Today’s council meeting should be an interesting one. On display for all who care to watch, will be an unvarnished exercise in real life policy and politics.
I am speaking of course about Resolution #2018-03. This measure, introduced by Councilmember Ross Kagawa, seeks to place a question on the ballot that if passed, would eliminate term limits for county councilmembers. Currently members are limited to four consecutive two-year terms.
Two existing councilmembers (Yukimura and Rapozo) are “termed out” this year and unable to run for re-election in 2018.
They can however “sit out” one election cycle and run again if they so choose.
Councilmember Kagawa is scheduled to term out in 2020 (assuming he is re-elected in 2018) and would be directly impacted by the removal of term limits should that occur as a result of the resolution he has introduced.
At a recent public hearing regarding the issue, the testimony was overwhelmingly in opposition.
At today’s council meeting, Councilmember Kagawa as the introducer and primary advocate of the measure, will be faced with two basic options.
Regardless of the subject matter, when any introduced resolution or bill is controversial in nature, the choice is either pull back and do a mea culpa, or plow ahead and deal with the political consequences.
Given the almost universal support for keeping term limits in place, Councilmember Kagawa could acknowledge that perhaps introducing the resolution was not the greatest of ideas, and now having tested the waters he will support voting against his own proposal to follow the will of the people he is currently serving, his constituents.
Suitable remarks about listening to and respecting the wishes of the people could of course then be offered with effusion and sincerity.
This option, essentially one of graceful retreat, would allow the issue to be dealt with in a manner that does not force the other councilmembers to choose sides and vote in support of a politically charged measure in an election year.
Of course, if the introducer has a very strong electoral base and the political ramifications are not a concern and/or he truly believes the measure is necessary and represents good public policy, then a retreat (graceful or otherwise) may not be the best option.
In my own experience as a councilmember in the past, I have been faced with similar choices and neither option, from a political perspective, is a particularly pleasant one.
But as they say in poker, “a card laid is a card played.”
This rather dicey political situation would normally never occur at the Legislature for two reasons. First of all, state legislators will “count their votes” and speak directly with their colleagues to gauge support before introducing anything remotely controversial.
At the county level this is not permitted under the state’s “sunshine law”. So if the introducer of Resolution 2018-03 discussed (outside a publicly noticed meeting) the substance of the measure or voting inclination with two members or more, that would be breaking the law.
Secondly, if any committee chair at the state legislature decides that they want to kill a bill or Resolution, they simply don’t schedule a hearing and so no vote will occur. Thus there is no need for anyone to beat a retreat, eat crow, or offer any mea culpa whatsoever.
Removing term limits for councilmembers, along with votes and discussion on many other issues (including a Bill referencing “Whips and weapons on public property”) will all happen today at the Historic County Building on Rice street starting at 8:30am.
I strongly encourage all to participate in the process by showing up in person, or at least, emailing your testimony to counciltestimony@kauai.gov.
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Gary Hooser formerly served in the state Senate, where he was majority leader. He also served for eight years on the Kauai County Council and was former director of the state Office of Environmental Quality Control. He serves presently in a volunteer capacity as board president of the Hawaii Alliance for Progressive Action (HAPA) and is executive director of the Pono Hawaii Initiative.
Other than the politicians who crave power and don’t want to be termed out, which wealthy donors and corporations support this bill? Do they have politicians in their pockets and don’t want to lose votes for their major developments or continued poisoning of our Island? Just curious as to any specifics.
Poor Gary. Still desperately trying to be relevant when politics have long since passed him by.
Gary Hooser is the single most outspoken voice attempting to protect our democracy, our people and the island itself. It’s past sad that you think these things are irrelevant and that you feel compelled to reply to his posts in this manner.
Hi Gary. Great news. The ground water is not contaminated as suggested by some of your financial backers. http://raisingislands.blogspot.ca/2018/03/massive-pesticide-testing-confirms.html
We still have the same tiring Issues and problems facing our island; and we still have the same tired faces on the Council that have not been able to make needed improvements. It’s high time to move over and let others do what they can for imminent and predicted future issues, and at the same time asking them to be proactive instead of waiting for the problems to be large.
4 Terms @ 2 years each is too long.
2 Terms @ 2 years each may be more appropriate.
Kauai’s block voting loyalty to ones culture, unions, family are normal; and mixed with those who refuse to vote is perhaps not in the best interest of the island, and its guarded and protected future of all the cultures participating or not in the voting process.
Term Limits gives our Youth a chance to bring new ideas, guided by the wisdom of our Kapuna who are willing to participate.
Kauai may be stymied, and at risk, by its lack of worldly experience and the limited worldly knowledge of our elected leaders.
Some of our leaders actually want more and more and more of what is here and still coming that will plague us.
The highest powers of the world are crushing all in their way, even tiny islets such as Kauai.
The subtle power of mega corporate need for profit, requires brilliant minds to challenge and curb its onslaught(er) of micro communities, often destinations for tourism, like Kauai.
The brilliance we need to protect Kauai, more than likely, is locked in the minds of some of our youth.
We may do well to send some of our youth offshore as emissaries, to foreign already ruined visitor destinations, to see what may be coming our way as corporations creep silently forward engulfing us in their need and greed for profit.
4 Terms @ 2 Years?
If you had a choice would you give TERMITES THAT LONG….?
Mahalo,
Charles