Hawaii County Committee on Governmental Operations Nomination Hearing – Feb 17, 2026
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Hawaii County Committee on Governmental Operations Nomination Hearing – Feb 17, 2026
On February 17, 2026, the Committee on Governmental Operations and External Affairs met in the West Yfic Center Council Chambers in Kona, with Hilo chambers connected remotely. Acting Chair James Eustace presided. The committee reviewed and voted on two mayoral nominations: Dwayne T. Mukai to the Liquor Control Adjudication Board and Lokelani Brandt to the Public Access Open Space and Natural Resources Preservation (PONK) Commission. Both nominations advanced to the full council with favorable recommendations.
Consent Calendar
- None noted.
Public Comments & Testimony
- No testifiers appeared in person, at courtesy sites, in Hilo, or on Zoom for either agenda item, as confirmed by the clerk.
Discussion Items
- Nomination of Dwayne T. Mukai (Communication 731): Mayor's Executive Assistant Micah Alameda introduced Mr. Mukai, a Hilo native and graduate of Hilo High School (1974) and UH Manoa (BBA, 1978). Mukai is the owner of Mukai Investment Group, a longtime financial advisor, and has served on numerous boards including the Big Island Junior Golf Association, Hilo Daijingu, Hilo Hongwanji, and the Saddle Road Task Force. He previously served on the Liquor Control Adjudication Board as chairman. Councilmembers expressed support, citing his deep community involvement. Councilmember Kleinfelder disclosed that Mukai was his past financial advisor and may hold a small account for his child. Mukai confirmed he could attend all meetings.
- Nomination of Lokelani Brandt (Communication 732): Ms. Brandt, a native Hawaiian from Kaneohe, Oahu, has resided on Hawaii Island since 1993. She is a historic preservation professional with over 15 years of experience in archaeological and ethnographic work, particularly with native Hawaiian communities. Alameda highlighted her expertise in the Popo area (now Wailoa State Park) and her podcast appearance on Kaleo Kauluau (episode 3). Brandt expressed interest in serving District 3, which she noted has been underrepresented on PONK. She identified the work at Honapo as a standout achievement of the PONK program. Councilmembers discussed the commission's every-other-month meeting schedule and quorum challenges; Alameda confirmed efforts are underway to enable virtual participation. Brandt noted a potential conflict in May due to a conference in Minnesota.
Key Outcomes
- Communication 731 (Mukai nomination): Motion to close the file and forward with favorable recommendation to full council. Vote: 6 in favor (Councilmembers Kirkowitz, Kimball, Kagiwada, Kleinfelder, and others present; Inaba, Galimba, and Viegas absent).
- Communication 732 (Brandt nomination): Motion to close the file and forward with favorable recommendation to full council. Vote: 6 in favor (same composition).
- The meeting adjourned at 9:28 a.m. HST.
Meeting Transcript
Aloha, good morning. Welcome to the 28th session on the Committee on Governmental Operations and External Affairs. I am your presiding officer for today's meeting, James Eustace. We are here 901 in the West Yfic Center Council Chambers. Here in Kona, we are also joined by Councilmember O'Nishi. In our Hilo Chambers, we have Councilmember Kagiwata, Kirkowitz, Conley Lee Kleinfelder, and Kimball. With that, Mr. And we are absent of members Viegas, Inaba, and Galimba at this time. Mr. Klerk, if we could start with today's agenda, do we have any testifiers for this morning? Thank you, Acting Chair Houston. I can confirm we don't have any testifiers here for this committee in the corner chambers and I received word that we do not have any testifiers at our courtesy sites or in Hilo or on Zoom. But I'll just ask one more time. There's anybody here to testify on other either communication 731 or 732. If not, acting chair, would you like me to read in communication 731? Thank you, Mr. Clerk. Please go ahead. Communication is 73971, nomination of Dwayne T. Mukai to the Liquor Control Adjudication Board from Mayor Sikimo Alameda, dated January 29, 2026, requesting the council's review and confirmation. Members, I welcome a motion. Chair motion to close file on communication 731 and for the nomination of Dwayne Mukai to Liquor Control Adjudication Board to the Council with a favorable recommendation. Second. We have a motion and a second to to close file and for communication 731 to council with a favorable recommendation, which would nominate Dwayne Mukai to the Liquor Control Adjudication Board with a favorable recommendation. Motion made by Councilmember Kirkowitz. Second, Councilmember Kimball. At this time, I'll welcome uh Office of Mayors Liaison, Mr. Alameda to introduce our candidate here. Thank you, Mr. Alameda. Aloha and good morning, Council members. Mahalo Acting Chair Houstis. My name is Micah Alameda, Executive Assistant, Office of the Mayor. I have the pleasure to introduce communication 731, nominating Dwayne T. Mukai to the Liquor Control Adjudication Board. If confirmed, Mr. Mukai will serve a term to expire on December 31, 2030. Born and raised in Hilo, Mr. Mukai is no stranger to service. He's a proud graduate of 1974, Hilo High School. Have to put that out there. He earned his BBA in management from the University of Hawaiiamanoa in 1978. From then he has always stepped into areas where help was needed. He is the owner of Mukai Investment Group. He has been a financial advisor for as long as I have known of him. Also one key element to uh Mr. Mukai's professional service is his uh service of Koliana. Yeah, from the last 15 years of being a professional uh in Hilo. I have seen Mr. Mukai in so many different spaces, not just serving on uh boards.
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