Voters have decided against allowing Kaua’i County Planning Commission members
to come from backgrounds other than business, environment and
labor.
Almost 60 percent of the voters in Tuesday’s general election
decided to leave things as they are.
There were 13,037 voters who said no
to changing Planning Commission membership requirements.Only 6473 voters wanted
to open up the membership.
State Sen. Jonathan Chun, who opposed the
existing membership standards – two members each with a working knowledge of
business, environment and labor on the seven-member commission – remained
opposed following yesterday’s election.
“You don’t have any criteria for
saying who represents environmental, business and labor interests,” Chun
said.
On another county charter amendment, voters decided to allow the
County Council to conduct performance audits of county departments and
agencies.
That charter amendment passed 15,442 votes, 69.7 peercent, to
only 4,267, 19.2 percent, against.
Councilman Gary Hooser, re-elected to
his second term last night, was the prime mover behind the performance audit
amendment.
The council already had the power to perform financial audits,
but performance audits had always previously been in the bailiwick of the
mayor, who appoints department heads.
Hooser said performance audits would
not necessarily be used against department heads who might be doing a good job,
even if the department itself was floundering.
His six council colleagues
voted with him to put the amendment on the ballot. Voters agreed with Hooser,
too. Almost 70 percent of them told the council to audit away.
Staff
writer Dennis Wilken can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 252) and
dwilken@pulitzer.net
