HomeMy WebLinkAbout 11/07/2013 Special Council Meeting Minutes SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING
NOVEMBER 7, 2013
The Special Council Meeting of the Council of the County of Kaua`i was called
to order by the Council Chair Jay Furfaro at the Council Chambers, 4396 Rice
Street, Room 201, Lihu`e, Kaua`i, on Thursday, November 7, 2013 at 9:17 a.m., after
which the following members answered the call of the roll:
Honorable Tim Bynum
Honorable Gary L. Hooser
Honorable Ross Kagawa
Honorable Mel Rapozo
Honorable JoAnn A. Yukimura
Honorable Jay Furfaro
APPROVAL OF AGENDA.
Mr. Rapozo moved for approval of the agenda as circulated, seconded by
Mr. Kagawa, and unanimously carried.
Chair Furfaro: On that note, I would like to remind you of
the communication today. I guess we should read that communication please.
JADE K. FOUNTAIN-TANIGAWA, Deputy County Clerk: Did you
want to take the public comment?
Chair Furfaro: Yes, but first, I think we just want to read
the communication reiterating what is really on the agenda today.
COMMUNICATION:
C 2013-363 Communication (10/31/2013) from the Mayor submitting his
veto of Bill No. 2491, Draft 2, Relating To Pesticides And Genetically Modified
Organisms.
Chair Furfaro: Thank you. So, it is the veto that is on the
agenda. I would like to now go to public comment.
PUBLIC COMMENT.
Pursuant to Council Rule 13(e), members of the public shall be allowed a total of
eighteen (18) minutes on a first come, first served basis to speak on any agenda
item. Each speaker shall be limited to three (3) minutes at the discretion of the
Chair to discuss the agenda item and shall not be allowed additional time to speak
during the meeting. This rule is designed to accommodate those who cannot be
present throughout the meeting to speak when the agenda items are heard. After
the conclusion of the eighteen (18) minutes, other members of the public shall be
allowed to speak pursuant to Council Rule 12(e).
Chair Furfaro: Do we have a number of people that have
signed up?
SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING 2 NOVEMBER 7, 2013
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: Yes, we have six (6) people signed up for the
public comment period pursuant to our agenda item D. The first...
Chair Furfaro: Before you go any further, I believe someone
who signed up wants to show a video. I would like to let you know again, I will
permit that today. In the future in our procedures, the video presentations need to
tie to the agenda item. The agenda item is the veto override, not about crops and so
forth as you see it. But I am going to allow it, to the County Clerk's Office. Please,
everybody understand, I am making exceptions as the Chair, but we do have very
old rules that we need to follow process on. Call up the first speaker.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: The first speaker is Ray Catania, followed by
Jason Ladera.
There being no objections, the rules were suspended to take public comment.
RAYMOND CATANIA: Good morning. My name is Raymond
Catania, and I am from Puhi. I am also a member of the Hawai`i Government
Employee Association and there have been a number of us that support Bill
No. 2491, Draft 2 and we have an open letter that I want to read to you. On the
bottom of the letter, you have copies, are a list of names of some of the members;
you might even know them. I will start it off. We support Bill No. 2491, Draft 2
and are members of the Hawai`i Government Employee Association. The following
is not the union's position, but the opinion of some members from Kaua`i who also
see the importance of advocating for an environmentally healthy and safe workplace
for the community. Mayor Carvalho's October 31, 2013 veto of Bill No. 2491, Draft
2 put his personal concerns about possible litigation over the health and welfare of
the people. His disclosure of the County's legal assessment was negligent and
improper and puts the industrial agricultural interest at an advantage. Responding
to the concerns of Kaua`i's people, the Kaua`i County Council voted wisely, 6:1, to
pass the amended version of the Bill earlier in the month. The Bill calls for
mandated pesticide disclosure, an Environmental Impact Study (EIS), and very
moderate buffer zones in the most sensitive areas like schools and hospitals. There
is no logic or rationale to the industry's threat that the measures outlined in the Bill
will lead to massive layoff of workers. We support the workers of these companies
and their right to work in a safe environment. As voting public worker unisonous,
family people, and active members of this community, we see no contradiction in
having decent jobs and a healthy community to live in. We encourage our County
Council members, the majority who spent untold hours studying the issues and
ramifications of the Bill from many perspectives, including that of the industry, to
override the Mayor's veto. We are in solidarity with the many doctors, nurses,
teachers, kupuna, youth, kanaka maole, cultural practitioners, farmers,
environmentalists, fishermen, mothers, surfers, hunters, and labor unions that
came together to work on and support this Bill. Thank you.
Chair Furfaro: Mahalo Ray. Our next speaker please.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: The next speaker is Jason Ladera, followed
by Malia Chun.
JASON LADERA: Hi.
Chair Furfaro: Good morning.
SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING 3 NOVEMBER 7, 2013
Mr. Ladera: Good morning. Thank you. My name is
Jason Ladera. I was born and raised on the island of Kaua`i. My father grew up in
Kealia and my mother grew up in Koloa next to the sugar mill. I went to the service
to serve our Country, but do you know what brought me back to the island? The
people, the love, and the land. For me, this is a special place. Fifty (50) years ago,
one hundred (100) years ago when the plantation was around a lot of the people did
not know the dangers about this agrochemical pesticide use, but now we know.
Yesterday was yesterday; today is today. I am asking you folks to override the
Mayor's veto because you folks love the land, and the island. Ask yourself, why did
you folks take office? Why? To represent the people, Kaua`i, and the future of
Kaua`i. I read it every year election season on these little postcards that come to my
mailbox. You folks said it, follow through, and override the Mayor's veto. You folks
do not represent an outside entity, you folks represent the people, the future of
Kauai. I am an avid outdoorsman, the mountain streams and oceans all provide for
me and my family. My sons, my daughters; they hunt and they fish. I want that for
the future for them. I want them to experience the lifestyle that I experienced.
This touches deep with me. I have families on the West Side. I have one of my
cousins' right here in the back room from the West Side; nieces and nephews. You
six (6) right here hold the key for the future of Kaua`i. Do the right thing, override
the Mayor's veto, and do what is pono for Kaua`i. Thank you.
Chair Furfaro: Thank you. May I just say, thank you for
your service to our Country. I want to share with one of the speakers here that I
had been advised that although I have made the exception on the video, it is legally
not wise to have the video shown on an item that is about the agenda for the veto. I
do not want these procedures overridden because of what could be a complaint. So,
whoever is planning to present the video, may I say on the date that I when I choose
to identify the date, I will be accepting that video at that time. I just want to follow
protocol here. So, I hope you understand. Our next speaker?
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: Next speaker is Malia Chun, followed by Ray
Songtree.
MALIA CHUN: Aloha mai kakou.
Chair Furfaro: Aloha.
Ms. Chun: I am Malia Chun from Kekaha. First, I
would like to express my gratitude to each and every one of you, Councilmembers,
who have supported Bill No. 2491, Draft 2 and have seen it through to this day.
Your tenacity, time, and dedication to serving the people of Kaua`i and protecting
our health and well-being will be your legacy. On behalf of the many West Side
`ohana that could not be here, I would like to encourage you to continue to be brave
and listen to the plea of the majority of the taxpaying voting citizens of this island
who feel it is a basic human right to know and protect ourselves and our `ohana
from Restricted Use Pesticides. Allowing the Mayor to veto this Bill and defer the
kuleana of protection and accountability to the State is like sending an abused child
back to their abuser. Although I am part Hawaiian, the rest of my ancestry,
Chinese, Portuguese, and Filipino were plantation workers as well like many of you
sitting here. While many of the local values that we grew up with stem from
plantation life, the era had a devastating impact as brother said, on our natural
environment; one that we have not recovered from today. This pales in comparison
to the eighteen (18) tons of Restricted Use Pesticides that biotech companies expose
us to on a yearly basis on our tiny island of Kaua`i. Make no mistake, this is not the
SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING 4 NOVEMBER 7, 2013
agriculture of our ancestors. My plea to each of you is to not make a decision based
on fear or threats, or one that is motivated by money. Have faith that when you do
what is pono, pono will prevail and you will have the support of the greater
community; lawyers, doctors, educators, fishermen, mothers, fathers, keiki, and yes,
mahi ai, farmers, that plant food for human consumption. Mayor Carvalho has one
(1) year left to his term, but if allowed to veto the precautions will be felt, heard,
and witnessed long after his term is up. The effects will be multigenerational; your
grandchildren, your great grandchildren. We are Kamawaelualani moki, moku o
Manaokalanipo and we have always taken a deep pride in protecting our island and
its people.
Chair Furfaro: Your three (3) minutes have ended.
Ms. Chun: Kala mai, almost pau. And our natural
resources. So, please help us to continue to fulfill this legacy that is Kaua`i's alone.
Mahalo nui.
Chair Furfaro: Thank you, and thank you for reminding us
of the ancient name of Kaua`i. So, thank you. Next speaker please.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: The next speaker is Ray Songtree, followed
by Josh Mori.
RAY SONGTREE: Good morning. Thank you, again, for your
service. You lasted until 3:30 a.m. and I went home at midnight so I really
appreciate your work; really impressed. The New York Times business section had
a headline, "Mayor Vetoes the Bill," and the New York Times business section
would do that because industry does not want to be regulated. These billion dollar
companies have given our Mayor four thousand dollars ($4,000) and I am
requesting the Council to ask the Mayor to return this money and to stay neutral on
this issue. I am also concerned with something that I read in the paper about the
Mayor possibly being threatened and our Police Chief contacting the Federal
Bureau of Investigation (FBI) about this. These are billion dollar companies. The
policy in coercion is called, "do you want silver or lead," and he could have been
threatened and maybe some of you have been in subtle ways. I stand behind and I
follow the previous speaker in that Kaua`i has a spiritual aura/spiritual history that
has been rejuvenated by new people and you do not have to be afraid and the Mayor
does not have to be afraid. I do ask you to please write to him to return that money
and to be more neutral. That is my message. Thank you.
Chair Furfaro: Thank you.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: The next speaker is Josh Mori, followed by
Ruby Staggers.
JOSH MORI: Aloha kakou. Oa o Kauai noa. My name is
Joshua Didi 0 Pui Kaikoloa Mori. First off, I want to say thank you. Thank you for
all of you folks for being here. Thank you for the work that you have already put in
and we find ourselves here again. We know what to do, so congratulations. We
have done this before. You folks have voted on this before. Maika i no. Let us
continue to do this. I bring from Kekaha where I live, a message of strength and of
unity. We are not divided. Our work is not over yet. Today we are brought back by
the actions of two (2) individuals who chose to act in their own interest. That is
okay. Like I said, we have been here before. We know how to do the right thing. I
SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING 5 NOVEMBER 7, 2013
feel like much of this is being based on fear and it is fear not from the local people,
but it is being driven by fear from the industry and they have much to fear because
we as the local people, the maka`ainana, we know that we have rights. Local people
have rights. Their lawyers know that we have rights. We know that we have
things such as Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA)
working in our defense that was passed by the Supreme Court of the United States
in 1993, right? That upholds our right to not have our sacred lands desecrated
upon. Yes, we have these rights. We also know that in 2008 the United States was
the last colonial power, but they did sign on the United Nations Declaration on the
Rights of Indigenous People. We have these rights. Almost every single article is
being trumped right now by what is going on. What we have in front of us is the
opportunity to not have to go that route, to not have to take this thing and use these
international laws and to not have to use these Supreme Court laws. What we have
is an opportunity to work together as a community to show the world, to send a
message to the world that here on Kaua`i, e komo mai, but e komo mai on how our
ruling Chief said it. You are always welcomed. Everybody is welcomed here, but
not if you are coming to make war. You come to make war, you do not a place on
Kaua`i. So, my message to the biotech industry, how disrespectful can you be to our
people. We have been here for thousands of years. You have been here for fifteen
(15) years. You want to sue us, you want to threaten us — they want to threaten
suing us for their lack of cooperation. Our very, very fundamental right as humans
is to know what is going into our air and in our land. It is already protected by our
laws as indigenous and living human beings. So, my message is to keep up the good
work. Do not be scared. We have your back. We are very supportive of what is
going on in this process and we thank you. Thank you for going through the process
because when we can walk out of this door, you folks have a lot of work to do and we
support you. Mahalo nui. I am going to say, let us override the Mayor's veto of Bill
No. 2491, Draft 2. Mahalo.
Chair Furfaro: To the Clerk's Office, I want to let you know
that I have asked the County Attorneys to preview the video that was suggested
and tell me if his testimony was not much different than what we are hearing today
and I want to make sure that I had him look at it because I am going to allow it.
Who was the individual that had the video as part of their presentation today?
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: Ruby Staggers.
Chair Furfaro: You have to come to the microphone.
RUBY STAGGERS: Hi, I am Ruby Staggers. I was supposed to
present the video, but I do not have it available today.
Chair Furfaro: Thank you very much then. Now on this
note, I am going to let the audience know on my discretion, I am going to continue
with public testimony. To expedite time here, I am going to let those that signed up
speak for three (3) minutes and we will continue the list. I also want to make sure
that we understand that it is not interactive with the Council for discussion and we
have read the communication. So, who would be the next speaker?
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: The next speaker was Ruby Staggers.
There being no objections, the meeting was called back to order, and
proceeded as follows:
SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING 6 NOVEMBER 7, 2013
Mr. Rapozo: Mr. Chair, let me just formally make the
motion to receive C 2013-363 for the record. It has already been read by the Clerk.
Mr. Rapozo moved to receive C 2013-363 for the record, seconded by
Mr. Kagawa.
Chair Furfaro: On that note, since it had already been read,
let us take public testimony.
There being no objections, the rules were suspended to take public testimony.
Chair Furfaro: Ruby, are you here this morning in the
Chambers? That is Ruby. She is going to pass.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: The next speaker is Lorrin Pang, followed by
Journey Zephier.
LORRIN PANG: Good morning. Thank you for hearing us. I
come from Maui. I speak as a private citizen. I am a retired Army active duty
Walter Reed Army Institute of Research for twenty-four (24) years. I have served
for the World Health Organization since 1985. I want to specifically cover
something that might seem a little bit irrelevant, but at the end you will what is
going on. I watched the scientific claims regularly and there was something that
has come out here. I will leave this with you. In the Scientific American it is a
very, very prestigious journal, pretty fair. The Scientific American looked at
Roundup with its components and it was very hard to decide what is going on
because Roundup alone, the active component glyphosate, was not that toxic but the
carrier agents to make the cells soft and penetrable, that was not that dangerous
alone. But when you combine the two (2), the glyphosate enters a cell and you have
some wicked potentiation. So, as we have been saying all along, you combine two
(2) things, stand back because you are going to see things you never saw before. I
understand you have eleven (11) things now. Those are the pesticides. There are
others things which are not considered pesticides which facilitate and potentiate.
That is fine. So, everyone weighs in on this. What does Monsanto say? They write
a letter. They defend themselves. You should know that seven (7) years ago,
Monsanto's Head Medical Director, Daniel Goldstein came to debate with me in
front of the Maui Medical Society. We asked for labeling because if you label the
product, I can do a post-marketing study into the community to figure out what was
causing what. He said, "Post-marketing studies are not good and useless. There
are is so much confusion. If a person gets sick, you do not know if it is his deodorant
or you do not know if it is his pets so we go with lab studies." I thought fair enough,
but I think you are wrong. This thing that I just told you, the combination
potentiating the toxicity, was a lab study. What is Dr. Goldstein in publication
saying now about the lab study? "Well, that is not real life." So, he is saying a lab
study is not good, a human life study in real life is not good, but what is the facts?
The facts are, we know that Dr. Goldstein, that is why we asked for both. We asked
for a lab study, animal study, well controlled study, and post-marketing study.
Where are we now? You see this lab study come out, not good enough for him. Let
us look at real life. Where do you think real life is? It is West Kaua`i. That is why
in this Bill you put. For me, fine, we start with disclosure. I said that before. But
the kick of the whole thing, the meat of it is your health study. That is real life.
That is what is going on. You tell Goldstein...
Chair Furfaro: That is your three (3) minutes.
SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING 7 NOVEMBER 7, 2013
Mr. Pang: He puts out the lab study, and you match it
with the real life. If you do not believe what you will see then Google Argentina
Monsanto. They are showing real life birth defects susceptible cancers. Thank you.
Chair Furfaro: Sir. I am going to remind everybody in the
audience. The agenda item is about the process and the veto.
Mr. Pang: Sorry.
Chair Furfaro: That is what is on the agenda. Now, there is
nothing for me to prevent you how you use your three (3) minutes, but I think I can
speak for everyone here at the table, that we would like to move through this
process so that we can make a decision about a calendar date on the veto. Thank
you.
Mr. Pang: Thank you. Sorry.
Chair Furfaro: Next speaker.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: The next speaker is Journey Zephier,
followed by Stephanie Krieger.
JOURNEY ZEPHIER: Hello, I am Journey Zephier. I am thirteen
(13) years old and I am here to represent the seventh generation. The current and
the future are on this Council to protect. I was surprised the Mayor only read the
Bill two (2) or three (3) weeks ago. He did not know the pesticides being sprayed
and he went on vacation for almost a week of the ten (10) days he should have been
studying the Bill.
Ms. Yukimura: Journey. Excuse me, Journey. People are
wanting to hear you. Can you speak louder?
Mr. Zephier: When he vetoed the Bill I felt like he
betrayed my generation, like he stabbed me in the back because at the last hearing
I talked to him outside of the hearing room here and asked the Mayor, "Please, if
this Bill passes, please protect me and the keiki and sign the Bill." The Mayor
looked me in the eye, patted me on the head, and said, "Do not worry. I support the
Bill." I felt very sad and hurt because the Mayor looked me right in the face and
lied to me. I have talked to many of you here on the Council. None of you have ever
lied to me. I felt like being honest is important in a leader. To make believe the Bill
would be signed and make my friends on the West Side would be protected. You,
the Council, have taken a lot of time out of your life to educate yourselves on the
issues and then the Mayor vetoes it without even researching or educating himself
on the pesticides or health impacts and how urgent it is to protect the people getting
sprayed. I think that the Mayor should apologize to the family on the West Side
who had thirty-five (35) members of cancer. He should apologize to all the kids
getting sprayed and breathing in dust every day and all of the people on the West
Side. He should also apologize to me for lying to my face and I think he should also
apologize to himself because he knows in his heart what he did was wrong when he
vetoed this Bill. He has a granddaughter. What if she lived downwind? I believe in
you folks. I believe that you folks can do it. I hope that you will override the veto
by the Mayor. You can pass the Bill and then fine tune it in the next nine (9)
months. My aunty knows a six (6) year old girl on the West Side who was just
diagnosed with cancer joining a long list of kids who will have high rates of cancer
SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING 8 NOVEMBER 7, 2013
around the seed pesticide fields. Please do this if not for me, for her. The keiki and
the future generations deserve the basic protection that Bill No. 2491, Draft 2
offers. You have months to fine tune any legal issues, but since a former Hawai`i
Supreme Court Judge has endorsed the Bill and feels it would stand up in court. I
think that plus the dozens of other lawyers who endorsed the Bill...
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: Three (3) minutes.
Chair Furfaro: Summarize really quickly.
Mr. Zephier: I missed school today to be here. I slept on
the pavement outside all night because I love Kaua`i, all of the keiki, and people on
the West Side and the seventh generation implodes you. Pass the Bill, override the
Mayor's veto.
Chair Furfaro: Thank you for your testimony. Next speaker
please.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: Next speaker is Stephanie Krieger, followed
be Erika Schneider.
STEPHANIE KRIEGER: Aloha. My name is Stephanie Krieger and I
am here today to ask that the Council override the Mayor's veto of Bill No. 2491,
Draft 2. October 31, 2013 was a very emotional day for me. I will never forget
where I was as many in this community will probably never forget where they were
when they found out that the Mayor vetoed the Bill. I was walking from my work
through the Safeway shopping complex on my way to get my morning coffee. A
mysterious black helicopter hovered across the sky and I was so shaken up I could
hardly place my order. My commitments to attend my son's school Halloween
parade in preparation for the evening's neighborhood festivities kept me from
running to the atrium for the Mayor's speech. My son, Hunter Aina, just turned six
(6) last month. He has been extremely active and aware of this process and
throughout this process he has gotten to know several of you personally
understanding your individual viewpoints. The morning after the veto Hunter and
I were able to watch a video of the Mayor's speech. Halfway through this emotional
moment he turned to me with tears in his eyes and told me that he was crying. He
said, "The Mayor rides the Kaua`i Bus." He further elaborated that he wanted to
give his Kauai Bus coloring book, one of his favorites, back to the Mayor filled with
scribble scrabble. Imagine the passionate emotion of this young mind feeling
betrayed by someone he looked up to so dearly. At the beginning of this process
there were a few of you that I seriously questioned your support of the Bill. I have
to say that I am truly impressed with the leadership and dedication all of you have
exhibited by serving and voting in favor of the overwhelming community voice.
When Bill No. 2491, Draft 2 gets presented back to you, I urge you to keep your vote
in favor of passing the Bill. Do what is right and do what is pono. Let us continue to
make history. Thank you so much.
Chair Furfaro: Thank you for your testimony Stephanie.
Next speaker please.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: Next speaker is Erika Schneider, followed by
Thomas Patch.
ERIKA SCHNEIDER: Aloha everyone.
SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING 9 NOVEMBER 7, 2013
Chair Furfaro: Aloha and good morning.
Ms. Schneider: I am a little bit less passionate and less
angry than I was in my last testimony because I think I have cried every tear that I
have in my body out the last week basically. I spent so many hours crying. I could
not sleep for three (3) nights after the Mayor's veto, almost five (5) nights. I slept a
couple hours a couple nights. I was so upset by it. I talked to the Mayor here
outside the hearing too, just like my son said. He also told me that he supported
the Bill, that he felt that the Bill should be passed, and led me to believe that he
was going to sign the Bill. I respect the Mayor as a person. I like him. I think he is
a good person, but I think he was grossly negligent in this matter. You folks have
spent months and months and months sitting here on the Council and every single
one of you, even you Mel who voted no, you still put your time in, you researched.
All of you researched, you learned about the pesticides, the health impacts,
everything. You put your time in and I respect that, Mel. I respect that you folks
sat here this long and did that research and he did not. His lack of research,
education, or even reading the basic pesticide list to know what is being sprayed
and the health impacts of that leads me to believe he already had his mind made
up. The State preemption that was just announced in the last day or two that the
State is suddenly very urgently working on a Bill to require basic voluntary
disclosure of Restricted Use Pesticides only and voluntary buffer zones that was in
the press release yesterday or the day before. I feel like he knew that was coming,
that was why he asked for a month's deferral. I mentioned this before. I feel like it
was an attempt to preempt our Bill and the stricter regulations that it requires.
These companies will not voluntarily do anything. I watched a documentary on
New Zealand called Let Us Spray, about people handling 2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic
acid (2,4-D) and 2,4,5-Trichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4,5-T). The company spent
decades covering up the cancer, birth defects, and illness there using the same
excuses and propaganda that they have used here on Kaua`i; not enough correlation
of evidence, there is no proof that this is because of our pesticides. I watched a man
who handled 2,4-D have three (3) generations of birth defects in his family in this
documentary and they are testing 2,4-D here on Kaua`i. 2,4-D causes birth defects.
Hundreds and hundreds of families there are suffering. Long history of dishonesty
with these companies.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: Three (3) minutes.
Ms. Schneider: This law is required to help and it is very
basic. I ask you please, override the Mayor's veto. Please do the right thing.
Mahalo.
Chair Furfaro: Thank you for your testimony. Next speaker
please.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: Next speaker is Thomas Patch, followed by
Lori Patch.
Chair Furfaro: Thomas Patch. Lori Patch. Are you Thomas
Patch?
THOMAS PATCH: Aloha, good morning. Thomas Patch,
twenty-three (23) years old, born and raised resident of Kaua`i. I am here today in
support to override this veto and I respectfully ask that of the Council committee to
do so when it comes on the agenda. I feel that cowering and complying to these
SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING 10 NOVEMBER 7, 2013
corporation's threats is an irrational and irresponsible exercise of politics on behalf
of the Mayor. Let the Judge decide. I mean, it is not his kuleana to release a
County Attorney's opinion before anything has even gone to court. I see no logic in
that. That is like me getting on a plane, flying to New Zealand, meeting David Tua
at a bar and sticking my chin to the side and say, "Anything you got." It is like I do
not see any point in that at all whatsoever. We the people ask for transparency and
their stubborn reluctance to do so has become disturbing. They immediately almost
threatened to sue the County of Kaua`i. What does that indicate? It is blatantly
showing that there is a massive cover-up going on under their behalf. When the
people of Kaua`i asked the Mayor of Kauai his reason for the veto and what his
outlook on a solution would be in the future, he had really no answer except for just
simply that he is working for the State. That is not really a concern to us because
we already know that Governor Abercrombie is bought off by lobbyists and in bed
with these biotech companies. I am not here to give you numbers and percentages
of what is what and that is not on the issue, right? I am just here in tribute of
Thomas Payne's common sense. His quote from that is, "From the errors of other
Nations, let us learn wisdom." Three hundred forty (340) years later this statement
is still pretty pertinent and I would say you can also substitute the errors of nations
and look at the solutions of what other Countries around the world, in Europe, and
other places have done as well as opposed on the contrast side, what he mentioned
about Argentina going on. So, you definitely can look at it from that and see a lot
progress to be made. I just put faith in you folks in that you make the right decision
and we are all definitely counting on you. I appreciate your time and thank you.
Chair Furfaro: Thank you for your testimony.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: The next speaker is Lori Patch, followed by
Mimsy Bouret.
LORI PATCH: Aloha. My name is Lori Patch and I am a
resident of Kaua`i for thirty-three (33) years. I vote. I have three (3) children born
at Wilcox Memorial Hospital and two (2) grandchildren born at Wilcox Memorial
Hospital. Realizing you have heard countless hours of knowledge, credible, and real
life history the West Side people deserve justice. I am begging you to please
override what I call a despicable veto. I am a cancer survivor. Going through
cancer was basically like going through torture and I survived it. I am here today to
tell you my story. I met a family at the march in March in Po`ipu born and raised
on the West Side. They had a beautiful picture of their sister, beautiful. I asked
who she was and they told me that ever since the inception of the Genetically
Modified Organism (GMO) fields, they have lost thirty-five (35) members of their
family to cancer. Please override the veto. You can regulate Transient Vacation
Rentals (TVR), please regulate these lethal pesticides. Please override the veto. We
can regulate smoking twenty-five (25) feet from a public entrance. Please, you can
regulate the buffer zones from these lethal pesticides. The County is even
considering regulating a license law for your cat. Please, regulate these lethal
pesticides. Please override the veto. Please do not fear or cower to the threats of
litigation and the bullying tactics of the multibillion dollar corporations. The
greatest threat to these corporations is an informed public. We know you have the
high powered pro bono Attorneys ready to represent you. We know that they will
win because we are winners. We know that you can be assured that the Bill will
stand legally in court. Please override the veto. Show your love for the West Side
people. Love casts out all fear. We know the West Side has been brutalized for a
long time now and finally the horror stories of the people who have been poisoned
and are suffering has now been brought to light. This is not only a political issue, it
SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING 11 NOVEMBER 7, 2013
is an issue of life and death. You have a moral obligation and a duty to give justice
to the Kaua`i people and override this veto. Their lives have value. Please override
the veto. I also brought an article from the San Francisco newspaper in regards to
the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rule loopholes that allow
pesticide testing on kids. Please override the veto. Thank you so much you folks.
Keep up the great work. Aloha.
Chair Furfaro: Did you want to give us a copy of your San
Francisco piece? Here, our staff— that is the County Attorney's Office here. This is
Council. Thank you.
MIMSY BOURET: Hello, I am back.
Chair Furfaro: Aloha.
Ms. Bouret: I think Stephanie mentioned earlier, I think
we will all remember where we were at the time we heard of the Mayor's veto of Bill
No. 2491, Draft 2. I was in New York City with Beth Middler who is another large
landowner on the island. She asked me to present this testimony on her behalf
today. I wrote my own, but I am going to present hers. She says, "The island of
Kaua`i is one of the most beautiful pristine environments in the whole world. I
remember one year when having traveled around the entire world with my family I
finally reached Kaua`i and I broke down and I cried. It was so beautiful and having
seeing what else was out there, I was overjoyed to return. What I loved most of all
was that I was not afraid. There were no poisonous animals or plants on Kaua`i.
The people were beautiful. It was benevolent and one could live and breathe
without fear. Those days are drawing to a close. I write today to ask you who hold
the power to save Kaua`i to do the right thing for your island. There are politics
that work here and a lot of it is hard to comprehend. Would not anyone who lived on
Kaua`i want to protect it? Do the multinational chemical companies currently on
island really have the right to spray next to schools and hospitals? Is this common
sense? Is it neighborly? Is it kind? Should they be allowed to spray all year four (4)
times a year and pay no penalty? The people who pay are the ones who are getting
sick who have nowhere to turn except to you, to this Council, for their protection. It
is your duty. It is your privilege to do exactly that. Please, please put consideration
of money and politics aside and think of the land itself which has no voice except for
the remembrance which has become part of our deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and
our lives. Ua Mau Ke Ea 0 Ka Aina I Ka Pono, the life of the land is perpetuated in
righteousness. In the entire world, the State of Hawai`i is the only body that has
recognized that there is a proper way to behave toward the land and that is with
righteousness. Listen, remember, and act. Thank you. Beth Middler."
Chair Furfaro: Thank you for the testimony.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: The next speaker is Nomi Carmona, followed
by Collin Dana.
NOMI CARMONA: Aloha Chair and Kaua`i County Council.
Thank you. Again, my name is Nomi Carmona. I represent statewide Babes
Against Biotech. I find it disturbing that the County Attorney asked biotech
companies to identify their legal problems with the Bill and then used those same
points to construct his legal opinion failing to provide both accurate pro and cons,
instead opting to provide a one-sided opinion in favor of the biotech industry. The
Mayor's veto was ignorant and based on an imbalance, unethical legal opinion
SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING 12 NOVEMBER 7, 2013
written and guided by the GMO chemical company Attorneys and to their benefit.
The same Mayor who has received four thousand dollars ($4,000) directly from
Syngenta and DuPont Pioneer and is the second most GMO funded Mayor in the
State also used his position and power in attorney-client privilege to release Mauna
Kea Trask's flawed legal opinion to the public essentially revealing the County's
defense strategy to the very toxic companies who fully plan to sue the County for
the right to spray hazardous pesticides next to schools, homes, hospitals, roadways,
and waterways. If anyone was simply concerned about the veto, the Mayor's
decision to release the County's confidential legal opinion against the will of the
Council further affecting our ability to dis-save ourselves from these chemical
companies is abhorrent and indefensible. The Council, which accurately reflected
the will of the people by voting 6:1, voted to keep that private. To me, in my
experience with this industry and the statewide political climate heavily lobbied by
professional proponents of toxicity, the Mayor's double betrayal of the majority
constituents of Kaua`i. The County and the Council paired with the Mayor's push
for a two (2) month deferral is a clear indicator of where the Mayor's loyalty lies and
it is not with the people or children of Kaua`i unless he somehow believes that the
State government, with hundreds of thousands of dollars of GMO campaign
contributions will protect Kaua`i years from now and that allowing the continued
poisoning of Kaua`i residents is acceptable until then. I suggest he has either been
wrongly convinced be must do everything in his power to destroy the Bill or he is
deeply confused and under poor mentorship. The Mayor's Communication Director
Beth Tokioka is controlling the content coming out of his office and with all due
respect, she is incidentally the wife of the number nine (9) of ten (10) most GMO
funded Representatives in the House, James Tokioka, who has received nine
thousand six hundred fifty dollars ($9,650) from these biotech companies. Your
State leadership is not sufficient to protect us as suggested by the Mayor's veto and
his support of the Governor's implied voluntary regulation is telling. Senator Ron
Kouchi has taken six thousand fifty dollar ($6,050); Representative Kawakami, two
thousand ($2,000); and Dee Morikawa, only seven hundred dollars ($700). But the
backbone, we need to protect ourselves if the State level has yet to step forward.
The Kaua`i legislative delegates have all quit taking GMO money in 2012 because
they know it affects their authenticity and impartiality regarding biotech influence
in the eyes of their constituents and the Mayor just took two thousand dollars
($2,000) in May of 2013. Hopefully he has gotten the message to stay off the GMO
money. I have given him pens and leis to sign the Bill. He confessed he only
recently read the Bill and needed two (2) more months to study it while we were five
(5) months into the Bill. Two (2) months would have place the Bill in jeopardy as
the majority GMO funded State legislators would likely again attempt to use cert
Home Rule at the State level stating January. So, he attempted to defer the Bill,
fouled the County's legal defense, and vetoed the will of the majority. To me, that is
not a pattern of competence in government leadership. He has suggested that being
born and raised helped defend his veto which to me, makes no sense. If he is willing
to allow the continued poisoning of the children he helped raise how it that fair to
the people...
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: Three (3) minutes.
Ms. Carmona: ...who trusted him and elected him into
office? I contest that we are divided, we have never been more united. Why does
the nor barcode record...
Chair Furfaro: Your three (3) minutes has past.
SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING 13 NOVEMBER 7, 2013
Ms. Carmona: Thomas Payne, who wrote against corruption
for independence and common sense is my blood uncle. I was adopted by a kumu in
Hawai`i as my ohana more than anywhere else and I ask that you please protect
them. Though I am not born and raised, I love them with all of my heart and if the
Mayor will not defend them, I will do everything I can legally. Mahalo.
Chair Furfaro: I want to remind everybody, the agenda item
today is not campaign spending and it is not campaign reporting. The agenda item
today is the power or influence this Council has to override the veto. Please, I will
say it one (1) more time. We have heard a lot of testimony since July 5th, lots of it.
The agenda item is about the veto today. Thank you very much. Next speaker.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: Next speaker is Collin Dana.
Mr. Rapozo: Mr. Chair.
Chair Furfaro: Excuse me, one moment.
Mr. Rapozo: I just want to make a clarification that
Representative Tokioka is the former husband of Beth. They are not married and I
think that is an important clarification.
Chair Furfaro: Thank you, Mr. Rapozo. Who is our next
speaker? I am sorry.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: Collin Dana, followed by Katie Johnson.
Chair Furfaro; Are you Collin?
COLLIN DANA: Yes sir.
Chair Furfaro: Thank you.
Mr. Dana: I would like to address the veto, but before I
do, I would like to thank the body for their work on this Bill so far. I started out
very dishearten, but I have renewed faith in the leadership shown by this body and
especially by you, Mr. Chair. So, with that, I would like to move onto the veto. It is
never pretty, political suicide is never a pretty thing. But to focus on why this veto
happened, the stated reason is flimsy enough that I think we can dismiss it. I do
not want to waste time saying was he bought or was he misled. I think that is not
really our job. I think we need to stay the course and not be distracted by this
delay. We need to as soon as possible, schedule a meeting, override this veto, and
get on with what we spent months and months and months working towards.
Thank you. Aloha.
Chair Furfaro: Thank you for your testimony. Next speaker
please.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: Next speaker is Katie Johnson, followed by
Felicia Cowden.
Chair Furfaro: Good morning, Katie.
SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING 14 NOVEMBER 7, 2013
KATIE JOHNSON: Aloha. I am Katie Johnson. First of all, I
want to thank you all for passing the Bill. You did it. We are so grateful. You
showed amazing leadership, leadership of the people and stewards of this land that
we all love. You must override the veto. I know that you know it. We all know it.
The veto was wrong. You looked at the Bill, you decided that it could hold up in
court. You chose to pass it, please do. I do not if there is more that I can tell you
that other people have not said that you do not already know. I think for me, it is
about the children. I am going to tell you a little story. I was driving past the field
in between the airport and the hospital and I had small children in my back seat. I
wanted them to roll up the windows because I did not want them to breathe in
whatever might have been sprayed, but I also did not want to scare them. So, I
asked them nicely to roll up the windows. "But aunty why, why?" I said, "Well,
they might be putting something in the fields that could not be good for us. I do not
know, but I would like for us to roll up the windows just in case." One little voice in
the back seat said, "I know. My mama told me about that. They are spraying
poison." Another one said, "Well, if they are spraying poison, call the police." I said,
"Well, we do not know. We do not know." "Well, call the police anyhow." "We
cannot call the police, there is no law." Silence, silence in my back seat. I do not
know how you explain that to children because actually, some people do explain this
to children. I tend not to because I am afraid that they will be afraid because
honestly, I am afraid. I beg you. When you break it down to the kids it becomes so
obvious. All we are asking is five hundred (500) feet from our schools, from our
hospitals, and from our residences. That is all we are asking and yet they are
fighting and fighting and fighting. I really think we need to take a minute and
pause and wonder why because I do not know how I would ever explain that to a
child. Why they are fighting to spray and they do not want to tell us what they are
spraying. But why? It makes no sense. I watched the same documentary that
Erika did and actually, I will send it to all of you. I figured maybe somebody
already did, but I will do it. Let us learn, let us learn from other places, and let us
air on the side of caution. The one thing I want to say is the most basic tenant of
being human is that we protect our young. It is not even just being human, it is
across the species. A black bear will not attack unless you pass her with her cubs,
then beware because a mama bear will attack when her cubs are threatened. Let
us protect our children. You already have. You have, you have protected them
once. Stand up to the Mayor, the veto was wrong. Do the right thing please.
Chair Furfaro: Thank you for your testimony.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: The next speaker is Felicia Cowden, followed
by Angela Hughes.
FELICIA COWDEN: Thank you. I am Felicia Cowden. I will keep
mine simple. So many strong words and quality words have been said. I also thank
you, all of you, for what you have done so far, all of the time you that you have put
into this, and I ask that you override the veto. I think it is important even more
than just for Bill No. 2491, Draft 2. When I look at the amount of effort, certainly
more than I have ever seen in my close to thirty (30) years on this island, how many
people have come forward on both sides of the issue, this is a powerful issue. I know
it had not been easy for you all and to get that 6:1 approval of the Bill just to have it
vetoed, it almost invalidates the role of the County Council. I feel like it is
disrespecting a whole lot of elements here. I like the Mayor. I feel like he is my
friend, his team are friends of mine, but at some point we have to raise above that
and we just have to stand on the process, the people, everything that has been said,
and I see no good reason for him to be vetoing it especially when there is teams of
SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING 15 NOVEMBER 7, 2013
people from around the Country and larger who are willing to come in and help
because it does set a precedent and we need to set that precedent. So, thank you.
Please override the veto.
Chair Furfaro: Next speaker please.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: The next speaker is Angela Hughes, followed
by Ned Whitlock.
ANGELA HUGHES: Aloha. My name is Angela Hughes for the
record. Good morning Council. I will make it really brief because you have sat
through so much already. I think you know many things that I could possibly say
again. So, I just want to give my deepest, deepest appreciation for the vote that
happened and all of your support for the Bill up to this point. I know it has not
been easy and it continues to be a challenge, but our community is really strong and
we really are behind you every step of the way. To me, the override is a no-brainer
and I am having faith that it is happening. Thank you so much for your time.
Aloha.
Chair Furfaro: Thank you for your testimony.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: The next speaker is Ned Whitlock, followed
by Deborah Erickson.
NED WHITLOCK: Aloha Council. I am Ned Whitlock, farmer in
Moloa`a. The precedent you can set by overriding this veto has ramifications that
ripple out across the Pacific so of course there is a lot of pressure to bear for not
setting that precedent. But for the future of our island and especially the kids, you
are at a junction point that takes some thought, but courage to go ahead and do that
right thing and override the veto because who you are dealing with, these are not
just seed companies. I get my Vegetable Grower magazine and there are
advertisements (ad) for Syngenta seeds, two (2) of them in this one. But it is not
just and ad for seeds, in the same ad, it is for seed treatment so the seeds are
already treated, poisoned to begin with and then they are saying you can protect it
with a fungicide and/or insecticide probably a synthetic pyrethroid because there is
a bee warning for the ad here. It is their business model, to sell more, and they just
happen to be in the agrochemical business so please override the Mayor's veto. Let
us get on with it. Thank you.
Chair Furfaro: Thank you for your testimony.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: Next speaker is Deborah Erickson, followed
by Dewain Senk.
DEBORAH ERICKSON: Hi, my name is Deborah Erickson. I just
want to say override the veto. I cannot even talk about this stuff anymore. It just
makes me cry. You have looked at things, look at what is happening in other
Countries. I know the Governor is telling the Mayor do not sign off that Bill, but do
what is in your heart please.
Chair Furfaro: Thank you.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: The next speaker is Dewain Senk, followed
by Billy Kaneholani.
SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING 16 NOVEMBER 7, 2013
Chair Furfaro: Dewain, are you present? Dewain, is that
what you said Madame Clerk?
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: Dewain, D-E-W-A-I-N S-E-N-K.
Chair Furfaro: Next.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: The next speaker is Billy Kaneholani.
BILLY KANEHOLANI: My name is Billy Kaneholani and I work for
the State Department of Highways. Our concern since I have been elected delegate
for United Public Workers for the County and Kaua`i. This is needed because what
we are doing now is we are weed whacking and I want to know if we have the rights
to do the herbicide on guardrails only.
Chair Furfaro: Billy, I will tell you. This Bill deals
specifically with agricultural pieces.
Mr. Kaneholani: I know, you told me about it. Well, I guess
herbicide is part of agriculture, right?
Chair Furfaro: Well, the chemical is, but the policy is its
treatment in agricultural industry. So, the question you are posing really is one for
your Highway Department.
Mr. Kaneholani: Okay then. Aloha.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: The next speaker is Mahana Lauren Dunn,
followed by Bob Riha.
MAHANA LAUREN DUNN: Aloha Councilmembers. My name is
Mahana Dunn and I first moved to the North Shore of Kaua`i eighteen (18) years
ago. It is nice to see you all again and I want to begin with thanking you all for
your dedication, your determination, and for already passing this Bill. You all are
making the right decision concerning the health and future of Kaua`i. I am here
today to please, ask you, please override the veto of the Mayor that what is going on
here is just very clear and obvious to almost everyone here. We are all one (1)
ohana here on Kaua`i and I want that to all be known to everyone. It does not
matter what side you live on, what background you have, we are all one (1) people.
I would like to begin again, by reminding everyone that the earth does not belong to
us, we belong to the earth. Every choice we make affects the generations way
beyond the seventh generation. Our ancestors knew this, we know this, and this is
the truth. Restricted Use Pesticide disclosure, buffer zones, the Environmental
Impact Statement, all of this that this Bill has brought to light, I would like to make
one (1) thing very clear. The reason these chemical companies will not disclose
what they are doing to our fragile ecosystem, the children, and all of these people
are sick are three (3) words: Class Action Lawsuit. When it is made public what
horrible deadly pesticides and toxic experiments they have been conducting, that
they have been aware for decades that these things directly cause cancer, destroy
the environment, alter our DNA, they will be out of business.
Chair Furfaro: Lauren, I am going to remind you, and this is
the third reminder. The agenda item is overriding the veto.
SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING 17 NOVEMBER 7, 2013
Ms. Dunn: Got you.
Chair Furfaro: Please be focused on that item.
Ms. Dunn: Yes, sir. Thank you. We the people are here
today to protect Kaua`i. We love this island with all our hearts. This sacred island
is truly paradise and we know what is going here. I do not need to remind you. But
I do ask, how much is your health for sale? How much is your children's health for
sale? My health is not for sale ever. It is not right nor fair that anybody has the
right to poison any of us and that is not living aloha, that is not Hawai`i, and that is
not what this great Nation stands for. If we all truly believe in the Constitution,
that we understand that we are protected from evil doers who harm we, the people.
Thank you all for overriding the Mayor's veto. God bless you all. Mahalo ke akua.
God bless Kaua`i.
Chair Furfaro: Thank you. Next speaker please.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: The next speaker is Bob Riha, followed by
Veronika Bashwa.
BOB RIHA: Aloha Councilmembers. Thank you...
Chair Furfaro: Can you speak up a little bit Bob?
Mr. Riha: Hello, can you hear me?
Chair Furfaro: Yes.
Mr. Riha: Good morning Councilmembers. Thank you
all for all of your hard work and all of your time that you have spent dealing with
this issue here. I am a concerned organic farmer here on Kaua`i. I have been here
for about ten (10) years and it is very important for us to come together with our
hearts knowing that we are all in it together and pesticides are bad. They kill
weeds. They damage the earth. We are on the earth, potentially we are taking that
in as well. So, I am very upset with the Mayor's decision and I am in full support of
us coming together, overriding this veto, and making Kaua`i a very green healthy
place. Thank you. Aloha.
Chair Furfaro: Thank you for your testimony.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: The next speaker is Veronika Bashwa,
followed by Lisa Kerman.
VERONIKA BASHWA: Aloha. My name is Veronika Bashwa. I
thank you all for passing the Bill and hope and pray you continue to pass the Bill.
We are one of the few States left that has the County power that is not preempted.
These companies have been working hard to change legislation in various States
across the Country, Hawai`i is one that they have not gotten to yet. So, we still
have the authority to do this and I hope you stay strong and stand up to these
people because they are trying to take our rights away. We need courageous leaders
to protect this precious island. It is one of the most beautiful islands in the world.
It is a place people come for the natural beauty and pristine cleanliness of the air
and the water. If it is getting poisoned and destroyed, we are doing a disservice to
the world, not only to the people that live here. Two (2) of the main points the
SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING 18 NOVEMBER 7, 2013
Mayor vetoed the Bill for is implementation, he did not know how he was going to
be able to do that. There have been many people that have testified and
volunteered their time to help with implementation that have experience in the
field. It is not hard to put together a board, a group of people, and an advisory
board to help implement the Bill. He will also have Nadine working for him who
has been very involved in this and I am sure and I have noticed is quite brilliant
and can help find ways to implement the Bill. The other main point he had was the
threat of a lawsuit and preemption. So many lawyers have stated that it is not
preempted, lawyers that are experts in this field that have been dealing with this in
other States. They know it. They said it is solid. So, go to court, find out what is
true if that is what is needed to protect this island. I do not see the people of Kaua`i
as cowards that will just fall at a threat. This is a land of warriors that fought for
truth and we need you folks to be warriors to protect Kaua`i. You did your
homework, you spent months and hours listening to everything, interviewing
people, going and talking to people and the Mayor did not do enough of that. He
said he did not do enough, he does not know enough. He confessed to that, so he did
not do his job. Why should we all wait because he did not? He did not do his
homework and he wants to defer it to the State. The State is overburdened and
underfunded. They cannot take care of this the way it needs to be done. The
County can and the County has the right to. We need the County and the State to
work on this very important. This is big, this is cancer, birth defects, it is the
poisoning, and the dying of the coral reefs.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: Three (3) minutes.
Ms. Bashwa: It is very obvious to anyone. I work in the
tourist industry and every tourist I talk to can see right through what is going on
here and they, I, and the people of Kaua`i that have spoken want you to override
this veto and pass this Bill. Thank you.
Chair Furfaro: Thank you.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: The next speaker is Lisa Kerman, followed
by Elly Williams.
Mr. Hooser: Council Chair.
Chair Furfaro: Yes?
Mr. Hooser: If we could just remind people to speak up.
Chair Furfaro: Speak into the microphone and speak up
please.
Mr. Hooser: Yes, thank you.
LISA KERMAN: Good morning Councilmembers. I just want
to thank you very, very much for all the diligent hard work that you have taken on
these last several months. I will not bore you to death with another testimony. I
have written several already. I just want to support you in supporting this Bill
which you have already supported and you voted on. So, I want to beg you to
override the Mayor's decision to veto the Bill. Thank you.
Chair Furfaro: Thank you very much.
SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING 19 NOVEMBER 7, 2013
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: The next speaker is Elly Williams, followed
by Taryn Dizon.
Chair Furfaro: Elly Williams. Oh, there she is.
ELLY WILLIAMS: Aloha kakahiaka. My name is Elly Williams,
good morning.
Chair Furfaro: Good morning.
Ms. Williams: I would just like to put my voice out there for
all of my constituents. I am a resident of Waimea Valley as everybody should know
by now and I also work for DuPont Pioneer. I would like to thank the Council for all
of your long months of hard work. But I must say that after the Mayor vetoed the
Bill, a lot of points came to light that I think are important to consider. I trust the
County Attorney's opinion, I trust the Mayor's decision, and I support the Mayor on
this one, that the veto should stand. We should veto this Bill and work together. I
am a proponent of working together. There is no resolution when we introduce
Bills, legislation, and any type of combative behavior. We need to sit at the table,
work together, all of the stakeholders and figure out what is best. What can we do
together because the war, the words, the angriness, it is not Kaua`i. I went to
Waimea High School, we were not taught how to deal with activism. We were
taught how to work together, that this is all of our kuleana, and like I have said
before, I went to school to get a degree so I can work in this industry and contribute.
Let us all work together. We do not need the negativity on this island and that is
my testimony from my fellow workers and myself. Mahalo.
Chair Furfaro: Elly, thank you very much for your
comments. I think we would all like to bring the island together. Thank you for
pointing that out.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: The next speaker is Taryn Dizon, followed by
Maria Maitino.
TARYN DIZON: Good morning everyone. Good morning
Council Chair Furfaro and Councilmembers. Excuse my voice. My name is Taryn
Dizon as you folks are all probably well familiar. Mahalo for the agenda item to lay
the veto on the table. I support the Mayor's veto because it is quite simple. He is
following his Oath of Office to faithfully support the Constitution of the United
States, the Constitution of the State of Hawai`i, and the Kaua`i County Charter. At
the same time, he supports the process of working together and finding real
solutions to heal our community. He acknowledges that the community has
concerns and he wants to address them. He is not slacking in his duties. He wants
to follow the law and for everyone to ho`oponopono and to work together. Why are
the people so against working together? Look at what is happening. Someone
earlier today talked about fear. Today's security and metal detection is because of
all the real threats that have been made. Look what happened to me. I have a
police report with five (5) Kaua`i residents accused of terrorists threats against me
for testifying after June 26th. The seed industry has never committed the types of
threats that made and require metal detections downstairs. Ask yourself if
everything that has happened that has led to this metal detections on the small
island of Kaua`i has been pono. If you want to properly carry out your duty and
kuleana for all of Kaua`i, it makes sense to follow your own County Attorney's
opinion that Bill No. 2491, Draft 2 is legally flawed. How can you in all good
SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING 20 NOVEMBER 7, 2013
conscientious of public servants and elected officials still support an illegal piece of
legislation? I have two (2) healthy boys in Kekaha, born and raised. One (1) of
them whose name is Mauka can probably commutatively out walk all of you in
those mountains because he lives his name. He is proud of where his mother works
and would love to be in that industry. Mahalo for laying the veto on the table today
so that you can start the proper discussion next week and sustain the veto. Please
support the process that brings our island back together, not one that tears us
further apart. It is really dirty out there and we need to heal it and work together.
Thank you for this time. Mahalo.
Chair Furfaro: Thank you for your testimony.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: The next speaker is Maria Maitino, followed
by Craig Malina.
MARIA MAITINO: Aloha Councilmembers. Thank you. My
name is Maria Maitino. I want to thank you so much for all the hours and hours of
work that you have done to this point. It has been amazing, all of the research, all
of the hours, and I am here to thank you for passing Bill No. 2491, Draft 2. You
have heard hundreds of hours of compelling testimony by the medical community,
by parents, by Attorneys, and by environmental activists. This decision of the
Mayor based on the County Attorney's recommendations is based on fear, fear of
lawsuits. We have had numerous Attorneys who have said they will work pro bono
to back us, to back this Bill, this County. We cannot base the decision on this Bill
on fear, fear of lawsuits. There is too much at stake. Your decision to override the
veto should be based not on fear of lawsuits, but rather on the voice of the people, of
Kaua`i, the health and well-being of the land, and those of us lucky enough to live
here and visit this island. We cannot count on voluntary cooperation by the
chemical companies or we cannot look to the State to help us. We are counting on
you, our elected officials, to override this veto and support Kaua`i and its people.
Thank you so much.
Chair Furfaro: Thank you for your testimony. Next
speaker.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: Next speaker is Craig Malina, followed by
Sol Kahn.
Mr. Rapozo: Mr. Chair.
Chair Furfaro: Yes?
Mr. Rapozo: It feels like the air conditioner is on.
Chair Furfaro: I am going to check on that on the next
break.
Mr. Rapozo: Oh, you are going to wait for the break?
Chair Furfaro: Yes.
Mr. Rapozo: Okay.
CRAIG MALI NA: Aloha. My name is Craig Malina and I am
one of the new people to Kauai, but it has been a real honor over the last few
SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING 21 NOVEMBER 7, 2013
months to really bear witness to what has happened here and what I have seen. I
have worked with a lot of causes, documentary films, and a lot of media for social
change over the years and I have really been just honored to be here and see the
people come together for this cause and the Council to really step forward and really
do the hard work that is required to really bring about change that matters. But it
is not just a "me" anymore. The world is now watching and I am saying that
because they are not watching to see another chapter play out in a story of
corporate influence and political influence run unchecked. They are really watching
to draw inspiration from what the people here are doing and from what you folks
are doing. There are many, many communities all over the world that are facing
similar challenges that you folks are facing here and they need to see people step up
and succeed and to take small steps towards a brighter future. But make no
mistake that what you folks do here is so meaningful for all of the people that are
here, but it is meaningful to communities all over the world and what you do here
will be viewed, seen, shared, and will really make a big difference. So, I really
believe that now is the time to share aloha and share the dogged, persistent effort
that it takes to do the people's work and share that with the rest of the world.
Mahalo.
Chair Furfaro: I have a few housekeeping announcements.
I got confirmation that the air condition is back on. So, I want to get the building
secured for the windows. Is anyone able to just reach up from where you are at and
close the windows around you? It would be a big help. Thank you everyone. The
second housekeeping announcement is we will be taking a break at 11:00 a.m. for
our ten (10) minute, required by law, break for our captioner. I will be giving the
break an extra five (5) minutes because I want to remind you folks that you will
have to be screened again coming back in. That is nobody's kuleana but mine. I am
responsible for the well-being of twenty-three (23) employees in this building and
that is the process we are going through. So, time yourself when we take a break
because we need to go through that screening again. To me, that is pono. I have a
responsibility to my staff. On that note, thank you for the housekeeping
interruption. You have the floor.
SOL KAHN: Aloha, my name is Sol Kahn. Thank you, all
Councilmembers, every single one of you. I appreciate all of the hard work you have
done and I really mean that. I have agreed with some of you and I have disagreed
with some of you on a lot of things in all of this. It has been a very, very difficult
issue. It is divided, it is unified, it has done all of that so we cannot say it has not
done this, it has not done that. It has basically done the full circle. It has done
everything. I want to start off by saying that I never played football, but I did play
soccer. I played baseball since I was four (4) years old. I did play all of those sports
and I would never give my playbook, our plays, to the other team. Why would you
do that? Why would I go into a game and say, "Hey, we are going to do this move
and this move?" I played basketball. Why would we give our plays to the other
team? It just does not make sense. So, that is a little disappointing to me to say the
least. Also, you folks did your job. You have done your research, there is still a lot
more research to do; probably years' worth to say the least. I take it personally.
The Mayor, I gave him one of the very first flyers that I made with a lot of
information on it. He got the very first flyer. I said, "If you have any questions, call
me" and this was months before the votes for the Bill. So, I do take that personally.
He did not do his research. You folks have done your research. Mr. Rapozo, you
and I have disagreed and agreed on a few things. Even though you gave a "no" vote,
you have done your research and I do respect that. Whatever you opinion is, you
have done the handwork. I have seen you do it and I have nothing but respect for
SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING 22 NOVEMBER 7, 2013
that. For the Mayor, it seems like he is really going over your folks head on this
and it I do not agree. You folks are doing your job and I appreciate the job you folks
are doing, all of you and I think you should stick with what you are doing, stick on
the same path. I am sitting up here representing the kids, the keiki of the island. I
am not here for my generation. So, it is not my generation that matters. It is the
ones after us. Please override the veto. Mahalo.
Chair Furfaro: Thank you for your testimony, Sol.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: The next speaker is Lionel Gambill, followed
by Larry Fillhart.
LIONEL GAMBILL: My name is Lionel Gambill. I live in Kapa`a.
The last time I spoke here I said, "You would be criticized for doing the right thing."
How soon that was poured out. I have seen an attempt to frame this as
environmental protection against jobs. It is not that. It is representative
government and I say it at its best here. This is truly. The County Council of
Kaua`i, it is not the County Council of Syngenta. You deserve the thanks of all of
us, not only the people on this beautiful island, but all of the living creatures. The
fish in the streams will thank you, the squirrels in the trees will thank you, the
chickens will thank you, I thank you, and I urge you to stay the course. You are the
heroes in this drama and I salute you and I stand with you and I urge everyone who
cares about this item to stand with you. Thank you.
Chair Furfaro: Loinel, thank you for your testimony. Thank
you. Next speaker please.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: The next speaker is Larry Fillhart, followed
by Isobel Storch.
LARRY FILLHART: My name is Larry Fillhart and I was not
really planning on coming down here, but I just drove by. The Bill is not what
bothers me, and I am preaching to the choir because you all followed the law and
passed it. What bothers me the most is that there is no complete environmental
impact done on this. Nobody knows what the GMOs are going to do or the pesticide
are going to do and so it is simple law. We do not know what it is going to do. I was
out of the generation when they had the falidimide things that nobody knew what
they were going to do and then all of sudden something happened and it was
something tragic. Monsanto is not growing seeds and food for us, they are growing
seeds that are going to go throughout the world and if they are wrong, it will hurt
the entire world. It will not just hurt Kaua`i. This is a worldwide problem. So, I
just totally disagree. I think it is illegal that he vetoed this Bill. I think it is a
world thing more than just Kaua`i. Thank you.
Chair Furfaro: Thank you for your testimony.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: The next speaker is Isobel Storch, followed
by Lyle Robinson.
ISOBEL STORCH: Aloha Mr. Chairman and members of
Council. Thank you for letting me speak to you today on this matter. My name is
Isobel Storch and I operate a small family farm on Kaua`i. In my previous life for
over three (3) decades, I was a Municipal Lawyer for the City of Pittsburg and other
municipalities in Western Pennsylvania. I wish to address the Mayor's rationale for
SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING 23 NOVEMBER 7, 2013
vetoing the Bill. He based his decision on the so-called legal issues raised by the
County's Attorneys. When you read the last paragraph of their opinion, the
Attorneys give three (3) concerns, preemption, the right to farm or nuisance issues,
and the transfer of regulation to the Office of Economic Development. The
preemption issue has been addressed by highly competent lawyers how have
litigated it successfully in State and Federal courts. So, it is legally defensible and
an issue worth fighting. Is it not interesting that the only other legal concerns
raised by your lawyers were in relation to amendments made by Council's
Committee and not to issues in the original Bill. I understand that the lawyers
were present in those Committee Meetings so one has to ask whether they advised
the Committee of their legal concerns at that time. If they did not, they should be
dealt with accordingly. If they did, did the Committee share that information with
the rest of the Council before you voted on it? Is it not also interesting that the
amendments were proposed by the now Deputy Mayor or whatever the new title is?
Could one surmise that there was a conspiracy in place to purposefully make the
Bill more legally problematic so as to give the Mayor a reason to veto it? I suggest
the Council asked those questions and demand answers before you vote to override
or not. I believe that this legal opinion itself is terribly flawed and obviously
written with an intent to support a veto rather than a fair assessment of the law.
The Mayor's action and reliance on that opinion should therefore be overridden.
Lastly, I am shocked and appalled that the legal opinion was released to the public.
Never in my thirty-three (33) years as a practicing lawyer have I had or seen a legal
opinion released publicly. It just is not done. Furthermore, the lawyers have an
ethical duty to their clients to advise of the repercussions in doing so. Did your
lawyers do this? Council should demand an answer. Thank you for your time.
Chair Furfaro: Thank you for your comments.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: The next speaker is Lyle Robinson, followed
by Fern Rosenstiel.
LYLE ROBINSON: Aloha, good morning. I am Lyle Robinson.
Thank you all for being here again and listening to us again. I know this is not the
same as the previous hearings when we were discussing the Bill itself, this is the
override of the veto possibility. I believe that as representatives of the people who
elected you, three (3) weeks ago you voted as a majority to pass Bill No. 2491,
Draft 2 and I believe that each of you voted as you did because you felt that you
were accurately representing your constituents. It is clear that while there are
some that are opposed on this island to the passage of Bill No. 2491, Draft 2, the
majority of the citizens of Kaua`i want Bill No. 2491, Draft 2 passed and the County
Council vote reflected that. The Mayor clearly voted with his veto against the will
of the majority of the citizens of Kaua`i and I do not know why he did that and I do
trust that you will all again vote honorably according to the duties of your office to
reflect the desire and the will of your constituents in order to override the Mayor's
veto. I just want to share one (1) story about children because in so many people's
view, this is about the future of Kaua`i and the children of Kaua`i. My children have
seen me interested in this, participate, they have come to rallies, they have shown
up, they have made shirts, they have made signs, they have had their pictures
taken with the Mayor with their t-shirts and all of their pride, and last week I
thought I was going down to the Mayor's Office to really support him in signing the
Bill. I was excited and my five (5) year old son was with me and we were really
having a good morning. We got there and there was nobody there yet and people
slowly started gathering. I went off because I had a few errands to do I said, "Let us
go those and come back." When we came back, it was Halloween day and somebody
SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING 24 NOVEMBER 7, 2013
said to me, "The Mayor is about to veto the Bill." I said, "You are tricking me,
right? This is a Halloween trick." He said, "No." I actually was really shocked and
my son started asking me what was going on and I talked to him about it. We
found out indeed, the Mayor was vetoing the Bill. We listened to his thirty (30)
minutes of explanation and afterwards I stood there and talked with the Mayor for
a few minutes because I had more questions and concerns regarding his decision.
My son walked up and the Mayor put up his hand to high-five my son and my son,
five (5) year old boy, picked up his hand and went down. I was taken aback. I was
completely shocked and the Mayor was pretty surprised. I leaned down and said to
my son, "Flynn, why did you just do that?" He said, "I am not going to high-five
anybody who is for GMO and vetoes the Bill."
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: Three (3) minutes.
Ms. Robinson: He is five (5) years old and he said this. I am
shocked that children understand the gravity of this situation. Please, please vote
with your hearts the way you have and for your constituents and override the veto.
Thank you so much.
Chair Furfaro: Thank you.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: The next speaker is Fern Rosenstiel, followed
by Andrew Cabebe.
FERN ROSENSTIEL: Thank you County Council. For the record,
Fern Anuenue Rosenstiel. I do also want to thank you one more time, all of you,
every one of you for the efforts that you have put in. I would like to strongly
encourage you to override the veto that was made. Many of you may have seen my
personal letter to the Mayor and my comments and my personal feelings relating to
it. However, I would like to emphasize the reasons why I think you have the right
to override this veto and why you will be supported by the law. First of all, the
things that were mentioned in our pre-veto meeting I called it when I was called in
an hour before the announcement was made to the public to be told with a handful
of other people that the decision, a veto was made. The Mayor emphasized that the
Right to Farm Act was one of the reasons why they were so concerned about the
legalities of this. We dealt with his nine (9) months ago when we looked into the
details of this Bill. We dealt with the fact that the Right to Farm Act was there.
But the Right to Farm Act actually prevents people from nuisance lawsuits against
these corporations. It does not in any way, affect you as a body to pass a law to
protect us. So, I just really wanted to make that clear, that will not conflict your
ability to pass this law. I wish that I was spoken to at some stage over the last year
when I have reached out to the Mayor on multiple occasions to discuss this with me.
I was never ever one time met and spoken to about the issues, not one time. So,
here I am trying to explain to you folks some of the things that I learned in a
moment, but I have spent a year working on this Bill and I will tell you that there a
lot of areas that may be slightly uncharted law, that is what we are doing here. We
are setting precedent, that is what happens, that is the judicial branch. It is not
your branch. You pass the law, they will determine whether it is constitutionally
sound in the courts and it is not up to the Mayor to stop that process. That is the
way this government was founded and I would like to also, for those of you that
keep on encouraging people to just defer back to the State and the Federal
government. I want to again remind you that it was the Federal government that
granted experimental pesticide use permits to be given to the County of Kaua`i. We
did not choose to have an experimental test cite here. The Federal government gave
SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING 25 NOVEMBER 7, 2013
them the permits to experiment here. So, I like Malia's explanation of an abused
child and I used it in my later and she used it in our discussion with the Mayor in
our pre-veto meeting. I really appreciate all of you for standing up and protecting
the people of Kaua`i in our abused community, which is how I feel about it. I also
want to emphasize that the threats and the things that have gone on over the last
couple of weeks are totally unacceptable. But they have happened on both sides
and we have somebody that is afraid to go home because they were told that if they
go home they are dead. We have had notes left on our vehicles the last time. There
were multiple people hat ware scared, some people in line were told that they were
going to be "lighted up" which is like a term for shooting unarmed civilians. We
have dealt with a lot of this on both side and I really encourage everybody to just
really stay focused on the issues. Let us not tear apart any person involved or any
personality. Let us stay focused on the issues here and the issue is protecting our
community and overriding this veto. So, please move forward with that. Aloha.
Chair Furfaro: Thank you.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: The next speaker is Andrew Cabebe,
followed by Haleem Hamid.
ANDREW CABEBE: Andrew Cabebe. I really have to thank you
folks. I know what it is like to be under the gun. I have been under it all my life
trying to live with these people that I live with. But my ohana teaches me to love
all of you, every one of you everywhere I go. If I hold any animosity within me,
what am I? So, that is what I share with everybody I meet and I know that I have
met some of you, gave you hugs, shook your hands, and I tell you, I never believed
in the system. But you folks are standing up and I am still standing up for what is
truly mine as a kanaka. Today, I step out of who I am and come here as a human
being. Forget about everything that I represent. How I met this pesticide was for
me, I am back to the beginning again. When I first came here in 1982 I worked on
building this golf course and I have seen what the pesticides did to the oceans down
below. Today, that ocean is starting to come back. The fish, the turtles, everything
is like how it was back then, pristine. You look at our water today — I am a
waterman, I am a fisherman, and I am a canoe paddler. I did everything. My life
was always in the water and when I was out of the water I could go anywhere and
pick the fruits. That is me. That was my generation. The people were giving us
the food from their yards. They put it out on the side of the road and you just walk
by and you pick up what you want. But big business took over. For me, my family
sat on the streets. We sold our leis, we sold our vegetables, and then Statehood
came and everything had to go into the stores. We have to get permits, everything.
But that is the way it is, that is the way life is. I have to respect it and I have to
love it or else what am I? I want to thank the people. They are truly your
constituents. Even if they work for the farms or not, they support you and I am
here to persuade you that think it should not be. It is real. I am here to persuade
you to make it one hundred percent (100%), not just — you know. You know. I
thank you and I thank the people for standing up. There are people, there are
families out there today that lost everything around the world, killed themselves
because they failed their families, spent all of their money on this GMO, and lost it.
I thank you.
Chair Furfaro: Andrew, your time is up. But may I also tell
you, you and I grew up together in the Territory of Hawai`i.
Mr. Cabebe: Thank you for bringing that up.
SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING 26 NOVEMBER 7, 2013
Chair Furfaro: We are both Makaha boys.
Mr. Cabebe: You are right. We stood there and you were
telling us, all of us, and you are today. But really...
Chair Furfaro: I really want to say thank you for the
comment about not holding animosity. It is the right thing. Let us get through this
together. It is good to see you Andrew even though it has been a long time since the
Territory of Hawai`i.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: The next speaker is Haleem Hamid.
HALEEM HAMID: Thank you County Council. For the record,
Haleem Hamid. I have a lot going through my mind. Pardon me if I become
scattered in my speaking. First off, I just would like to say that I really do
appreciate all of the time all of you have taken throughout this whole process. Like
someone before me said it, it does seem like we have come back full circle. We seem
to be talking about the things we started out talking about. I will try to get to the
point. I am pretty shocked to see how the Mayor is going to against what we would
like to call democracy. Growing up in school we were always taught that democracy
is a system that the people are the ones that are actually in power and that is what
our government is supposed to be. To have the majority of the island come out in
support Bill No. 2491, Draft 2 and have five (5) companies come out against it with
their employees, seems to be in overwhelming support of the people. To have the
Mayor go against the democratic process of the people deciding what they want, is
not acceptable to me as a taxpayer, as a person, and as a human. So, I would really
like all of you to look in your hearts and know that you do have the right to override
the Mayor whether he thinks he is right or what the circumstances are behind his
veto. Basically, that is it. I would like you folks to override the veto. I cannot help
but notice the amount of double speak coming from the biotech. Someone earlier
said that we just want to work together, why can we not work together? I think
basically that is the reason this Bill is here. It is because we have been trying to
work together and biotech have refused. I mean ask Wendell Cabutan, ask Klayton
Kubo. They have been trying for over a decade to work together. To now come in
here and hear that from the other side that we want to work together seems a little
bit hard to stomach. Also, if we are so proud of the agriculture that we are doing on
the biotech side, driving through the parking lot I noticed that all the trucks took off
all of their Syngenta stickers. So, how are we so proud if we cannot display what we
are? This is a National thing going on. There is disclosure, labeling, and all of
these things. So, how can we be so proud and then hide what we are doing? That is
what kind of gets to me. I guess that is my time. Thank you.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: The next speaker is...
Chair Furfaro: Jade, hold on a second. Do we have more
than four (4) speakers now?
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: We have four (4) speakers, Chair, remaining.
Chair Furfaro: Just four (4) speakers? I am going to ask us,
BC, may we go through the last four (4) speakers before we take a recess? I do want
to get to the actual action on the posting today because at 1:30 p.m., I will lose a
quorum here. So, let us go to those four (4) speakers please.
SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING 27 NOVEMBER 7, 2013
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: The next speaker is Hoku Cabebe, followed
by Larry Schneider.
K. HOKU CABEBE: Aloha o wao o Hoku mai Wainiha mai ao. I
am here again because I decided to jump in on this cause and we are another
meeting deep and I am just learning as I go along. I just wanted to again express
on behalf of all of the people that I have met throughout this journey as I go house
to house and talk to different community members and I hear their stories. I bring
comfort because that is just the kind of person I am and I keep hoping that we will
get to the end of this "yes" vote and I can go back and give them the great news that
we have some protections in place for our community, then we can go on with the
real work of that this Bill is, and we can go on with the uniting of the families who
need help with the jobs. We are looking at that as a community already. We have
things in place where you can do for help with job placement if that is what you
need although this Bill was set up so that no one does lose their job. So, that is not
going to happen. But if you feel that fear, the community already has things in
place. Hawai`i Clean Jobs, you can go to that website. Like I said, please just
override the Mayor's veto. You folks have already heard all of the reasons why you
need to override it. I do not even think you need to hear it from us. I know that you
good people have it within your na au to make the right decision for our island and
for our keiki most especially and not just for our human keiki, but like someone
mentioned earlier, our baby `o opu and our baby kalo. All of them need your
protections and this is what this Bill does, so please unanimously support this Bill,
each and every one of you. Again, the community stands with you. We look forward
to November and letting the whole community know that you folks stood up for us
and to bring you back into office because that is the kind of leaders that we need.
So, thank you again so much for hearing me out and I look forward to going through
the rest of the process with you folks. I think the entire community does. Mahalo.
Chair Furfaro: Thank you, Hoku. Next speaker.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: Next speaker is Larry Schneider, followed by
Kristi Owen.
LARRY SCHNEIDER: My name is Larry Schneider. I was not
going to testify. I just walked back from the Mayor's Office and I am not going to
say anything to betray the confidentiality of what we spoke about. But the Mayor, I
do not believe and I told him to his face, I thought he made a terrible decision, but
the Mayor did not make this decision in an isolated bubble. He did it through
advice that he got through a team. While I was in a twenty (20) minute conference,
we go interrupted six (6) times by other people on the island who have issues. Part
of the conversation was we would not have enough time to discuss this. The reality
is that I do not think the Mayor had enough time to research it. I do not think a
veto with a deferral is going to give him enough time. I think the Mayor got duped
and I think he got duped by a lot of the talk and fear injected via the chemical
companies by confusing science with truth. There is a difference between truth and
the use of the term science. There is also a difference between one (1) isolated
factor that they test and has been given approval for legality versus the
combinations. There is also the issue of understanding what the genetic
modifications are. That is serious in itself let alone the pesticide issues. But if I
were reading the County Attorney's opinion which I did, let me word it differently.
If I was the Professor setting up a debate and I gave the assignment to a few of my
students to propose one side in support of the Bill defending the Bill and one side to
defeat the Bill, when I read that opinion I thought that was an opinion giving all of
SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING 28 NOVEMBER 7, 2013
the reasons where there were potential holes that could be punched. But when I did
my additional reading in terms of what was referenced, significant portions were
left out that would have defend the County Attorney's opinion. I think it was a very
biased, uneven opinion that gave the County and the Mayor the opportunity to say
there are issues in here that we face risk at, but there was nothing in there to
support it and I think that was wrong. I think the Mayor made the decision not
because he believes it is the right decision, but I do not think he knew the right
decision. I think the Council here spent an enormous amount of time educating
themselves. I think you need to re-institute, override the veto, and you need to
clean up some of the things that was left out that would allow the companies to
operate without oversight and you can do that in the nine (9) months.
Chair Furfaro: Thank you.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: Kristi Owen, followed by Klayton Kubo.
Chair Furfaro: Mr. Kubo will be our last speaker?
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: Yes, Chair.
KRISTI OWEN: Aloha. My name is Kristi Owen. I live in
Waimea Valley. I have three (3) children that go to these schools out there. I have
two (2) at Waimea Canyon Middle School and one (1) at Kekaha Elementary School.
Both of these schools have been evacuated in the past. People have gotten sick
there. The Mayor vetoing this Bill is like a slap in the face to many of us on the
West Side, especially the parents. What is being asked for is so minimal. If you
think the State is going to come in and help us, ask some of the teachers at Waimea
Canyon Middle School when they tried to pass something similar years ago when
the kids were sick. That is why we are here today, is because of that. I just want to
you to please override the Mayor's veto and keep your "yes" vote and help us get the
information that we need and that we deserve. My middle son gets nose bleeds, my
youngest has asthma, and my kids constantly come home from Waimea Canyon
Middle School complaining that they had a headache or a stomach ache all day. I
ask them if they ate their lunch and if they drank their water. `Yes mom, I did." I
think the difference in parents who do not live around these fields and whose kids
do not go to these schools is that we, on the West Side especially in Waimea, we
cannot rule out the possibility that what is happening to our children and to our
community could not possibly be from the spraying of these fields. I think as
parents we try to do our very best to do what is healthy for our children whether it
be feeding them healthy, helping them with their homework, and putting them into
sports. But what if there is something that is beyond our control that is harming
our children and what if the disclosures that could be made with this Bill could
either put our mind at ease or possibly prove that we are indeed being harmed by
this? Our community deserves this, our island deserves this. Please do not let the
legal threat from these companies sway you from doing what is right. Mahalo for
all of your past "yes" votes. Please stay strong. It is the message I sent to you folks
this week. Stay strong, and do not let the Mayor veto this. We can do this. Thank
you.
Chair Furfaro: Thank you. I have a correction. I guess
there is one more speaker after Klayton. I do want to make note, we have had three
(3) hours for people to attempt to sign up. The speaker list is closed. We need to go
on with our business. Klayton, you have the floor.
SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING 29 NOVEMBER 7, 2013
KLAYTON KUBO: I guess we are back over here again. As for
the Mayor's veto it was pretty deep for me. It was pretty deep, pretty personal to
the maximum. I do not know how more personal it can get. With all due respect, I
respect him. He made his choice. I guess he looked at as only his choice and not
we, the people's choice. So, every time I think about this veto that comes into my
mind, it seems like when is we, the people, going to be the voice? When are we the
people going to be the voice? I assume if people are trying to put health below of
money, wow, there is something wrong over there too, majorly wrong. All due
respect, please, you folks have to override this veto. We need help. This is not just
an "I" thing, this is a "we" thing. We need help. The State is not doing it. I got
another call saying the same thing just like before. The State is not going to do
their job. We need help because how would this look if we the people end up suing?
That is what I say. We need help to the maximum. The veto, no, I know you folks
can because you folks had to hear from so many people probably already and I know
you folks can override it. Look deep down into your hearts and say, "Yes, we can"
not "I can." It is "we can." To help the island. Thank you very much for your time.
We can and we are here again.
Chair Furfaro: Thank you, Klayton.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: The next speaker is Mariko Lum.
Chair Furfaro: Mariko is our last speaker.
MARIKO LUM: Hi, my name is Mariko Strickland-Lum,
formerly Strickland, and now Lum. Thank you, Councilmembers for allowing us to
come and speak. I am sure you are quite exhausted with all of the testimonies. I
can imagine. I came here today and I actually was just speaking to a friend who is
a seed company worker, for the past two (2) hours while we were listening to
testimonies at the same time. I kind of changed my approach of it after our
discussion. Anyway, I just wanted to be very kind of matter-of-fact with the whole
issue and not get too emotionally involved. Anyway, my biggest thing is we grew up
calling our Mayor Uncle Bernard like a lot of my generation. Sorry, I am little
nervous. But it was quite shocking after there was a lot of discussion, a 6:1 vote,
and I know a lot of us who have supported him and voted for him, it was a bit of a
shock. A lot of our generation feels like it is Uncle Bernard, he put food on the table
for us, he was my soccer coach, my football coach, and guarantee he is working for
something. Maybe he is working on a better Bill or maybe we can work together
because that is what I know he is all about. Anyway, in talking to a friend who is a
seed company worker and hearing their perspective and just trying to grasp both
sides, they are genuinely afraid that they are going to lose their jobs. My
understanding of this Bill is that they would not lose their job, that it is asking the
biggest thing is disclosure. I think there is a lot of misunderstanding there and for
me personally, the buffer zones, the disclosure, and everything else; my biggest
thing is why do we not just disclose because from there if we find out what is
actually being used then we can actually do a study and find out if buffer zones are
even necessary. Right now, we can hypothesize and say that it needs to be one
hundred (100) feet, five hundred (500) feet away. But without actually finding out
what is being used and doing a study, I think then we can really figure it out. I
have the analogy to it. It is like for instance, a convicted felon. If you are convicted
for a crime and there is some sort of— on both side, he could be guilty, he could not
be guilty. Would we not do an investigation, correct? For this whole issue of
pesticides, I do not want to say GMO because GMO is a whole other thing. This
issue of pesticides on Kaua`i, if more than fifty (50) doctors on Kaua`i are writing in
SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING 30 NOVEMBER 7, 2013
whose pay are relying on sick people and they are writing say something is going on
here, we have to try this to figure out something.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: Three (3) minutes.
Ms. Lum: For me, I say why not do a study and figure
out what really is going on so then we can make conjectures from there?
Chair Furfaro: That was your three (3) minutes. You can
summarize.
Ms. Lum: On a positive note, I just want to say this
issue that has come about, and there is a ton of things going on in my head, with all
of this coming about I feel like I was born and raised her eon Kaua`i, went away for
college, never paid attention to who was in our Council, to be honest. Now I
actually am and the positive thing is this is creating lots of conversations within our
generation and getting us involved, getting us to know who is in our Council
representing us and getting involved in the issues that affect us. I hope and trust
that you folks make the best decision or all of Kaua`i. On a side note, those workers
out there I know a lot of us thought that they are getting paid to be here, the seed
companies; but they are taking vacation time too. Thank you.
There being no objection, the meeting was called back to order, and proceeded
as follows:
Chair Furfaro: Your time is up. Thank you very much for
comments. Now, to the audience I want you to know that this will be a fifteen (15)
minute caption break. When we come back, we will be dealing with the actual
communication and the receipt of this communication to lay the Bill on the table
and the decision about when it will come back on scheduled. A reminder. I am
giving you fifteen (15) minutes because as I said, you need to go through the
entrance process again and through the checkpoints that we had earlier. So, we are
having a fifteen (15) minute break. You might want to start moving back after ten
(10) minutes.
There being no objections, the Council recessed at 11:16 a.m.
There being no objections, the meeting was called back to order at 11:41 a.m.,
and proceeded as follows:
Chair Furfaro: I will call the meeting back to order for
Councilmembers and I want to read Communication C 2013-363 one more time
please.
C 2013-363 Communication (10/31/2013) from the Mayor submitting his
veto of Bill No. 2491, Draft 2, Relating To Pesticides And Genetically Modified
Organisms.
Chair Furfaro: Thank you very much. The motion on that
would be to receive.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: We have a motion and a second.
SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING 31 NOVEMBER 7, 2013
Chair Furfaro: We have a motion to receive and we have a
second. For the audience, so that you understand, this communication actually
then allows us to take the message from the Mayor, his veto message, and actually
enter it into our journal. As we enter it into the journal there is an opportunity no
sooner than five (5) days after we enter it into our journal, but no more than thirty
(30) days to validate it. So, that is a procedural piece and it is covered in our
Charter very clearly in 4.03A. So, that is the procedural part. Then by Council
Rules, the date selected to take that is the Chairman's decision. That is my
decision. If it is seen differently from the members, those member would have to
get a super majority or five (5) votes to override the date that I choose. I have had a
tendency to choose the date of November 14th or I have the opportunity to choose
the date of the 21St. Those are the two (2) options. Now, our session is closed and
we are going into discussion. But I took a moment just to explain that to you folks.
Mr. Rapozo, you have the floor.
Mr. Rapozo: I am assuming that the discussion will have
to happen during this item because I understand when we lay the veto on the table,
there will be no debate and no discussions. So, I would just concur that although
the five (5) day period is required, Sunshine Law requires us a six (6) day notice.
So, I would concur with your decision to hold the next meeting on November 14th at
9:00 a.m. That is what I would suggest. Thank you.
Chair Furfaro: Members? So, everybody understands, our
Rules require the five (5) day posting, but the State Sunshine Law requires us to
post for six (6) days. Mr. Hooser, you have the floor.
Mr. Hooser: Yes. Just so that I am clear. The Chair is
recommending the 14th as the date and Councilmember Rapozo is concurring with
the Chair and it take five (5) votes to change that decision. I was never really good
at math, but my...
Chair Furfaro: All of you have to disagree with me.
Mr. Hooser: Including the person who just said that they
supported you. I would be inclined to encourage the body to allow a seven (7)
member Council to participate in this decision. Having seen the names of people
who have put their names forward, I believe that those people have all been
following the issue, been educated in the issue, and would vote in a pretty
meaningful way. But having seen where the cards fall on the table here, I respect
the Chair's decision and would of course will honor that. Thank you.
Chair Furfaro: Thank you, Mr. Hooser. I do want to say
that I did indicate that I had looked at an alternative date too. As you know, I am
not available the period of the 18th 19th, and 20th for some other personal matters. I
would like to hear some discussion from all of you. If I go to the 21St, how do you
folks feel and we cannot name applicants, please. We can only name people who
actually get nominated. That is why we are having the Executive Session first on
the 15th. We have gone through thirteen (13) weeks of exposure to the issue from
testimony and so on. I would like to hear from you folks. Could a new member get
caught up in eight (8) days? That is what it amounts to. Mr. Rapozo, you have the
floor.
Mr. Rapozo: I will not be here on the 21St. I will be out of
State from the 20th through the 28th so I am sure a lot of people are happy about
SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING 32 NOVEMBER 7, 2013
that because we want it on the 21st. I guess for me, it was the six (6) of us that
brought it this far and I think it is the six (6) of us that needs to make this decision.
What I do not want to see and I have shared this with Councilmember Hooser when
we had a chat one day is that I do not want to see the process of selecting the
seventh member be hanging onto this issue, this Bill.
Chair Furfaro: Understood.
Mr. Rapozo: I mean, we have issues that will be coming
up, most importantly our budget. I think that yes, they may have been kept up to
speed on this issue, but maybe not on the budget. To me, I think the bigger concern
or the bigger responsibility for this body, one of the most important functions we
have is the budget. I think to rest the decision on replacing a Councilmember on
one issue, I do not think that is the right thing to do. I do not think that is fair, I do
not think that is a service to the community because we have seen the names.
There are a lot of people that are well qualified in many aspects and I can honestly
tell you that this Bill, this issue, would have no impact on my selection for that
member, period. It would not because it is more of a more rounded qualification
process, if you will, for me to select the seventh member. I believe the six (6) of us
should carry the torch right through and let the chips fall where they fall and then
we can move on. That is just as a service to the community as well who have been
here every single week, every single Wednesday, and every Thursday or whatever
meeting we have had. I think for them as well, I think to get this done as quick as
possible so that we can all begin the healing process I think is pretty important.
Thank you.
Chair Furfaro: That is one of the recommendations, to stay
with the date of the 14th, which would be a Thursday and meets the six (6) day
requirement. JoAnn, you have the floor.
Ms. Yukimura: Sure, thank you. I agree with
Councilmember Rapozo that the selection and I think actually probably all of the
Councilmembers, that the selection of the seventh Councilmember should not turn
on one (1) issue. There are so many important issues facing this community and
what we are looking for is a much broader set of values, character, and knowledge
than one (1) issue. I was horrified that this process of choosing a successor to
Council Vice Chair Nakamura was going to be done in the context of Bill No. 2491,
Draft 2. On the other hand, I really want Bill No. 2491, Draft 2 to have its day in
court and have the possibility of addressing the issues. So, you take a deep breath
and say, "May everything turn out alright." But there is a lot to be said for the six
(6) of us who have been with this issue from the start finishing this and so there is
some wisdom and now actually some necessity because Councilmember Rapozo will
not be here for the 21St, to just go ahead on the 14th.
Chair Furfaro: Mr. Hooser.
Mr. Hooser: Just brief. I want to be very clear on my
position on this. The absolute best outcome from my perspective would be a 7:0 vote
to override the veto, the next would be a 6:0, but I am perfectly happy to accept a
5:1 vote for the veto override and thank you.
Chair Furfaro: Mr. Bynum, you have the floor.
Mr. Rapozo: So, the healing process has begun. Sorry. I
am sorry, Mr. Chair. He started it.
SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING 33 NOVEMBER 7, 2013
Chair Furfaro: It is okay. Gentlemen, we will give the floor
to Mr. Bynum.
Mr. Bynum: Somebody time me because I have not got a
clue what I am about to say.
Ms. Yukimura: Uh oh.
Chair Furfaro: Time him.
Mr. Bynum: A whole bunch of reporters have called me
since the Mayor's veto. I have only spoken with the Garden Island. I did not get
into a lot of details because I have been trying to process it and understand it. I
thought I would get a chance to make a statement today, but I think according to
our rules and agreement, that is not going to happen. So, I will probably release
something in writing in the next couple of days. But sometimes I get into trouble
here for just speaking what is in my heart and mind and I do some faux pas. But
let us be really clear about what is before us. First of all, I agree that the new
member coming in Bill No. 2491, Draft 2 should not be a litmus test for that
individual and it is a really uncomfortable circumstance of timing that we are all
faced with, needing to look very closely at our thoughts, our voice, our speech, our
ethics, and our values and to be cautious can careful. I know everyone at this table
is doing that. But seven (7) members brought Bill No. 2491, Draft 2 to conclusion.
The vote was 6:1, it was not 5:1. I am not convinced that — I have known Mel a long
time. I could still see him voting to override because the will of the people has been
expressed, the will of the Council has been expressed, and many of us have a history
here of saying, "Once the Council will is expressed, then we are on board," right?
So, I am not convinced that Mel will not be a vote. I am not convinced that, and I
think some of us have already put our intentions out. It would be no secret that I
intend to override and I will give those reasons separately. But the decision before
us is we are going to come up with a vote and it is six (6) people to vote if we
schedule this on the 14th and it looks like that is what is going to happen. I want
people to understand though, that that means the six (6) people at this table will
make that decisions and we do not know what the outcome is. If there is not five (5)
votes to override, that is it. The only way to address these concerns is to start all
over with a new Bill which I will certainly do, as I am sure other will. In this
argument is makes sense. Yes, should we put this new person through that? But
as Mr. Hooser said, every person on this list that I have seen that has put their
names out there are thoughtful individuals who can make a wise — and are people
who have paid attention to County issues. Certainly the folks that — and there is
quite a number on that list that I think would make outstanding Councilmembers.
Anyway, there is also the other side of this though, do we want all seven (7) sitting
members to have a voice in this? To have a responsibility for it? So, I am torn. If
this were a question, I would be going for the 21st unbalanced. But I just want to
make sure that everybody understands, that means five (5) people. If there are not
five (5) votes here, we have to start over. I would rather take the risk that whoever
is coming in will make a learning decision and maybe we need the full leadership
team on this. But I am telling you that will not be a litmus test. I have not asked
any individual what their vote would be and I will not because what we all agree is
this is really critical, but man, we have another one hundred percent (100%) of work
more than this. There are lots of other things that are critically important that are
coming up. So, thank you for letting me just ramble. It has also been my — I defer
to leadership unless there is a good reasons not to, a really strong reason not to that
SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING 34 NOVEMBER 7, 2013
includes the Mayor and the Chair and he has provide really good leadership during
this process. Thank you.
Chair Furfaro: Thank you, Mr. Bynum. At this point, I am
going to want pursue the 14th. I do want to say, for the communication, we need to
lay on the record and enter into our journal, what has come over to us from the
Mayor in the way of a veto. I guess that would first be a motion to receive. Am I
correct Clerk?
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: Yes. We have a motion and a second.
Chair Furfaro: Excuse me.
Ms. Yukimura: So, just a question for procedure. We will do
a motion to receive and then we will do a motion to lay on the table?
Chair Furfaro: I was going to take it exactly that way.
Ms. Yukimura: Okay. Thank you.
Chair Furfaro: Let me see if the Clerk — I mean, this is only
my second time around with a veto, Did we have the right?
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: Yes. We have a motion to receive and a
second on the Communication. Once that is disposed of, then we have the Bill on
page 2 to lay on the table.
Chair Furfaro: Thank you.
Ms. Yukimura: With no debate?
Chair Furfaro: No debate. Let us go back to the
communication first. If I could just ask you for the record, to read it one more time.
C 2013-363 Communication (10/31/2013) from the Mayor submitting his
veto of Bill No. 2491, Draft 2, Relating To Pesticides And Genetically Modified
Organisms.
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: We have a motion to receive and a second.
The motion to receive C 2013-363 for the record was then put, and
unanimously carried.
Chair Furfaro: Now, I would like to go to the Bill, (F), laid
on the table. Could you read that please?
Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: This is on page 2, Chair.
BILL TO LAY ON TABLE:
Pursuant to Section 4.03A of the Kaua`i County Charter, the Council must enter the
objections of the Mayor in the journal of the Council and "Lay the Veto on the
Table." The Council may, after five (5) and within thirty (30) days after the Bill has
been so returned, reconsider the vote upon the Bill.
SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING 35 NOVEMBER 7, 2013
This Special Council Meeting is only for the purpose of laving the veto on the table.
The Council will NOT be voting to override or sustain the Mayor's veto at this
meeting.
Any future Special Council Meeting to override or sustain the Mayor's veto will be
scheduled pursuant to Hawai`i Revised Statutes (HRS), Chapter 92.
Bill No. 2491, Draft 2 — A BILL FOR AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND THE
KAUAI COUNTY CODE 1987, AS AMENDED, BY ADDING A NEW ARTICLE 22
TO CHAPTER 22, RELATING TO PESTICIDES AND GENETICALLY MODIFIED
ORGANISMS (Mayoral Veto 10/31/2013): Mr. Hooser moved to lay the Mayoral
veto of Bill No. 2491, Draft 2 on the table, seconded by Ms. Yukimura, and
unanimously carried.
ADJOURNMENT.
There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 11:58 a.m.
Res•ec f ubmitted,
Aid
Alm ' . •UNTAIN-TANIGAWA
De, •ty County Clerk
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