Straight to voicemail: Here’s an odd moment from Civil Beat’s Civil Cafe Tuesday at the State Capitol.
Rep. Nadine Nakamura and Sens. Chris Lee and Brenton Awa joined politics editor Chad Blair to preview the 2024 legislative session, and it was substantive discussion.
But The Blog had to roll its eyes when Awa took out his smart phone and announced that he was going to call Gov. Josh Green. Right then and there.
Awa told the gathering he wanted to get the governor to intervene in the nurses strike at Kapiolani Medical Center. Several nurses were in the audience wearing yellow T-shirts in solidarity.
“Governor Green, are you there?” Awa asked. Long pause. Then whoever was on the other end of the line hung up.
“Well, he answered!” said Awa as the room erupted in laughter. “You guys want me to try one more time?”
So he tried one more time. This time, the call went to voicemail and the room could hear what appeared to be Green’s voice saying, “I’m sorry I missed your call. Please leave me a message.”
Awa said Green later sent him a text message: Call Brooke Wilson or Blake Oshiro.
Lonesome Rhoads: Senate Bill 2392 hasn’t been scheduled for a hearing yet, but it’s already upset some folks, including the Hawaii Republican Party. The bill would keep the names of candidates off of Hawaii election ballots if they have been disqualified “by a constitutional or statutory provision.”
Among other things, SB 2392 would specifically prohibit electors from voting for any presidential or vice presidential nominee who has been disqualified “pursuant to Section 3 of the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States.” That’s the same part of the Constitution that threatens to bump Donald Trump from Colorado’s presidential election and has anti-Trumpers in other states looking to do the same.
The U.S. Supreme Court will probably have the final say, but Hawaii GOP State Chair Tamara McKay calls Rhoads’ bill “a disturbing proposal that threatens the very essence of democratic principles and the constitutional rights of the people.”
The Blog, meanwhile, hears that Rhoads’ Capitol office has already received a couple of hate voice mails about the bill. Calling Fox News!
Come fly with me: The Hawaii State Senate finally got around to posting its legislative allowances for 2023, public records that had not been updated since April.
As with the allowances of the House of Representatives, a good many of the billings were for commonplace items: bottled water, printing and postage of newsletters, business cards, lei and so forth.
But the records also show that there are some major frequent flyers in the Senate who are drawing on their $15,952 annual allowance of taxpayer funds to cross the oceans, ostensibly on state business.
The Blog will pass on noting the many routine interisland trips and annual governmental meetings on the mainland (for instance, the National Conference of State Legislatures in Indianapolis) and instead flag the ones that perked our interest:
- Sen. Donovan Dela Cruz spent $2,544 on a trip to Auckland, New Zealand, in June for a “New Zealand Ag-Tech and Value 5 Added Production” site visit. He also spent $1,444 to travel to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, for the NCSL Legislative Leaders International Symposium in September. Dela Cruz reported an allowance balance of $14.29.
- Sen. Joy San Buenaventura spent $4,858 to travel to Singapore and Hong Kong in September for a “Housing Delegation trip.” Current balance: $15.94.
- Sen. Stanley Chang spent $1,326 to travel to that same Singapore and Hong housing trip that San Buenaventura went on. He also spent $1,231 for another Hawaii housing delegation trip to Taiwan later that same month. Current Balance: $2,157.
- Sen. Glenn Wakai spent $3,451 to travel to Nova Scotia, Canada, and Chicago in June for, respectively, the Ocean Technology Council of Nova Scotia’s H20: Home to Overseas Conference and the Council of State Governments New Legislative Leaders Academy. Wakai also spent $2,595 to travel to Osaka City, Japan, for the Tourism EXPO Japan 2023. Current Balance: $436.
Sorry, Rowena: The Hawaii State Ethics Commission is cheering a new court ruling against a former Office of Hawaiian Affairs trustee, claiming that it shows no state employee or board member is above the State Ethics Code.
On Monday Hawaii’s Intermediate Court of Appeals upheld the commission’s charge that Rowena Akana violated the state code of ethics for accepting $21,000 in illegal gifts and for inappropriate use of her spending allowance. It fined her $23,106.
The contested case dates to 2018, when the commission determined that Akana had violated the Gifts Law, the Gifts Reporting Law and the Fair Treatment Law. As Civil Beat reported at the time, Akana submitted receipts for things such as cable television bills, food from places like Leonard’s Bakery and a gift card from Apple iTunes.
Akana countered that the Ethics Commission did not have jurisdiction over OHA, let alone its spending accounts, and also argued that her constitutional rights had been violated. The ICA’s ruling, however, states that Akana’s argument was full of errors.
“The public can be confident in the commission’s ability to address and rectify ethical concerns, contributing to a more accountable and transparent government,” Commission Chair Wesley Fong said in a statement Tuesday.
