City cites 9/11 concerns
in building-plan secrecy

Citing safety concerns in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, the Harris administration restricted the public's access to building plans that the city keeps on file for public and private buildings on Oahu.

The policy was started even though the city had been told as far back as 1990 that building plans are public documents under state law and cannot be withheld from public inspection.

Yet shortly after the terrorist attacks, the city started requiring people wanting to view building plans for multi-family structures, high-rises, commercial buildings or public facilities to first get the owner's permission.

Last year, the policy was expanded to include construction plans for houses as well.

If an owner doesn't grant permission, the plans are kept under wraps. Owners submit such plans to the city as part of the process of obtaining building permits.

The policy was adopted even though the city's own attorneys have yet to determine whether the city has the legal authority to block disclosure of building plans.

After questions were raised about the policy earlier this year, the state Office of Information Practices, the agency that deals with public-records issues, told the city in June that until the state's public-records law is amended, building plans cannot be withheld.

The agency referred to similar opinions it issued in 1990 and 1999. The OIP said building permit information, including building plans, must be made available for public inspection before and after a permit is granted. In the 1999 ruling, the OIP stated that government agencies can't abrogate their responsibilities under the law by conditioning disclosure on obtaining permission from the plans' designers.

But Eric Crispin, director of the city Department of Planning and Permitting, said the city disagrees with the OIP's position, which he contends doesn't take into account the changed environment since the terrorist attacks. "I think the OIP is a little out of tune with the times," he said.

Crispin said he believes the policy is reasonable and balances the public's right to know with the safety and privacy interests of property owners. People also still have the right to file complaints about a project if they suspect a building-code violation, and the city will investigate, Crispin said.

He acknowledged that the city implemented the permission policy without first getting a legal opinion from its attorneys. A request is pending.

"We might have erred, but we're erring on the side of caution," Crispin said.

Although security concerns have heightened since the terrorist attacks, the basic law governing public records in Hawaii hasn't changed.

The OIP said it appreciates the concerns raised by the city, but the way to address those is by trying to get the law amended.

If the city continues with the policy, OIP Director Leslie Kondo said his office "would consider all its options."

It's not clear whether the agency has the power to take the city to court to force enforcement.

Open-government advocates and others criticized the city's policy. They said building plans sometimes are the only way for the public to learn certain details of a controversial project, especially if a developer isn't forthcoming.

Requiring owner permission "is totally outrageous," said Donna Wong, a Kailua resident who this summer unsuccessfully tried viewing plans at the city for a controversial three-level parking structure in Kailua that has since been completed. "I can understand if you're going to build an ammunition depot. But a parking structure?"

Allowing public access to building blueprints has been an issue statewide for years, especially in residential construction. People who spend thousands of dollars to hire architects to draw up plans for custom homes have complained that others could view and copy those plans without hiring their own architects, though such a practice would raise questions about copyright violations.

Homeowners also have complained that allowing public inspections could compromise their security, showing would-be thieves the locations of anti-burglary systems, wall safes and other home protective devices.

Because of concerns like that, the neighbor island governments in recent years have sought legal opinions -- either from the OIP or their own attorneys -- on whether the counties could block public access to building plans.

They were told no.

Officials with Maui, Kauai and Hawaii counties say they don't have a permission requirement for viewing building plans.

"A lot of people don't want just anyone to look at their plans for security reasons," said Don Lutao, the code and enforcement officer for Kauai. "But it's a public record."

Since the terrorist attacks, more government agencies around the country have attempted to make private certain information that historically has been public, especially if the information could compromise security, industry experts say.

The challenge is striking a proper balance between open government and public safety, they say.