State senators are urging the attorney general to appoint an independent investigator to look into whether Hawaii's business director committed a criminal violation by awarding a contract worth up to $385,000 to the lowest bidder to manage an $8.7 million high-tech investment fund.

A special Senate investigative committee, which adopted yesterday a final report on the state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism's handling of a contract for a hydrogen energy investment fund also is pushing the State Ethics Commission to determine whether the ethics code was violated.

Punishment for violating the state procurement, or purchasing, law includes removal from office, fines and misdemeanor criminal charges against DBEDT director Ted Liu and three of his top management staff.

“;They're accountable; they have to be they're spending taxpayers dollars,”; said Sen. Donna Mercado Kim.

The special legislative committee spent $11,500 on the investigation, with more than $10,800 used for publicly televising the hearings.

While the Legislature doesn't have enforcement power, violations could be prosecuted by the next administration's attorney general until August 2012, according to Sen. Les Ihara.

“;If the Attorney General doesn't do anything, the next governor could,”; Ihara said of Attorney General Mark Bennett, who represents Liu and DBEDT staff. Bennett didn't return calls for comment yesterday.