HILO — Two proposed amendments to the county charter received just enough votes Tuesday to survive another round of County Council action, when each passed with the minimum six votes needed to keep it alive.
HILO — Two proposed amendments to the county charter received just enough votes Tuesday to survive another round of County Council action, when each passed with the minimum six votes needed to keep it alive.
One amendment would create an elected position of corporation counsel, rather than have the county’s top civil lawyer appointed by the mayor and confirmed by the council, as has been done for about 40 years. With North Kona Councilman Angel Pilago absent, the measure passed its second of three required votes 6-2 with Hilo Councilmen Donald Ikeda and Dennis Onishi voting no.
The second measure, requiring any new positions in county government be approved by council resolution before being added to the budget, passed its first of three required votes with Ikeda and Hilo Councilman J Yoshimoto voting no. Onishi, who expressed reservations with a kanalua vote, ultimately voted with the majority to become that needed sixth vote.
Under the corporation counsel bill, which would take effect in the 2012 elections, the person would be elected by a countywide vote. To qualify to run, the corporation counsel, as well as anyone selected to be the assistant corporation counsel, will have to have at least six years of civil law experience.
The bill was sponsored by South Kona Councilwoman Brenda Ford, who has frequently questioned and even dressed down corporation counsel attorneys when their opinions run counter to hers. She said she’s too often had to resort to hiring her own attorneys, or to seek opinions from the state attorney general, both of whom have generally supported her side.
“The loyalty is going to be toward the person who pays your salary,” Ford said.
But Ikeda has worried that the corporation counsel, holding a countywide office and having the ability to counsel the mayor and county council, could become the most powerful elected official on the island. He pointed to testimony by Deputy Corporation Counsel Joseph Kamelamela, who said both Honolulu and Maui counties have similar setups.
Kamelamela told West Hawaii Today he testified as an individual, rather than as a representative of his office. He said there are already safeguards in the current system, where the council, by a two-thirds vote, can hire special counsel for representation.
“There’s nothing I see that indicates the current system we have is broken,” Kamelamela said. “I think it’s a great system.”
Council Chairman Dominic Yagong sponsored the employee bill, saying he wants to add transparency and allow public input when any administration tries to grow the size of government. That measure, if it passes two more votes by a two-thirds margin, will be placed on the November ballot this year.