3/9/24 #kihei

Do you recall when you voted (you DID vote, right??) in the last (2022) election, there were some proposed Maui County Charter amendments? One that passed overwhelmingly that November Day became part of the current charter.

Local Maui Attorney Lance Collins served as chair of the County Charter Commission

https://www.mauicounty.gov/DocumentCenter/View/139187/CHARTER—January-2023

It says: “Each planning commission shall exercise its powers, duties, and functions as follows:
1. The Maui planning commission shall be concerned with the area encompassing the islands of Maui and Kaho`olawe and all other islands lying within three nautical miles of the shores thereof, and the waters adjacent thereto.
The nine members must include at least one and no more than two members who reside in each council residency area on the island of Maui.”

When most of us voted in favor of this change to our “County Constitution”, the South and East Maui districts had no Maui Planning Commission (MPC) representative who resided in our districts while Wailuku had three, so change was clearly called for in 2022.  But now it is  2024 and South Maui still has none, but a correction may finally be coming. This Tuesday, March 12, the Council’s GREAT committee is examining a LOT of potential nominees for this and several other administration panels. The very long list means the committee will not cover all of them in this meeting, but you can still tell the committee they are legally required to name a South Maui resident to the Maui Planning Commission. One of the Wailuku trio will term out this month, and the newly appointed East Maui representative just resigned. The South Maui community is long overdue for representation.

The impact of this deficit is now exacerbated as our updated district community plan is set to be introduced to the MPC at the same time as this Council Committee meets. We need a South Maui resident on this commission now!  Speak up!

GOVERNMENT RELATIONS, ETHICS, AND TRANSPARENCY COMMITTEE

Tuesday, March 12, 2024

9:00 a.m.

Online via Teams: http://tinyurl.com/2s9hsuhk

Phone testimony: 1-808-977-4067, code 423 765 169#

In-person testimony and viewing: Council Chamber, Kalana O Maui Building, 8th Flr., 200 South High St., Wailuku, Hawai‘i