2026-10-06 - Governmental Operations and External Affairs Committee

00:53Good morning everyone.

00:56Welcome to the 42nd session of the

01:01Committee on Governmental Operations and

01:02External Affairs. Today is October 6th,

01:062026 and the time is 9:00 a.m. We're

01:09going to go ahead and get started here.

01:12Today in Council Chambers here in Hilo,

01:15we have Council Members Villegas, Connie

01:18Lee Klein Felder, Inaba, Onishi,

01:22Kirkpatrick and Houston.

01:26I believe

01:28Council Member Kimball is on her way

01:32and I am not certain about Council

01:34Member Galimba. So,

01:36I'm assuming she's on her way as well.

01:39All right.

01:41We are going to go ahead and get

01:43started. We have two items on our agenda

01:45today. Mr. Clerk, could we read in

01:48communication 1107, please? Or or sorry.

01:52We'll go ahead and see if there's any

01:55public testimony.

01:56>> We certainly can. There's no testimony

01:58for your community this morning, Madam

01:59Chair.

02:02I would like to give one more

02:03opportunity if anybody out there would

02:05like to testify in communication 1107.

02:11Hearing and seeing none, communication

02:131107, nomination of Annette Iona to the

02:16Merit Appeals Board for Mayor C. Kim O.

02:18Alameda dated September 17, 2026,

02:21requesting the council's review and

02:22confirmation. Confirmation is required

02:24by October 31, 2026.

02:27Do you have a motion, please?

02:28>> Chair, motion to close file on

02:29communication 1107 and for the

02:31nomination of Annette Iona to the Merit

02:34Appeals Board to the council with a

02:35favorable recommendation.

02:37>> Second.

02:38>> I have a motion by Council Member Kirk

02:39and a second by Council Member Justus to

02:42close file on communication 1107. Mr.

02:45Alameda, would you please introduce the

02:46mayor's nominee?

02:48>> Good morning, Council Members, Vice

02:49Chair Conny Lee Kleinfelder, Chair

02:51Kagiwada. My name is Mike O. Alameda,

02:53Executive Assistant, Office of the

02:54Mayor. It is my honor to introduce

02:56communication 1107

02:58nominating Mrs. Annette Iona to the

03:01Merit Appeals Board. If confirmed, Mrs.

03:03Iona will serve a term to expire on

03:05December 31, 2029.

03:09It's been a true privilege to get to

03:10know Mrs. Iona throughout this process.

03:13I learned that she is a Hilo girl,

03:14Hawaii Island born and raised. I learned

03:17that she is an Acevedo and a Asuza,

03:19right? I guess with the name Acevedo, we

03:21can just lock this up and just take this

03:23home already.

03:25But seriously,

03:26Mrs. Iona is a professional.

03:30She's a personal, empathetic mother.

03:33She's a grandma. She raised two

03:35beautiful children. Her daughter is an

03:37educator. Her son carries on their

03:39family business, which is Iona Car

03:41Sales, which her late husband, Pat Iona

03:43Sr., founded almost 30 years ago.

03:47Super special that her son saw value in

03:49carrying on that family legacy, which he

03:52still does today.

03:54Um as a professional, Mrs. Iona is a

03:57real estate agent, or you know, she was.

03:59That is where she spent um a lot of her

04:02professional time. Um she is a community

04:05servant. Um as you know, right, the Iona

04:07name that is a name not throughout

04:10Hawaii island, but throughout Hawaii, um

04:12as one that has given back to the

04:14benefit of um our people. So,

04:17um

04:18I think it speaks volumes that she has

04:21current members of the Merit Appeals

04:22Board here in the gallery today

04:24supporting her. We have Cheri

04:25Kobashigawa and Mr. Gilbert Aguinaldo,

04:28uh who serves on the Merit Appeals

04:29Board. They understand the kuleana. It's

04:31a small board. We have different sizes.

04:34We have 15-member boards. We have

04:35seven-member boards, nine. This one is a

04:37five-member board. It's a super tight

04:39knit um space.

04:42Um they deal with classifications,

04:44right? Recruitment. Um they also hire

04:47and evaluate the human resources

04:49director. Um which in my opinion is a

04:52[clears throat] huge legacy to have. Um

04:55and as an ohana that employs people, you

04:59know, uh we feel that she has the

05:00background and the expertise and the

05:02knowledge um to add value to the Merit

05:05Appeals Board. Without furthermore,

05:07Madam Chair, we uh are looking forward

05:09to a positive confirmation and happy to

05:11answer any more questions. Mahalo.

05:12>> Thank you, Mr. Almeida. Mrs. Iona, would

05:14you like to say anything to the council

05:17about your uh willingness to step

05:19forward?

05:19>> Good morning, thank you for having me.

05:22Um I guess what I want to say is that I,

05:25you know, did real estate for almost 40

05:27years, served on the Real Estate

05:29Commission,

05:30and have um background in community

05:33issues and feel like I have the time and

05:37the commitment to dedicate to giving

05:39back to the community that has supported

05:41us.

05:43>> Thank you so much for that.

05:45Uh over to the committee members,

05:47anybody have questions or comments?

05:52Council member Council member

05:53Kirk-patrick, please go ahead.

05:54>> Thank you. Mr. Alameda, in your

05:56introduction of Miss Iona, you forgot to

05:58mention one of the most important facts

06:00about her.

06:02St. Joseph High School alumni, go

06:04Cardinals.

06:05We share that in common, Miss Iona. But,

06:08no, thank you so much for stepping up to

06:10serve. Um, you have a legacy of being um

06:13a very thoughtful business woman in the

06:15community, and so I think you have the

06:17right sort of temperament to be dealing

06:19with the kinds of issues that present

06:21themselves at the Merit Appeals Board.

06:22So, just want to thank you for your

06:25willingness to step up and dedicate

06:27yourself to this very worthwhile

06:28commission.

06:29>> Happy to be of service if I can.

06:32>> Thank you. I yield.

06:33>> Thank you, Council member Kirk-patrick.

06:35Anybody else?

06:37All right. Seeing no other lights on,

06:39thank you so much, Miss Iona. I really

06:41appreciate your um being willing to

06:44share your time and expertise uh on

06:46behalf of the county. So, with no

06:48further ado, all those in favor of

06:51closing file on communication 1107 and

06:54sending positive a nomination of Annette

06:58Iona to the full council,

07:00please say I.

07:01>> I.

07:02>> Any opposed?

07:03We have eight eyes with Council member

07:06Galimba absent.

07:08Thank you so much.

07:10Can we please go on to Bill 193?

07:13>> If anyone would like to testify on Bill

07:14193, please speak up now.

07:20Hearing and seeing none, Bill 193 amends

07:22Chapter 2, Article 25, Section 2-137 of

07:25the Hawaii County Code 1983, 2016

07:28edition, as amended, relating to

07:30appropriation of funds to nonprofit

07:32organizations. Specifies that nonprofit

07:34organizations whose governing board

07:36members receive compensation for their

07:38governance duties are ineligible to

07:40receive county grant funds. introduced

07:42by council members Inaba and Kimble.

07:44>> Motion to forward bill 193 to council

07:47with a favorable recommendation.

07:49>> I have a motion by council member Inaba

07:52and a second by council member Kimble to

07:54forward bill 193 to council with a

07:57favorable recommendation. I'll turn it

07:59over to council member Inaba.

08:01>> Thank you, chair. Uh this is a bill very

08:04straightforward that council member

08:05Kimble and I worked on together. Uh

08:09we've had some confusion in recent years

08:12regarding

08:14uh board members of nonprofits receiving

08:17compensation

08:19often times for things outside their

08:21role, whether it be they have the

08:23expertise to provide a class of some

08:26sort for the nonprofit that they serve

08:29on, but

08:30right now as it currently reads, there's

08:32a hard line of app just no compensation.

08:35Um so we insert these four words that

08:39board members

08:41um

08:42nonprofit organization has a governing

08:44board whose members serve without

08:46compensation. The additional is for

08:49their governance duties.

08:51And adhere to

08:53a written conflict of interest policy,

08:56yada yada. Uh

08:57so ask for your support. This just helps

09:00with both the finance department as well

09:02as the county auditors as we review um

09:05for compliance those who receive

09:08nonprofit grant and aid or any type of

09:10grant from the county. Um

09:12our county auditor Claire McAdam is here

09:14as well as our

09:15director deputy director of finance. If

09:18anyone has questions, I'll hand it over

09:20to council member Kimble if she has

09:21anything to add.

09:22>> Thank you so much, council member

09:23Kimble.

09:24>> Yeah, no. Um thank you, chair Inaba, for

09:27um taking the initiative and the lead

09:29with your staff to put this forward. It

09:31is something that has come up as an

09:33issue with some of the nonprofits that

09:35have received

09:37GIA grants or CRF grants with us. So, I

09:40think it's a simple solution and it you

09:43know, it satisfies I think what the

09:45county intends to accomplish anyway. So,

09:48I would appreciate everyone's support.

09:49Mahalo.

09:50>> Thank you. Anybody else?

09:53All right. Seeing no other lights, all

09:55those in favor on

09:57um

09:58sending bill 193 to the full council

10:01with a favorable recommendation, please

10:02say I.

10:03>> I.

10:03>> Any opposed?

10:05Mr. Clerk, you have eight eyes with

10:06Council member Galimba absent.

10:09And that ends our

10:13committee for today.

10:15Uh so, we are adjourned at 9:10 a.m.

10:19The next meeting will start

10:22at 9:30.

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