The state and county are under much scrutiny now. However, the current emergency proclamation can be used quietly to allow decisions to be made which can underm
Mar 9, 2021
The county budget process is almost underway, and most Maui residents are unaware that the budget will once again violate the County Charter.
That is because it will lack the required anticipatory revenues from unassessed and uncollected developer agreements made with the county.
A whistleblower, who now works in the Mayor’s Office, alleged that these agreements were authorized and uncollected for decades by Maui County Department of Public Works in collaboration with county attorneys.
To make matters worse, multiple deferrals of these infrastructure costs, using a one-time-only deferral subdivision ordinance, were approved in violation of that same county ordinance. This resulted in Maui County Council voting unanimously in 2017 to recommend a county audit of these agreements.
Feb 13, 2021
A COVID-19 variant has been discovered on Oahu. Maui County Managing Director Sandy Baz stated that in addition to social distancing, getting together in outside open spaces, and washing hands, the
” . . . key prevention factor is the same, wear a mask.”
However, in an email addressed to the Citizens COVID-19 Coalition, Lt. Gov. Josh Green agreed that state and county leaders need to encourage residents to acquire and wear better masks, specifically N95 masks, and for counties to provide incentives to do so.
A new study cited by the New York Times states that “the risk of dying of B.1.1.7. is 35 percent higher than it is for other variants.” The study encourages “wearing effective masks . . .”
Council Member Kelly King hosted a town hall webinar on Monday about COVID-19 on Maui.
Ms. King put together and moderated a panel including medical experts, state and county administration officials, two county council members and the founder of Shareyourmana.org, which advocates for unsheltered Maui residents.
It was concerning, hearing about the unique and difficult challenges of our island’s homeless during this time of COVID-19.
The virtual town hall was at Zoom capacity, and many important questions from the public were both asked and answered by the panel. This is exactly the kind of sharing of information, and community participation, which is necessary for the well-being and safety of island residents.