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Record of Proceedings

Government Relations, Ethics and Transparency Committee Meeting - August 4, 2026

County Council & Committees — Tuesday, August 4, 2026
BodyMaui County, Hawaii
SessionCounty Council & Committees
DateTuesday, August 4, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 51:57

Original source
Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it
3:28

Well, the government relations ethics and transparency committee meeting of August fourth, twenty twenty-six come to order.

3:34

It is one thirty-three PM.

3:37

I'm your chair Colin Button.

3:39

Members, in accordance with the Sunshine Law, please identify by name who, if anyone is in the wrong vehicle or works based with you today.

4:16

So maybe the mic a little closer might help us.

5:00

Was that louding off stage?

5:04

Thank you.

5:05

Uh Councilmember Canny Rollins Fernandez.

5:10

That's where I saw her login.

5:11

Okay.

5:12

We'll have her excuse me.

5:13

In a public space.

5:16

Alohawina laughed here.

5:17

I'm in a public space making my way to the county building.

5:20

Uh there are no testifiers at the Mulkai District Office.

5:23

Mahalo.

5:24

Okay.

5:24

Hello, in a law.

5:26

We'll see you soon.

5:27

Councilmember Shane Sensi is excused.

5:30

Councilmember Yuki Leh Sudimora.

5:33

I am in my private meeting space and there's nobody here with me.

5:36

Looking forward to an interesting meeting.

5:40

Thank you.

5:41

Okay, so from Corporation Council, we have with us Deputy Corporation Council, Bill Barry.

5:49

Good afternoon.

5:50

Good afternoon, Council members.

5:52

We have Deputy Corporation Council Pasqual.

5:55

Good afternoon.

5:56

Good afternoon.

5:57

We have with us Deputy Corporation Council Colby for his fourth final meeting with this committee.

6:03

Good afternoon.

6:04

Good afternoon.

6:06

And do you have anybody else from Operation Council?

6:10

Hope H O K E.

6:12

Thank you.

6:13

Good afternoon.

6:15

Okay.

6:15

We also have with us here.

6:17

Um the engineering division chief Kyle Ginoza from Public Works.

6:22

Good afternoon.

6:23

Thank you.

6:24

And we will have with us at some point Deputy Chief of Police, Wade Maeda.

6:31

We also have with us our great committee staff.

6:33

Good afternoon, everybody.

6:35

Please see the last page of the agenda for information on meeting connectivity.

6:40

Members, we have before us resolution 26128, which would authorize settlement for the claim filed on November 19, 2024, alleging that street lights owned by Hawaiian Electric Company, Inc.

6:52

and Maui Electric Company Limited and operated on the county's behalf are a threat to the survival and recovery of three critically imperiled seabirds protected under the Federal Endangered Species Act.

7:04

Um take public testimony.

7:08

Can I please receive opening comments from Deputy Corporation Council Bill Barry and uh engineering division chief uh Guino?

7:18

Uh thank you, Chair.

7:20

I will keep it brief since we have been uh here before to discuss this case with you.

7:25

I'm sure everybody's familiar with it.

7:27

So what I'll do is just give you a quick status.

7:30

Um we are through discovery uh in the case.

7:35

It has been completed.

7:37

Uh expert deadlines have been completed.

7:40

We've been through some motions practice in the litigation.

7:43

Both parties sought to have the case uh decided summarily in their favor, and the judge denied both parties' motions and has had set the case for trial.

7:56

Uh, we were scheduled to go to trial on June 1st.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Pending Litigation█████████████████████████████████████████████45%
Procedural████████████████████████████████32%
Public Engagement█████████████13%
Public Safety███████7%
Legal Counsel███3%
Summary of Proceedings

Government Relations, Ethics and Transparency Committee Meeting - August 4, 2026

The Government Relations, Ethics and Transparency Committee of Maui County met on August 4, 2026 from 1:33 PM to 4:53 PM under Chair Colin Button. The committee addressed three settlement resolutions involving litigation against the county, each requiring executive session consultations with legal counsel. All three resolutions were recommended for adoption after closed-door discussions.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • One member of the public, Jeffrey Long (testifying via phone, last four digits 4945), testified on all three agenda items. He expressed general disappointment with government transparency and procedure, particularly regarding the lack of visual/audio cues during executive session recesses. On the seabird settlement (Resolution 26-128), Mr. Long stated he was on the side of the C-Bird (seabird) and opposed quick killing of CBOs. On the Charlotte Martin pedestrian incident (Resolution 26-81), he leaned in favor of the plaintiff, citing distrust of government. On the bicycle incident (Resolution 26-122), he questioned whether riding a bicycle on the sidewalk was prohibited and suggested paying the plaintiff while urging more caution by county drivers.

Discussion Items

Resolution 26-128 – Seabird Threat Claim Settlement

  • Deputy Corporation Counsel Bill Barry provided an update: the case was filed November 19, 2024 alleging that street lights owned by Hawaiian Electric and operated on behalf of the county threaten three endangered seabird species under the Federal Endangered Species Act. Discovery and expert deadlines have passed, both parties’ summary judgment motions were denied, and trial was originally set for June 1, 2026 but continued to February–April 2027. Settlement discussions are ongoing with plaintiffs and co-defendant HECO.
  • Councilmember Cook asked about the timeline and who pays for experts; Barry replied each party pays its own experts; discovery and motions took most of 2025-2026.
  • The committee moved into executive session to discuss settlement strategy and case strengths/weaknesses.

Resolution 26-81 – Charlotte Martin v. County of Maui (Pedestrian Incident)

  • Deputy Corporation Counsel Glenn Pasqual explained: the lawsuit arose from a February 5, 2023 incident at Kipani White Park where MPD Officer Mitchell Navarro, driving a marked police SUV, struck pedestrian Charlotte Martin. Martin suffered crushed foot/ankle injuries and a torn meniscus requiring surgery. Trial was initially set for June 8, 2026, but after a settlement conference on April 23, 2026, the judge ordered mediation, now scheduled for August 10, 2026. Trial has been continued to June 21, 2027.
  • Councilmember Falton asked for details from the police report. Pasqual clarified the officer was rolling slowly into the park, looking right to avoid a parked car, when Martin stepped backward to take a photo of two dogs; the collision involved the heel of her foot. No police report was provided to the committee.
  • The committee moved into executive session to discuss case assessment, damages, and settlement.

Resolution 26-122 – Tran v. County of Maui (Bicycle Incident)

  • Deputy Corporation Counsel Pasqual described: on September 19, 2022, parks employee Lane Bellin, while driving a county vehicle and showing a new employee facilities, was turning right onto Wailea Alanui Drive from Wailea Beach Access Road. Plaintiff Nina Tran was riding a hotel bicycle on the sidewalk against traffic (left side). Bellin looked left, saw no traffic, and accelerated, colliding with Tran, who suffered left ankle and leg injuries with scarring. Trial is set for September 14, 2026, with a settlement conference before Judge Drewer on August 6, 2026.
  • Councilmember Falton asked if Bellin was sued in her personal capacity; Pasqual confirmed she was being sued individually but would discuss further in executive session.
  • The committee moved into executive session to discuss settlement efforts, damages, and case strengths/weaknesses.

Key Outcomes

  • Resolution 26-128: Motion to recommend adoption (including non-substantive revisions) passed 7-0-1 (Councilmember Sensi excused).
  • Resolution 26-81: Motion to recommend adoption passed 7-0-2 (Councilmembers Rollins Fernandez and Sensi excused from the vote).
  • Resolution 26-122: Motion to recommend adoption passed 7-0-2 (Councilmembers Sukimura and Sensi excused).
  • All three resolutions authorize settlements under terms discussed in executive session, subject to full council approval.

Meeting Transcript

Well, the government relations ethics and transparency committee meeting of August fourth, twenty twenty-six come to order. It is one thirty-three PM. I'm your chair Colin Button. Members, in accordance with the Sunshine Law, please identify by name who, if anyone is in the wrong vehicle or works based with you today. So maybe the mic a little closer might help us. Was that louding off stage? Thank you. Uh Councilmember Canny Rollins Fernandez. That's where I saw her login. Okay. We'll have her excuse me. In a public space. Alohawina laughed here. I'm in a public space making my way to the county building. Uh there are no testifiers at the Mulkai District Office. Mahalo. Okay. Hello, in a law. We'll see you soon. Councilmember Shane Sensi is excused. Councilmember Yuki Leh Sudimora. I am in my private meeting space and there's nobody here with me. Looking forward to an interesting meeting. Thank you. Okay, so from Corporation Council, we have with us Deputy Corporation Council, Bill Barry. Good afternoon. Good afternoon, Council members. We have Deputy Corporation Council Pasqual. Good afternoon. Good afternoon. We have with us Deputy Corporation Council Colby for his fourth final meeting with this committee. Good afternoon. Good afternoon. And do you have anybody else from Operation Council? Hope H O K E. Thank you. Good afternoon. Okay. We also have with us here. Um the engineering division chief Kyle Ginoza from Public Works. Good afternoon. Thank you. And we will have with us at some point Deputy Chief of Police, Wade Maeda. We also have with us our great committee staff. Good afternoon, everybody. Please see the last page of the agenda for information on meeting connectivity. Members, we have before us resolution 26128, which would authorize settlement for the claim filed on November 19, 2024, alleging that street lights owned by Hawaiian Electric Company, Inc. and Maui Electric Company Limited and operated on the county's behalf are a threat to the survival and recovery of three critically imperiled seabirds protected under the Federal Endangered Species Act. Um take public testimony. Can I please receive opening comments from Deputy Corporation Council Bill Barry and uh engineering division chief uh Guino?

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