) . Yuen: Who fulfills contract is administration' s prerogative. Council appropriates the money for contracts. Green- well: Special counsel will be more sensitive to admin- istration' s needs . Yuen: Council wants to be able to hire their own special counsel in situations where they disagree with Corp. Counsel or where they feel response is not adequate. And all contracts go through mayor ' s 779 office (Tape 2: 2: 39) . Juvik: Prefers to leave item as is . Bethea: Brought up Sec. 5-2. 6 and Art. 13-8 . Motion No. 15/Count: Dr. Juvik moves that issues dealing with special counsel be left as is. Mr. Greenwell seconded the motion. All were in favor. F. Motion No. 16/Count: Mr. Greenwell made a motion that the Department of Finance will have a deputy. Mr. L'Orange seconded the motion. All were in favor. Discussion: Bethea: Questioned whether Sec. 5-3 . 1 wording needed changing to: "director of finance, a deputy director, and the necessary staff. " Motion No. 17/Count: Dr. Juvik made a motion that Sec. 5-3 . 1 should be amended to read "director of finance, a deputy director , and the necessary staff. " The motion was seconded by Mr. L'Orange. All were in favor of the motion. Motion No. 16 was then recalled. G. Discussion: L'Orange: Questioned whether service of process re Corp. Counsel needed to be changed. Yuen: Not relevant enough to change. H. Discussion: Juvik: Would like minimum qualifications for the Finance Director in the Charter. Read the wording in the Honolulu Charter: "The director of finance shall have a minimum of five years of training and expertise in a public or private financial position, at least three years of which shall have been in a responsible administrative capacity . " Motion No. 18/Count: Juvik: Moves that the above wording re minimum qualifications for finance director be added to Sec. 5-3 . The motion was seconded by Mr. L'Orange. All were in favor of the motion. Motion carried. Further Discussion: Juvik: Prefers that finance deputy have three years of experience in a public or private position; doesn' t need administrative experience. I. Discussion on Sec. 5-4 . 3 : Planning: Yuen: Summary of suggested changes : 1) One Planning Commission person should be advisory only; 2) eliminate conflicts with the state law, i . e. eliminating 4 . 3 (e) because state law says Planning Dept. makes recommendations for the Land Use Commission; 3) eliminate 4. 3 (f) because Planning Director 780 only makes recommendations re zoning; 4) in (h) , change the term "granting" to "action" because Planning Commission merely recommends changes; 5) that there should be a Planning Department and Zoning Department and a commission for each; and 6) that the Planning Commission' s hearings be conducted by a moderator. Bethea: Suggested changing "the granting of" in lieu of "the action on" in Chp. 4 , Sec. 5-4 . 3 (g) . Juvik: Would retain Sec. 5-4. 3 (e) . Motion No. 19/Count: Ms . Duncan made a motion to adopt the changes recommended by the Planning Director (i . e. deleting Secs. 5-4 . 3 (e) and (f) , and changing the wording in (h) from "the granting of" to "action on" ) , and list them as housekeeping items . The motion was seconded by Mr. L'Orange. All were in favor of the motion with the exception of Dr. Juvik, who was opposed. The motion passed. J . Discussion: Juvik: What about 5-4. 2, and including job qualifications for the Planning Director: "The Director of Planning shall have a minimum of five years of training, experience in a responsible planning position, at least three of which shall have been in a responsible administrative capacity. " Commission discussed whether administrative experience should be included. Lum: Why not: "three years of which shall have been in an administrative capacity in charge of major planning activities. " Cushnie: Administrator is more important . Motion No. 20/Count: Juvik: Makes a motion that this wording be inserted in the Charter: "The Director of Planning shall have a minimum of five years of training, experience in a responsible planning position, at least three of which shall have been in a responsible administrative capacity. " Ms. Lum seconded the motion. In favor: Cushnie Opposed: Duncan Fuertes Greenwell Juvik L'Orange Lum Nishikawa Bethea Motion failed. Further Discussion: Lum: Suggested wording: "The Director of Planning shall have a college degree in either planning, engineering or architecture, or he shall have had a minimum of five years of training or experience in a responsible planning position at least 781 three years of which shall have been in an administrative capacity in charge of major planning activities. He shall be the administrative head of the department . " Juvik: Other suggested language: "The planning director shall be appointed and removed by the mayor; he shall have had five years of experience in the field of planning, three of which shall have been in an administrative capacity. " Motion No. 21/Count: Mr. L'Orange made a motion to institute the same language as in Motion No. 20, except to delete the three years of administrative experience. The motion was seconded by Mr. Greenwell. L 'Orange: Need qualifications for the position, but not necessarily administrative experience (Tape 3 : 1:46) . It is not easy to find qualified people. You 're excluding the kind of people who are smart , but who have not managed an office before. Cushnie: Feels this item should be tabled until more commission members are present at the meeting to vote on it. Motion No. 22: Mr. L'Orange moved to defer this item to another meeting. Mr. Nishikawa seconded. All were in favor. XII. It was decided to take up other items on next agenda. XIII. SET NEXT MEETING: The next meeting will be set in Waimea at 9 a.m. on February 2nd. ADJOURNMENT: Chairman Bethea adjourned the meeting at approximately 12:07 p.m. Respectfully submitted, 2r1PC).-j2e-eee4‘) R. Marie Jacobs Secretary-Assistant 782 CHRISTOPHER J. YUEN HILO LAGOON CENTRE,SUITE 108 101 AUPUNI STREET HILO,HAWAII 96720 ATTORNEY AT LAW TEL.(808)935-4429 January 15, 1990 Hawaii County Charter Commission 101 Aupuni Street, Suite 235 Hilo, Hawaii 96720 Re: Police Commission Dear Commission Members: At our last meeting, the Charter Commission asked me to suggest language which would make it clear that the police commission should receive enough funds to adequately perform the task of investigating allegations of police misconduct. One way to direct that this be done would be to incorporate the following sentence (originally submitted by Mr. Greenwell in slightly different form) at the end of the draft of §7-2 .2 (d) as adopted by the Charter Commission at its last meeting. The section would then read (with the additional language underlined) : (d) Receive, consider, and investigate charges brought by the public against the conduct of the department or any of its members and submit a written report of its findings to the chief of police. A summary of the charges filed and their disposition shall be included in the annual report of the commission. There shall be budgeted sufficient funds in the annual budget of the police department for use by the police commission to fulfill the intent of this section. This additional language gives a clear direction •to the chief of police, the mayor, and the council that the police commission should be given enough money to perform investigations. If language like this is included, it becomes unimportant whether the police commission sends its own budget to the mayor, or whether its budget is part of the departmental budget. The provisions adopted by the Charter Commission at its last meeting give the police commission the power to comment on the police department budget submitted to the mayor by the police chief. If the budget did not include enough for the police commission's investigations, the police commission could comment to the mayor that it ought to get more money. This would be the functional equivalent of sending its own proposed budget to the mayor. In practical terms, it seems improbable that the police chief would fight too hard with the commission over the commission's share of the budget: after all, the police commission has the power to fire the chief. 783 EXHIBIT A (2 pages) The Charter Commission also voted to include certain minimum qualifications for the chief of police. The Charter Commission did not determine where the qualifications should be placed in the Charter. I would suggest placing the qualifications at the end of §7-2 . 3 , in a sentence that would read: "The chief of police shall have had a minimum of five years of training and experience in law enforcement work, including at least three years in a responsible administrative capacity. " The Charter Commission might also consider whether it should impose a similar experience requirement for the deputy chief position. Yours truly, • (.;X-2,e, ' / Christopher/. Yuen U 784 From: Yuen on 01/04/90 COMMITTEE'S DRAFT CHARTER REVISIONS Police Department §7-2.1. Organization. There shall be a police department consisting of a police commission, a chief of police, a deputy chief of police, and the necessary staff. §7-2.2. Police Commission. The police commission• shall consist of seven members, two of whom shall be residents of the combined districts of North and South Hilo, one from the district of Puna, one from the district of Ka'u, one from the combined districts of North and South Kona, one from the combined districts of North and South Kohala, and one from the district of Hamakua. The members shall be appointed by the mayor and confirmed by the council in the manner prescribed in Section 13-4. The police commission shall: (a) Adopt such rules as it may consider necessary for the conduct of its business and the regulation of the matters committed to its charge and may review the rules and regulations of the department. (b) Review the annual budget prepared by the chief of police and may make recommendations thereon to the mayor. (c) Submit an annual report to the mayor and the council. (d) Receive, consider, and investigate charges brought by the public against the conduct of the department or any of its members and submit a written report of its findings to the chief of police. A summary of the charges filed and their disposition shall be included in the annual report of the commission. EXHIBIT B 785 (3 pages) (e) Advise the chief of police on police-community relations. (f) Hire personnel necessary to carry out its functions. Except for purposes of inquiry, neither the commission nor its members shall interfere in any way with the administrative affairs of the department. [Alternative A] §7-2.3. Chief of Police and Deputy. The chief of police shall be appointed by the police commission and may be removed by the police commission, without cause being stated. The -deputy shall be appointed by the chief of police with the confirmation of the police commission and may be removed by the chief of police with the approval of the commission, without cause being stated. [Alternative B] §7-2.3. Chief of Police and Deputy. The chief of police shall be appointed by the police commission and may be removed by the police commission at its sole discretion. Any motion for removal of the chief of police must contain a statement of reasons, and the commission shall not vote to remove the chief of police unless the chief of police has been given an opportunity to respond, to the statement of reasons at a hearing before the commission. The deputy shall be appointed by the chief of police with the confirmation of the police commission and may be removed by the chief of police with the approval of the commission, without cause being stated. §7-2.4. Powers, Duties, and Functions of the Chief of Police. The chief of police shall be the administrative head of 786 the police department and shall: (a) Be responsible for the preservation of the public peace, prevention of crime, detection and arrest of offenders against the law, protection of the rights of persons and property, and enforcement and prevention of violations of all laws of the state and ordinances of the county and all • regulations made in accordance therewith. (b) Train, equip, maintain, and supervise the force of police officers and employees. (c) Promulgate rules and regulations for the organization and administration of the police force. (d) Make periodic reports to the police commission about the activities of the police department and about actions taken on cases investigated by the police commission. (e) Have such other powers, duties, and functions as may be required by the police commission or provided by law. §7-2.5. Dismissal, Suspension, Demotion; or Grievance. The dismissal, suspension, demotion, or grievance of any police officer or employee in the police department shall be under procedures set forth by civil service laws and regulations. §7-2. 6. Administrative Supervision. The police department shall come under the general supervision and control of the mayor. 787 CHRISTOPHER J. YUEN HILO LAGOON CENTRE,SUITE 108 101 AUPUNI STREET AT HILO,HAWAII 96720 ATTORNEY AT LAW TEL.(808)935-4429 January 15, 1990 Hawaii County Charter Commission 101 Aupuni St. , Suite 235 Hilo, Hawaii 96720 Re: Absences and Vacancies in Boards and Commissions Dear Charter Commission Members: At our last meeting I was asked to provide some background and to make suggestions concerning the issue of absences and vacancies on county boards and commissions. We have had testimony that absences and vacancies have impaired the functioning of some county boards and commissions. Absences are difficult to control through charter language. The members of boards and commissions, serve without compensation. Some of the boards have extremely active schedules (for example, the planning commission. ) Generally, the individuals appointed to boards and commissions are also activein other community endeavors and full attendance can be onerous. It is difficult to think of any sanction for non-attendance other than removal. At present, a board or commission member may be removed by the mayor with the concurrence of the council (Haw. Cty. Charter §13-4 (b) ) . It might help control absences if the chair of a board or commission were required to report to the mayor if a member missed a certain number of meetings (for example, three consecutive meetings) , and if boards and commissions were required to submit an annual report of attendance to the mayor and the council. At least the appointing authority and the policy-making body would then be aware of an attendance problem, and could take action if necessary. The possibility of public embarrassment might be a powerful incentive for board members to avoid absences. At present, positions on boards and commissions become vacant upon the expiration of the term; members do not hold over. Haw. Cty. Charter §13-4 (d) . Vacancies should not be a major problem, except possibly during a period of transition between two administrations. Most vacancies occur when a board member's term expires. The mayor must be aware when the terms are expiring and plan to send names to the council for confirmation in advance. However, when a new mayor is taking office, there are many appointments to be made, and it may take more time to fill the boards and commissions. One can imagine two basic reasons for a delay in filling a vacancy: the mayor failing to make a nomination on time, or the 788 EXHIBIT C (3 pages) council failing to act on the nomination quickly (or rejecting the nominee. ) The first kind of problem is hard to solve through the charter. The only real mechanism which I could imagine would be to provide that if the mayor doesn't make an appointment within a specified time, ' the council may make the appointment. This would be quite awkward for the council, however: it is very difficult for a nine-member body to agree on an appointment. The second kind of problem is inherent in having council confirmation. The charter could make the process go more quickly by providing that the council must accept or reject the nominee within a specified period (for example, forty-five days) or the nominee will be deemed to have been accepted. This would force the council to make a timely decision on the mayor's nominee. It would be possible to allow board members to hold over for a limited period of time (for example, forty-five days) pending the confirmation of a successor. The major disadvantage would be that the mayor may come to count on that grace period and may procrastinate in selecting the nominee. There might still be a vacancy if the mayor delayed until the end of the hold-over period to make the new appointment. To allow a board member to hold over for an indefinite period pending the appointment of a successor solves the vacancy problem but raises other concerns. If no time limit is placed upon a holdover, someone could serve forever. If the council preferred the old commission member to the mayor's new appointee, it could keep the old member in office by successively rejecting the mayor's new appointments. • One further matter regarding boards and commissions. At our last meeting, the Charter Commission voted to clarify the charter provision concerning the number of votes necessary to take official action. I have drafted the exact language which will effectuate the Commission's actions: to replace the existing Charter §13-4 (1) with the following: (i) The affirmative vote of a majority of the entire membership to which a board or commission is entitled shall be necessary to make any action valid; except that in the case of a board or commission which has only advisory functions, the affirmative vote of a majority of those present shall be sufficient to make any action valid. 789 f \ For the sake of completeness, the Charter Commission should vote to adopt the exact language which will be proposed for inclusion in the Charter. ; The motion which was made was sufficiently detaileds, •' that the adoption of the exact language is simply a procedural matter now. Yours truly, Christopher J Yuefi 790