Kaua`i Public Record

County Council Chairs support bill to strip OIP of power

more http://starbulletin.com/print/2005.php?fr=/2006/01/28/news/story05.html

County deeds done in dark

{The following was submitted to the Garden Island forum)

Mahalo for the editorial, "County letting less Sunshine in" (TGI, In Our Voices, , A4, 12-5-2006). The editorial notes the county is becoming more secretive and attempting to neuter the Office of Information Practices (OIP) by taking the OIP to court. Evidently, the Office of the County Attorney is capable of advising the Kauai County Council not to comply with the OIP, but is apparently incapable of defending that position in court. Instead, the Kauai County Council approved spending public money hiring an outside attorney, David Minkin, who asserts, "This is the first time anyone has challenged the OIP in court."

Mr. Minkin's assertion is incorrect. In July 2005 OIP announced the First Circuit Court granted summary judgment to 'Olelo in a lawsuit asserting that Public, Education, and Government (PEG) access providers are not subject to state open records law. OIP is currently appealing this ruling, but according to OIP the current ruling applies to all PEG providers in the state, including Ho`ike, Kauai's PEG provider. So, as it now stands public access provider records are not public records despite the fact that these PEGS were created by the state, are funded with state mandated franchise fees, and the state appoints the board majority of these PEGs.

I find it more than ironic that `Olelo as the lead PEG provider has already spent around $100,000 of government mandated public monies to deny the public access to PEG records. Now our County Council is spending even more public money to hire an outside attorney who incorrectly believes, "This is the first time anyone has challenged the OIP in court." A hundred thousand dollars here and a hundred thousand dollars there can really hurt the public pocket.

As your editorial correctly notes this Kauai County Council court action is, "something the legislature hoped to avoid so that agencies were not suing agencies," but it is obvious the current Kauai County Council will spend any amount of the public's money necessary to keep their actions secret from the public.

Perhaps in the upcoming election voters can replace these secretive council members, unless of course the County of Kauai sues itself to negate the will of the people as they are currently doing to prevent enacting the voter approved Ohana Amendment. I'm sure the current council members that approved this court action would much prefer to appoint themselves, and make decisions for us in secret. Their lack of transparency, oversight, and accountability is a fast-track to corn-pone tyranny. As Federal Circuit Court Judge Damon Keith remarked, "Democracy dies behind closed doors." Keep democracy alive and vote only for candidates who insist on transparency, oversight, and accountability.

Moving forward with dragging tails to erase the past

What follows was sent to The Garden Island newspaper Nov 6, but to date remains unpublished.

Time to move forward? Now hold the media watchdogs just a minute. It is always prudent to look at where you have been and where you are before moving forward, or you might not like where you wind up. The Garden Island's mea culpa (my bad) [Time to move forward, A5, GI, 11-01-2005] to KIUC was one of the most embarrassing public self-criticism sessions I have witnessed.

Money doesn't talk it swears, and after the KIUC people talked to TGI people, the newspaper pulled back quicker than a slug's antenna in a sea spray. Conditions of employment for the investigative journalist, Andy Gross, doing the stories became problematic. Professional ethics were the reporter's guide and walking papers rolled into one. Will the "lost Andy Gross article" ever be published?

"What prompted us to ask these questions to begin with" is answered in the editorial itself ,with: "... our goal is to get KIUC leaders to operate fully in the sunshine, in the open...." Really! Is this advocacy journalism run amok, or just doing your job of informing the community about events impacting their lives? I believe they call this "news".

Before moving forward do your readers a service and let them relive those wonderful days of yesteryear by republishing from your own archives a historical look back of KIUC. Such a historical stroll will show KIUC was born in the dark; a pale albino allergic to sunshine and openness. Citizens were rounded up, shanghaied and automatically "memberfied" through a little known legal fiction called estopple.

The KIUC educational outreach never answered the question "how did I automatically become a member" with "you were estoppled" (unless you sue us now you cannot sue later). Withholding this information doesn't seem cooperative.

Then there was the initial price inflated by ersatz buyers that evaporated when the deal went south. There was the struggle over county power authority versus coop model of ownership; the Mayor's committee; secret unrecorded meetings; council members endorsements; the military; the nitpickers; KIUC ballot irregularities; koa paddle gifts, etc, etc.

All these elements can bring the dark history of KIUC to life for your readers. How did we get in this mess? Who brought us here? Before we move forward please help your readership relive the past to give context and meaning to ongoing events by running a historical perspective from the archives of the Garden Island Newspaper.

Citizen's Intervenor Brief - Ohana Kaua`i Charter Amendment

Read the Citizen's Intervenor Brief - Ohana Kaua`i Charter Amendment

Aloha from the trenches of Hawaii's free speech movement

Aloha from the trenches of Hawaii's free speech movement:

for context:  http://hpam.hi.net/saveaccess/ and http://saveakaku.org/

Time Warner loves State of Hawaii
Regulatory paradise for broadband profiteers!

http://www.mauinews.com/story.aspx?id=12088

The Maui News
Sunday, September 04, 2005


DCCA chief: 'Dysfunction' at Akaku may hurt services

By ILIMA LOOMIS, Staff Writer

WAILUKU - DCCA Director Mark Recktenwald said he'll give the Akaku board a last chance to "heal itself" but is considering all his options for taking action in the board's dispute, including removing some or all board members.

"We're deeply concerned by the situation at Akaku," Recktenwald said, adding that he feared the board's "instability" and "dysfunction" would affect the services the station provides to the public.

Recktenwald was referring to actions of the board last month, in which a group of board members took control by contending that three opposing directors hadn't been properly appointed and were not valid members.

Board Vice Chairman Jay April said he hoped Recktenwald would stay out of the dispute, since he declined to get involved when April appealed for intervention on an earlier disagreement over allocation of public access funding.

"Hopefully the director will remain consistent in his desire to let us resolve our own problems here on Maui," April said.

The board voted earlier this year to divert 25 percent of cable-access fee revenue to public schools. But some board members were angered when Chairman Myles Inokuma approved changes to the agreement and then signed it without getting their final approval. Changes included removing private and charter schools from the education groups receiving funds.

April and some other board members also thought Inokuma was quashing discussion of the issue by canceling meetings and not returning their phone calls.

April wrote to Recktenwald in May, charging that Inokuma had exceeded his authority. But the DCCA director responded that he would not interfere with the actions of an "independent organization."

April said last week that he thought the situation at Akaku was getting "back to normal."

"As far as I'm concerned, there's no debate over who's in charge of Akaku," he said.

The board appointed a panel made up of former State Rep. Sol Kaho'ohalahala, Upcountry attorney Bonnie McFadden and attorney Charlie Fox to investigate Inokuma for his actions as chairman and his involvement in a fight.

April's group of seven board members took control of the board at a meeting on Aug. 26 with a finding that the appointments of three board members supporting Inokuma violated Akaku's bylaws.

The bylaws call for new board members to be recommended by a nominating committee, with the approval of the full board of directors. The head of the DCCA has authority to appoint whomever he wants, but if he chooses someone not recommended by the board, he's required to consult with the board first. Board members also have to be sworn in at the station's annual general membership meeting.

Lynne Woods, Charlie Jencks and Sadao Yanagi were nominated without the input of the committee or the board, and they took their seats before the annual meeting. April's group contended that they shouldn't have the right to vote, and that their votes at past meetings were invalid.

Claiming a majority, April's group went on to remove Inokuma as chairman, order the investigation of Inokuma's actions, and invalidate the education agreement signed by Inokuma. They also called for ousted Akaku President Sean McLaughlin to be reinstated, although McLaughlin last week declined the offer.

Inokuma and his faction walked out of the meeting in protest, drawing a chorus of jeers from Akaku producers and supporters gathered outside.

"It's just a little disheartening to be characterized as a dissident faction when in fact the seven members who stayed at the meeting the other night were just trying to uphold the bylaws of the organization," April said.

Inokuma did not attend follow up meetings last week, but his supporters - board members Sharon Courter, Sarajean Tokunaga, Flo Wiger, Jencks and Yanagi - arrived at one meeting Wednesday with an escort of five police officers who were not in uniform.

Although Yanagi and Jencks argued that they should be recognized as board members, they sat to the side at that meeting.

Reading from a letter signed by all the members of the faction, Wiger said the group had been subject to "threats, harassment and intimidation" both at the Aug. 26 meeting and afterward.

"While we recognize the emotion and intensity of the issues involving Akaku, certain board members and their supporters overstepped the bounds of decency and decorum with such attacks," she said.

Wiger said her group regards Yanagi as a "full-fledged voting member" of the board and "disapprove and reject" the actions taken at the Aug. 26 meeting.

She also accused opposition members of twisting the board's bylaws and rules of order to accomplish their goals.

The group walked out together after Wiger read the statement.

Recktenwald acknowledged that he had previously avoided getting involved in what he saw as Akaku's internal affairs. He said he did not interfere with the dispute over the education agreement because he felt a majority of the board had voted to approve it, and that Inokuma did not need further approval.

But he said the board's recent action was more of a concern because it challenged his power to appoint members to the board, which he called an important part of his oversight of Akaku and its use of public funds. He was also concerned about the board's rejection of the education agreement because he thought educational funding was an important part of the cable-access program.

"There comes a point at which the state of affairs can degenerate to a point that the public isn't getting what it's paying for in terms of services," he said.

Recktenwald said he felt there was nothing irregular about his appointments of Yanagi, Jencks and Woods. He believed they were suggested by Maui Community College and the Department of Education, a privilege established in the disputed funding agreement.

Recktenwald said he did not know the process by which the nominations were made on Maui, but he said he received the recommendation in a letter from the board chairman, the same way nominees were forwarded in the past.

"In our view, they were legitimate appointments," Recktenwald said.

Inokuma was not available to discuss his position and did not return phone calls to The Maui News.

The DCCA regulates cable TV providers and administers the federal "PEG" program, which designates cable channels and fees paid by cable subscribers for public access, educational and government programming. Akaku has the state contract to manage the funds and operate the program on Maui. It received about $700,000 in cable fees in 2004.

While Recktenwald said he doesn't have control over the day-to-day operations of Akaku, he does have authority over the contract, including the right to appoint and remove board members.

"At this point I'm looking at all our options," he said.

But he said he hoped the Akaku board could resolve its own differences.

"I guess I'd like to give members of the board one more opportunity to determine if there's any middle ground remaining," he said.

Recktenwald said DCCA had not responded specifically to an incident last month in which Inokuma was involved in a physical fight outside Akaku studios with Board Member DeGray Vanderbilt.

There are differing accounts of who started the fight, but the men grappled on the ground for several minutes and police were called.

Recktenwald said the incident would be "one more factor that we'll be looking at as part of our overall review."

From the beginning, Akaku loyalists have said the

dispute was driven by business and development interests led by developer Everett Dowling, who reputedly were upset with McLaughlin's outspoken views and the station's broadcast of programming that is critical of development on Maui.

Akaku supporters pointed to actions by Dowling: He backed state bills that would have reallocated two-thirds of Akaku's funding to schools and government; his attorney drafted the disputed education agreement; he accepted a seat on the board's finance committee.

Dowling has said repeatedly that he became involved with the station as an advocate of education working to get a fair share of PEG funds for school programming. He's pointed to his other work for schools, including his service on the University of Hawaii Board of Regents and his company's development of public school campuses.

Maui Community College and the Department of Education on Maui have already received the first payment of a little more than $100,000 each from Akaku. That's in addition to a one-time payment of $132,000 to MCC, to reimburse the college for expenditures made to its cable TV program in anticipation of receiving funds from Akaku.

MCC's planned uses for the money include distance-learning programs, an upgrade of the campus media center, and campus-produced shows like an oral history series, special events and a culinary school healthy-eating program, said MCC Chancellor Clyde Sakamoto.

Maui public schools will use their funding to create educational programs for remote teaching that will be broadcast statewide, said Geriann Hong, director of teleschool for the Department of Education.

But some Akaku board members and supporters thought the dispute was about politics more than education. April noted that educational groups had already received close to $400,000 in grants from Akaku.

"Hopefully people can calm down, step back and realize it's not about money anymore," he said.

Board Member Danny Agsalog said the argument over education was just a "lame excuse" for an effort to stack the board so McLaughlin could be fired.

Agsalog, who took a job in Honolulu last year, said Inokuma originally asked him to stay on the board. But when it became clear that Agsalog wasn't supporting him, Inokuma asked him to resign.

Agsalog said he still considers himself a Maui resident; he is registered to vote, receives his mail and keeps his car registered on Maui.

"I'm not giving up my seat until it stabilizes a little bit," he said.

As with others on his side, Agsalog said he was fighting to preserve Akaku as a venue for free speech. He noted that the redistribution of funds to public schools and Maui Community College had already cut services provided by the station, leading to staff layoffs and reduced hours.

"That's the only medium we have that's available to the community," he said.

Kahu Charlie Maxwell, who has produced a talk show on Akaku in the past and remains involved with the station, said the public should pay attention to the dispute because free speech is at stake.

"The main fact is that Akaku, I believe, has got to be free - free of any kind of influence and interference," he said.

Mayor Alan Arakawa, whose criticisms of McLaughlin were cited by board members calling for his ouster, also said Akaku has been "serving the public well" and should be kept as a venue for free speech.

"I'm not going to say I like everything they put on the air, but then again I'll defend the right to have freedom of information. That's something I believe very strongly," he said.

Akaku staff raised concerns last month after board member Lynne Woods, while speaking to them about the station's change in leadership, suggested that Akaku change its nonprofit status to that of a 501(C)6 organization, which would make it free to lobby and make political endorsements. April confirmed that he heard Woods make the remarks.

Woods did not respond to a request for comment.

Recktenwald said that as far as he knew, Dowling's involvement was minimal. He acknowledged that he heard from Dowling last week, but he said it was the first time he'd spoken with the developer.

"Mr. Dowling and others have called to express concern to me," he said. "I don't give Mr. Dowling's views any more or less weight than I give to any other member of the public."

Ilima Loomis can be reached at iloomis@mauinews.com.

Copyright © 2005 The Maui News.


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The Pandering Season is upon us

A reader wrote to the forum (Amazed, GI, A4, 8-18-05) that they were "dumbstruck" at the county council's recent keen interest in run-a-way development.

Don't be dumbstruck. There is a simple explanation. It's the beginning of the pandering season. It is the soft opening of the political season signaled by an increased number of endless discussions at taxpayer expense leading to the passing of non-binding resolutions.

Non-binding resolutions are typically apple pie issues about which the council will not, or cannot do anything about except express their "concerns." They are in effect meaningless exercises with no action required. Some call it chin music, but I don't like the genre.

Public pandering expressing concern from a grab bag of self-selected issues gains positive media attention for politicians facing an upcoming election, while avoiding taking action. Given that August is "National Chicken Month" I am surprised a non-binding resolution honoring the Hawaiian moa has not been forthcoming from this council.

The purpose of non-binding resolutions are to draw attention away from the county council's hostile actions against the will of the people. Examples include suing themselves (with our money) to avoid implementing the voter approved charter amendment, and suing the State (with our money) to prevent disclosure of public records.

The writer, the Garden Island, and the County Council itself are under the delusion that council members are our "leaders", by the constant and perhaps unconscious usage of that term to describe our "elected representatives". Hopefully voters will not be dumbstruck, but keep their eyes on the prize during the upcoming election. Perhaps elected representatives serving the people can replace those mis-leaders now wasting taxpayer money on non-binding resolutions to propagandize the electorate.

ALLEGED HOSTILE TAKEOVER OF AKAKU

Aloha Folks - Notable new site developed by independent producers and media activists for Maui County, State of Hawai'i -

Citizens to Save Akaku http://www.saveakaku.org

County of Kauai denies State Office of Information Practices access to executive session minutes

The County of Kauai has (to date) refused to provide the executive session minutes requested by Ray Chuan and Walter Lewis to them. The County of Kauai (to date) has also refused to provide these documents to OIP. OIP has given the County until Aug 18, Thursday by 4:30 pm to provide all the executive session minutes to the requesters or provide them to OIP for an in camera review.

Read the entire facsimile to County Clerk Peter Nakamura, and County Attorney Lani Nakamura

"Orders from Upstairs" confuses Ho`ike board

Confusion reigned at the Ho`ike resulting in a motion to defer action at the July 28, 2005 Ho`ike Board of directors meeting. The confusion simple stated was if the bylaw modification was "recommended" or "mandated" by the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs (DCCA). Managing Director J. S. Robertson insisted it was "required" by DCCA Director Mark Recktenwald, other board members seemed uncertain.

Listen to a podcast of the Ho`ike board discussion on this bylaw amendment click on the following URL:

http://www.kauai.net/bm/

Regardless of whether the election was "suggested" or "mandated by the Director of DCCA, an election had already occurred, and Robertson described the after-the-fact bylaw amendment as "housekeeping"

The election for a producer position on the board resulted in a lawsuit initiated by `Olelo the PEG provider on Oahu

In that case a recent court ruling from First Circuit Court Judge Victoria Marks ruled that Public, Education, and Government Access organizations (PEGs) were not agents of the state, and therefore not compelled to follow State Sunshine (HRS92) and Open Records Laws (HRS92F)

In part the order found "There is no Government control over `Olelo's activities."

Mananging Director Robertson was partly responsible for the confusion. Although Robertson cited the Court Ruling and concluded that, "Ho`ike was not a state agency" he failed to inform the Ho`ike board that OIP had appealed the ruling http://hpam.hi.net/OLELOvOIP/#appeal.

The Ho`ike board's confusion (given the court's finding) was how the DCCA could mandate the board of a private non-profit corporation hold an election if indeed it was not a state agency and "there is no Government control." `Olelo took the State Office of Information Practices (OIP) to court after OIP opined that under State Open Records laws `Olelo (and Ho`ike) were required to disclose the phone numbers and residential addresses of eligible voters to candidates running for the elected director position. Both `Olelo and Ho`ike refused

The candidates argued they were entitled to the phone numbers, and residential addresses because the information was "Required for Public Disclosure." by both `Olelo and Ho`ike) on the videotape submission forms required to broadcast a program on public access.

Candidates wanted the information to contact eligible voters to solicit their votes. Candidates argued that being denied access to eligible voters while PEG board members and personnel had exclusive access to voter contact information created the possibility of election manipulation by the PEGs. Candidates feared PEGs could use such information to covertly campaign for favored candidates

Candidates also argued that the inability to contact eligible voters made the election a farce, because the PEGs could skew the election results with sole access to such information to "PEG favored candidates" and their was no way of proving otherwise. Both `Olelo and Ho`ike deny such allegations and as the candidates feared the plausible denibility" makes election manipulation impossible to prove

Regardless of whether the elected director's position and the election to fill it is "suggested" or "mandated" by DCCA it appears to have a chilling effect on the board actions of what the court has ruled is a private non-profit corporation

Further adding to the confusion the proposed bylaw amendment gives the Director of DCCA the power to remove the elected director. Why a board of a private non-profit corporation would propose a bylaw modification that gives a government official the power to remove one of it's directors is the unanswered question that creates doubts about how independent from Government control PEGs really are. This is especially true since the Director of DCCA also has the power to appoint and remove the majority of board members which the director appoints.

Listen to a podcast of the Ho`ike board discussion on this bylaw amendment click on the following URL:

http://www.kauai.net/bm/

Below is the proposed bylaw amendment deferred by the Ho`ike board.

--- begin proposed bylaw amendment ---

ARTICLE VI. DIRECTOR

Sec. 6.2 Number of Directors:

The number of authorized Directors of the Board of the corporation shall be NINE (9). The Director of the DCCA shall appoint six (6) Directors, two (2) Directors shall be appointed by the Cable Operator and one (1) shall be elected in accordance with Sec. 6.9c.

--- begin proposed bylaw amendment ---

Sec. 6.9c Elected Director:

The Board shall authorize the Corporation to administer an election among the Corporation's public, educational, and government users to fill one (1) and only one position, which position was formerly held by an appointee of the Director of the DCCA (the "Elected Director"). Only one (1) Elected Director may sit on the Board at any given time

The election for the Elected Director shall be completed and the results of the election forwarded to the Board within a reasonable time prior to the Board's first meeting of the calendar year. The Elected Director's term shall be set in accordance with Sec. 6.8

If at any time during the first year of the Elected Director's term the Elected Director terminates the position, or is removed for cause pursuant to Sec. 6.10, the vacancy shall be filled by the individual who has received the first, second, or third highest vote total in the original election, in descending order, until the vacancy is filled, provided that if for any reason the vacancy is not filled by one of these three individuals, the vacancy shall be filled in the manner prescribed for filling such a vacancy after the first year of the term of the Elected Director

If at any time after the first year of the term the Elected Director terminates the position or is removed for cause pursuant to Sec. 6.10, the Board shall direct the Corporation to conduct an election to fill the position, provided that if the vacancy occurs during the final six (6) months of the Elected Director's term, the Board may at its discretion allow the position to remain vacant pending completion of the term

Sec. 6.10 Resignation or Removal

The Director of the DCCA may remove at any time, with cause, any member of the Board that he/she has appointed or the Elected Director.

--- end of proposed bylaw amendment ---

The 600 pound gorilla in the room and the unanswered question is, "Why would a private non-profit corporation, that is not a state agency, grant a state agency (the DCCA) the power to appoint, remove, and mandate their election processes for a board seat?

Listen to a podcast of the Ho`ike board discussion on this bylaw amendment click on the following URL:

http://www.kauai.net/bm/

Ho`ike's secret plans to compete with private sector and reduce public's access services

For the Record -Ed Coll

Ho`ike the Public, Education, and Government (PEG) access entity for the County of Kauai submitted a "Strategic Plan For Self-Sufficiency 2005-2010" (see the digitized document following this analysis) to the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs (DCCA). It is noteworthy that this plan, although a public record, is not published on Ho`ike's website, and Ho`ike has made no effort to inform the public. For all intents and purposes this has been a "secret plan" until now.

Below is an email request, and Hoike's response for the "Ho`ike Self Sufficiency Plan" from back in Aug 2003

--- begin emails ---

Date: Fri, 15 Aug 2003 15:47:52 -070
From: Ed Coll
To: J Robertson <jrobertson@hoike.org>
Cc: OIP <oip@state.hi.us>, DCCA <cabletv@dcca.state.hi.us>
Subject: Request to examine Hoike "Self Sufficency Plan"

J,
This is a request to examine Ho`ike;'s Self Sufficiency Plan that was requested by the DCCA.
Mahalo in Advance for your Prompt attention to this matter.

Ed Coll

---------------------------------------------------------------

And this is Ho`ike Managing Director J Robertson's Sept 5, 2003 response (Item 44)

5 Sep 2003 13:57:06 -10
From: J Robertson <jrobertson@hoike.org>
To: Ed Coll
Subject: request for documents

Mr. Coll,

While on vacation I received a number of email requests for records or documents from Ho'ike. I would like to reply to those requests below.

1. Copy of TeleDemocracy program.
A. Ho'ike did not archive the program and does not have a copy available.

2. DCCA program airing
A. The program did air. There was a playback malfunction at the playback center was resolved as soon as a technician could attend to it.

3. Videotape submission form for the DCCA public hearing
A. Ho'ike produced and aired the program. As managers of the facilty the submission form you referenced is not required. There is no form to review.

4. Copy of the Self-Sufficiency Plan.
A. The plan is a current work in progress and not available for public distribution. While the Director of the DCCA is in the process of developing a new Statewide Plan the self-sufficiency issues cannot be fully addressed. Once the direction is determined Ho'ike will have a plan you will be able to review.

Again, thank you for your continued interest in Ho'ike.

J Robertson

managing director

------end emails -----

But the DCCA Statewide plan for PEGs provided little help and was an excuse to hide the plans from the public claiming it was a "work in progress," and it was Ho`ike that asked DCCA if they could delay the submission of the "Ho`ike Strategic Plan for Self Sufficiency" claiming "the self sufficiency issue could not be fully addressed" without it. This delaying tactic was a ruse to keep the public in the dark so they could not provide input. When the "DCCA Final Plan" was released (Jan 2004) it contained only a brief mention of self sufficiency simply stating:

"DCCA encourages the PEGs to identify and pursue additional funding from other sources, such as through grants that are consistent with the overall PEG mission."

There was nothing to be learned from the plan that justified the two-year delay in making this document public, and as we shall see the Ho`ike Plan wanders far afield of the &Primeoverall PEG Mission&Prime. The DCCA Final Plan says nothing about competing with the private sector to provide non-access related services for a fee.

Though Hoike's Strategic Plan for Self-Sufficiency was only released publicly in February  2005, requests to see it were made in 2003 and again in May, 2005. 

The plan is intended to achieve self sufficiency should a loss in state mandated cable subscriber monies occur. Ho`ike's 18 point plan intends to:

• ask for donations
• compete with the private sector
• reduce services to the community

Competing with the private sector:

Ho`ikes plan to compete with the private sector by engaging in "any number" of the following "fee for service" activities:

• compete with video producers on the island by providing video production services for non-access purposes.
• compete with equipment rental companies by renting equipment (video projectors, etc.) for non access purposes.
• compete with hotels and rent space for conferences, meetings, etc. for non-access purposes.
• compete with captioning services by providing off line captioning for non-access purposes.
• compete with media duplication houses by offering duplication services for non-access purposes
• compete with corporate consultants and curriculum designers by producing training videos for non-access purposes.
• Compete with video producers by producing political spots for candidates for non-access purposes

Reduce services to the community:

While using state mandated cable subscriber monies to undercut and compete with the private sector Ho`ike also plans to decrease services and hours of operation, and increase user fees for training, education, and workshops.

Begging for dollars:

While competing with the private sector (non-access purpose), decreasing public services, and increasing user fees, Ho`ike will also be soliciting by:

• aggressively seek grant and foundation money
• allow corporate underwriting of programming
• allow corporate sponsorship of programs
• seek private donations
• conduct a telethon

Good for Ho`iki?-- but does not support the Ho'ike Mission Statement

Review of the Hoike Stratigic Plan Self Sufficiency reveals that many aspects do not support their mission as stated on the cover page of the plan. Nor does it acknowledge it has already begun to implement a number of the options, even though their funding has not been significantly diminished. Hoike has already begun to pick the "low lying fruit" away from others in the community by competing with another non-profit to provide county video production and services.  

Ho`ike's plan to reduce community services and hours of operation; increasing the public's fees for services; compete with the private sector; and solicit for money. That may be good for Ho`ike, but many in the private sector doubt it is good for business. 

For over a year, Hoike has provided video production services to the Kauai Chamber of Commerce free of charge, though have not offered that to other nonprofits with fewer resources. Clearly, this is an attempt to gain favor with the business community, hoping they will look the other way when the subsidized nonprofit competes against private enterprise.

Many access users are concerned about the planned decrease in services, a decrease in the hours operation, and and increase in user fees. 

Ho`ike was created by the state, the Ho`ike board majority is appointed by the state, Ho`ike is funded by state mandated cable subscriber monies that goes from the cable subscriber to the cable company, and then directly to Ho`ike. According to Hawaii Administrative Rule HAR §16-131-32 the Public access channel is for "non-commercial public access available on a first-come, nondiscriminatory basis." The reality is that only a small minority of cable subscribers are public access users. According to the Ho`ike Managing directors annual reports there have been no new users for the last two years! Many question why cable subscribers are forced by state mandate to fund a state created nonprofit planning to abandon the mission for which they were created use their public subsidy to compete with the private sector. This is especially true in light of a Fifth Circuit Court ruling, a ruling that the state Office of Information Practices (OIP) interpets to mean that PEG's are not covered by Open Records (§HRS92f) nor Sunshine Law (§HRS92)

What you can do right now

If you are some of the many who object to paying a state mandated user fee for public access, and not getting it -- email Director Mark Recktenwald at the the Department of Commerce and Comsumer Affairs (DCCA), Cable Television Division at email address . . .

mrecktenwald@dcca.hawaii.gov

. . .and tell him what you think of Ho`ike's "plan."

Did Kekahu Foundation (KKCR) Falsify the Record?

Concerned citizens might want to attend the upcoming Kekahu Board Meeting thi Wednesday, July 13th, 7:00 p.m., at Hanalei Bay Resort.

Last night (4-27-05) I witnessed one of the most authoritarian displays of hubris, arrogance, corruption, and disdain for the community since the county sued itself to prevent giving citizens the property tax break they voted for.

I attended a Kekahu Foundation (KKCR) board meeting and bore witness to what appeared to be the Kekahu foundation board falsifying the board minutes.

HEAR IT FOR YOURSELF: http://kauai.net/flash/kkkcr.htm

The corruption of the record occurred when board minutes were approved redefining the board “retreat” as an “executive board meeting” It was important to redefine the retreat as an executive board meeting because one of the board members needed to be censured by the others for telling the KKCR Citizens Advisory Board (CAB) what occurred at the retreat. Had this retreat been an “executive meeting” telling the CAB what happened would have been prohibited. The Citizens Advisory Board is mandated by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) as a condition of receiving CPB funds, and speaks for the community.

Despite the fact that not one board member present could (for sure) remember;

1. when the motion to hold an executive board meeting occurred,

2. who made the motion,

3. who seconded the motion, or

4 .if they themselves voted for or against the motion -- the minutes were approved defining a "retreat" as an executive session with one nay vote.

The board member voting nay said;

1. the vote to enter into an executive meeting never occurred, and

2. the retreat was not an executive meeting.

The sole board member that voted nay to approving the bogus minutes was a founding member of KKCR, and could remember way back to the founding charter that gave every contributing member a vote to elect the board

For years the Kekahu Board has been openly hostile to the Citizens Advisory Board because the CAB has consistently “advised” the board that KKCR contributing members should get something besides a CD and a big Mahalo for supporting KKCR – like a vote to elect the board. Some of the current board members were part of a bloodless coup that installed them in power. This coup was accomplished by redefining voting rights for contributing members to voting rights for board members only. Now they resent being made to feel guilty by the CAB's constant calling for a restoration of democracy.

The board of course would prefer to elect itself, and evidently spent a great deal of the “retreat” discussing how to rewrite the mission to further disenfranchise the KKCR members (who foot the bill). I'm disgusted by such elitism posing as community service. It's self service. I will have no hand in it. But don't take my word for what happened. Click on the like below to hear a flash audio file for yourself and decide if indeed the Kekahu Board falsified the minutes.

HEAR IT FOR YOURSELF: http://kauai.net/flash/kkkcr.htm

Concerned citizens might want to attend the upcoming Kekahu Board Meeting thi Wednesday, July 13th, 7:00 p.m., at Hanalei Bay Resort.

Ed Coll – KKCR Founding Member, Former Citizen's Advisory Board Member.

Summary Judgement: PEG's not state agency - Records not Public - OIP will not offer assistance obtaining records

June 15, 2005:

NOTICE REGARDING PUBLIC, EDUCATIONAL,

AND GOVERNMENT ACCESS PROVIDERS

The First Circuit Court recently granted summary judgment to 'Olelo in its lawsuit seeking a declaration that it is not an agency for UIPA purposes. No written order has yet been issued. However, based on the oral ruling, OIP will not be accepting new requests for assistance regarding 'Olelo or other PEG providers until further notice. OIP will provide updates on this issue as needed on this website http://hawaii.gov/oip/whatsnew.html

Supreme Court justice faces boot from home?

A private developer contacted the local government in Supreme Court Justice David Souter's hometown in New Hampshire yesterday asking that the property of the judge – who voted in favor of a controversial decision allowing a city to take residents' homes for private development – be seized to make room for a new hotel.

read more at URL: http://wnd.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=45029

Deeply disturbing confluences of events

Item: Recent Supreme Court ruling allowing the government to condemn private property through immanent domain, not for a public use, but the highest private use with a public good. The public good – more taxes collected.

Item: The Counties opposition to the Ohana Amendment and the voting majority, (also called the will of the people).

Item: The County battle with OIP in defense of Executive Session transcripts as if they were top secret documents.

Item: The recent needless and repetitive use of the word “leaders” in The Garden Island. “KIUC leader”, “County Council leaders”, “OIP leaders.” Leaders this. Leaders that. Who are these people? Who decided they are leaders?

A conspiracy theorist might see these disturbing confluences of events as proof of a coup by the dark forces of self serving interests over a open and democratic society. It appears our elected representatives and non-profit volunteers have deluding themselves into thinking that since they were elected to “represent” us they are “leaders.” As our beloved leaders they fall further into delusion thinking. These “leaders” think they know what is best for the ignorant masses. These elected representatives think they know best because they meet in secret (executive sessions) so only they understand “the big picture.” What occurs in these secret confabs is not available to the public because the public does not have a need to know. Says who? Well, our all knowing leaders of course.

Could it be time for some tough love ballot box therapy to shock these people out of their delusional fugue state. Representatives who do not represent us and assume the role of leader, need to be brought back into the public fold and turned back into, “just plain folks.” Lets all work hard to help them see the light sunshine can bring to these important civic issues.

Ohana Kauai Website now online

Richard Stauber emailed Kaua'i Public Record to write that Stan Godes has launched a website for Ohana Kauai to track this issue.

Take a look at URL: Take a look at URL: http://www.ohanakauai.com/

Keeping the Public Out of Public Access - Hawaiian Style

Keeping the Public Out of Public Access - Hawaiian Style is even more relevent today than when it was written 10 years ago. O`lelo the Public Access station on Oahu is suing the State of Hawaii Office of information Practices (OIP) with state mandated public funds in an attempt to avoid complying with state open records law. Currently both Ho`ike (Kauai's Public Access station), and O`lelo continue to gather the names, phone numbers, and addresses from individuals submitting video programs under the false pretense of "required for public disclosure", yet refuse to release this information to the public.