Newswatch

By Star-Bulletin Staff

Saturday, March 1, 1997

Thirty days after receiving the appropriation, the bureau must report back to the Legislature, informing lawmakers of "performance safeguards" that bureau officials have established to ensure that the funds have not been squandered.

Ways and Means Co-Chairwoman Carol Fukunaga (D, Makiki) said the committee is also requiring that Cayetano release some $600,000 to $1.2 million that he had restricted from HVCB's budget this year.

The bureau will be closely watched, added the panel's other co-chairwoman, Sen. Lehua Fernandes Salling (D, Kapaa). "It is a test for the bureau," she stressed.

The approval from Ways and Means came five hours before a midnight deadline to keep bills alive.

The measure and scores of other bills were positioned last night and this week for floor votes next week before advancing further in the legislative process.

Some bills, such as those related to the same-sex marriage issue, already have gone through votes in both chambers and have entered the next phase - a conference committee where the two sides will try to resolve differences between their proposals. Conferees in that issue announced Friday that their first meeting will be on Monday.

Other items - such as a controversial House proposal to allow casino gambling on the Big Island - still face a debate and vote on Tuesday.

And still others have died, including bills concerning native Hawaiian gathering rights, pari-mutuel horse racing and tax credits for businesses that hire welfare recipients.

The 5-0 decision Friday throws the Big Island's solid-waste operations into a quandary.

Attorneys for the United Public Workers and Hawaii County say the decision will have broad implications on attempts by the government to privatize operations.

The court, in overturning a Big Island Circuit Court ruling, said the county "violated civil service laws and merit principles" in 1993 when it gave a contract to Waste Management of Hawaii Inc. to run the Puuanahulu landfill.

It concurred with the UPW's view that traditionally, landfill jobs across the state are recruited and employed through the merit system laid down by civil service laws.

The county failed to seek exemptions to show that the Puuanahulu positions were unique or "could not be filled through normal civil service procedures."

Barring that, the court said, the county should have sought exemptions to civil service requirements from the state Legislature.

The court said it is not seeking to define privatization or rule on its merits. Nonetheless, all parties involved said the ruling strikes at the heart of the issue of what can or should be privatized.

The Ways and Means Committee voted unanimously Friday to prohibit "outsourcing" in the area of book selection, while allowing it in areas such as book purchasing and cataloging, following a similar vote in the Education Committee two weeks ago.

The measure, which now goes to the Senate floor, would end the library system's controversial contract with a North Carolina book-buying firm, said Sen. Rod Tam, chairman of the Education Committee and a member of the Ways and Means Committee. A new contract could possibly be negotiated to allow the firm to supply books, he said, but local librarians would select them.

"The message is that we want selection of the library materials to be done by the librarians in the community," Tam said. "They're the closest to the public, and the public has spoken very loud and clear that they want to be involved."

John Penebacker, special assistant to state Librarian Bart Kane, said the contract with Baker & Taylor Inc. is part of a re-engineering project that has allowed the 49 library branches to assign more of their staff members to duties where they are in direct contact with the public, significantly improving customer service.

Friday's committee action could undermine those improvements, he said.

"It potentially would have an effect on the public service hours," Penebacker said.

Souki said Friday he expected Takamine to return to the Legislature next week for a majority caucus Monday and an important floor session Tuesday.

Takamine, in a plea agreement, Friday pleaded guilty to harassing his wife, Sandra, when he shoved her at their home Feb. 22, bruising her elbow.

"I'm sorry for what happened and I take full responsibility," Takamine told the court. "Nothing like this ever happened before and nothing like this will ever happen again."

District Judge K. Napua Brown sentenced Takamine to six months probation, a $250 contribution to the Family Crisis Shelter, domestic violence counseling and private mental health counseling. He must also abide by any order issued by the Family Court.

Brown said a motion could be sought in six months which would clear Takamine's record.

Takamine had been charged by police with abuse of a household member, a misdemeanor that could have resulted in 30 days in jail and a $1,000 fine.

Prosecutor Jay Kimura issued a statement saying the harassment charge, a petty misdemeanor, was substituted after a review of the evidence, consultation with police, and conferring with Sandra Takamine.

Kimura added, "The victim confirmed no prior incidents of physical abuse."