HILO — An ethics bill now on its way to Mayor Billy Kenoi lost many of its stricter provisions during an arduous trip through the County Council, but sponsor Kohala Councilwoman Margaret Wille says it’s still tough enough to do the job.
“I do feel the changes we made, I did it not to cave in, but I actually feel this is a better bill,” Wille said.
The council Tuesday unanimously passed Bill 37. A similar bill sponsored by Kenoi in 2009 bounced for months between the County Council and Board of Ethics, without winning approval by either body.
Hilo Councilman Dennis “Fresh” Onishi, an early opponent of the measure, said he’s much more comfortable with the final version.
“We made a very great bill instead of rushing it along and then having to go back and fix it,” Onishi said.
Wille’s bill, in its fifth draft after months of discussion, started with an absolute ban on county employees or their families holding county contracts for outside work. In subsequent drafts, the bill stepped back to become a ban on contracts over $10,000, then on contracts over $50,000, and finally, allowing the contracts as long as the county employee clears it with the Board of Ethics first.
The bill also expands the definition of immediate family to include the employee’s spouse, siblings, children, grandparents and parents.
Other parts of the bill prohibit county officers or employees from representing private interests against the county or appearing on behalf of private interests before county agencies. And, the bill clarifies that county property, facilities, time, equipment and personnel can be used only for a public purpose, and not for private business or campaign purposes.
Kenoi could not be reached by press time Tuesday for comment about whether he’ll sign the bill, but he had said from the beginning that “our community expects that we will be either county employees or county contractors, but not both.”
Email Nancy Cook Lauer at ncook-lauer@westhawaiitoday.com.
