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Kokua Line
June Watanabe
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Hannemann has taken 11 trips so far
Question: How many trips has Mayor Mufi Hannemann taken since assuming office? It's ridiculous he went to Japan to promote tourism and examine the train system. This is spending taxpayers' money, which could be spent much better, i.e., housing for the homeless.
Answer: Hannemann was to return today from his 11th trip, to the Philippines, where he is meeting with business and government officials and checking out Manila's rail transit system.
Because former Mayor Jeremy Harris logged 27 trips during his last year in office, the City Council passed a bill requiring the mayor to give notice for all out-of-state trips. The bill became law without Harris' signature on Nov. 29, 2004.
Mayoral spokesman Mark Matsunaga said Hannemann schedules his trips to minimize lost business days, such as leaving late on a workday, and that half the days he has been gone were "nonwork days."
Here is a list of the previous 10 trips Hannemann has taken, costing the city about $18,844:
» Jan. 16-21: Attended 73rd Winter Meeting of the U.S. Conference of Mayors, met with various officials, attended presidential inauguration, in Washington, D.C. Cost: $2,792. » March 3-8: Attended 35th National Session of the Mayors' Institute on City Design in Charleston, S.C. (mostly paid by the Institute); met with L.A. officials on mass transit and solid waste. Cost: $235, Charleston; $1065, L.A.
» March 24-29: Met with federal EPA officials in San Francisco on waste-water upgrades and compliance; follow-up on solid waste/mass transit in Southern California. Cost: $1,938.
» May 14-20: Attended meeting of U.S. Department of Labor Advisory Council on Apprenticeship (he is a member) in D.C. (paid by Labor Department); participated in sale of Honolulu municipal bonds in New York. Cost: $738.
» July 8-10: Promoted Honolulu's Centennial at Japanese trade expo (paid by Centennial Commission). Trip cut short. Cost: None.
» July 15-21: Attended start of TransPac yacht race at invitation of Long Beach, Calif., mayor (partly paid for by Long Beach); testified before Base Closure and Realignment Commission against closure of Pearl Harbor Shipyard, met with officials on mass transit funding, in D.C. Cost: $1,603.
» Aug. 5-9: Met with waste-water consultants in Seattle and with EPA officials in San Francisco to discuss pending enforcement actions against the city. Cost: $2,942.
» Sept. 11-13: Meeting of Department of Labor Advisory Council on Apprenticeship in Las Vegas. Cost: None.
» Oct. 1-9: Promoted Honolulu as travel destination and inspected rail transit systems in Japan. Cost: $3,740.
» Oct. 22-28: Attended Cisco Systems' unveiling of Internet Protocol Interoperability and Communication System in New York; attended White House Conference on Helping America's Youth, met with congressional delegation and White House liaison, in D.C. Cost: $3,791.
See the
Columnists section for some past articles.
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