Legislature must
get tough with
drunken drivers
The issue: A Kalihi man who had been
convicted three times in recent years for
driving while intoxicated was involved in
a fatal traffic accident while driving.DRUNKEN DRIVING convictions in Hawaii result in suspension of drivers' licenses, but that provides little assurance that the offender will not get behind the wheel. It happens too often because the penalty for driving after having the license suspended or revoked is far too light.
Next year's Legislature should remedy this problem by requiring police to seize the license plates and registration of vehicles driven by people whose licenses have been suspended because of DUI convictions.
The situation was illustrated recently in the aftermath of a hit-and-run accident that killed Daniel Agcaoili, 33, of Kalihi. The driver's license of Tiuli Faatoia, 39, the driver of the van that struck Agcaoili's moped from behind, had been suspended in 1999 for five years because of his conviction for drunken driving, his third such conviction since 1997. Faatoia turned himself in to police eight days after the collision, so police don't know if he had been drinking prior to the accident. He is charged with failure to render aid, a felony punishable by up to 20 years imprisonment.
Faatoia, also of Kalihi, had been arrested last October for driving without a license -- since it had been suspended -- or no-fault insurance, a crime that carries a maximum penalty of a $1,000 fine and 90 days in jail. Faatoia was fined $300 or given the option of performing 60 hours in community service. After a similar previous violation, he had spent nine days in jail.
A new state law requires police to seize the license plates and registration of a car driven by a repeat DUI offender after an arrest for driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol. That did not happen when Faatoia was stopped in October because his arrest was not for driving while intoxicated.
Carol McNamee, the MADD Hawaii public policy chairwoman, says the penalties for driving during a suspension of license derived from DUI convictions are "totally inappropriate." However, merely increasing the maximum amount of fine or imprisonment would not be likely to keep DUI offenders with suspended licenses off the road. In the case of Faatoia, the judge imposed less than one-third of the fine he could have ordered, even though Faatoia's behavior had been egregious. Increasing the maximum penalties would not necessarily lead to stiffer fines or jail terms.
"There are loopholes everywhere," says Theresa Paulette, a former MADD Hawaii president. "We need to close that up and make sure that the habitual, hard-core drinking driver has sanctions that will remove him from the road."
Cal Kawamoto, chairman of the state Senate Transportation Committee, says he favors legislation that would require police to seize the license plates and registrations of vehicles driven by people whose drivers' licenses have been suspended because of DUI convictions. Such a law would have been more likely than increased maximum court penalties to have kept Faatoia off the roads and prevented the fatal collision between his van and Agcaoili's moped.
DOE quibbles
on teacher bonuses
The issue: The department is trying to
cut the number of those eligible for
a 3 percent pay differential.THE LABOR AGREEMENT negotiated to end the public school teachers' strike two months ago still has not been signed because of a dispute about who qualifies for bonuses provided in the contract. The state Department of Education should bring the dispute to an end by honoring the contract and paying the bonuses as the contract specifies.
The language in the contract ratified by teachers is clear: "Teachers who hold professional certificates based on a master's degree or a professional diploma shall receive a 3 percent differential calculated on their current salary each year."
The Hawaii State Teachers Association says the department is now trying to reduce the number of teachers eligible for the bonuses by limiting acceptable degrees and educational institutions. The department will recognize master's degrees only in teaching or education, not in the sciences or arts. Nor will it allow professional diplomas from any establishment other than the University of Hawaii at Manoa, the union says. The DOE also wants to pay the bonus for only one year instead of the negotiated two years, according to the HSTA.
The department's motivation apparently is to cut the cost of the bonuses. It had intended to use $11.4 million from its own budget to cover that, but the union estimates 57 percent or 7,300 of its members would qualify for the bonus, which would bring the price to about $20 million.
The DOE, during the heat of negotiations to end the strike that had shut down all of Hawaii's public schools for three weeks, underestimated the eligibility number, which raises serious questions about the department's knowledge of its own staff.
Now the DOE finds itself short of cash. Schools Superintendent Paul LeMahieu earlier this week sought to cut $11 million from next year's budget to make up for a projected $57 million deficit. Meanwhile, it is still struggling to replace playground equipment it removed from elementary schools three years ago because of safety issues and it is likely that dozens of schools will have to wait another two years for play structures.
Although a majority of the department's problems can be attributed to lack of funding, this continued fumbling bolsters an image of incompetence that already taints the DOE. Against this background, it cannot afford to further damage its relationship with its teachers by not adhering to the terms of the ratified contract.
Published by Oahu Publications Inc., a subsidiary of Black Press.Don Kendall, President
John Flanagan, publisher and editor in chief 529-4748; jflanagan@starbulletin.com
Frank Bridgewater, managing editor 529-4791; fbridgewater@starbulletin.com
Michael Rovner, assistant managing editor 529-4768; mrovner@starbulletin.com
Lucy Young-Oda, assistant managing editor 529-4762; lyoungoda@starbulletin.com The Honolulu Star-Bulletin (USPS 249460) is published daily by
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