By David Corrigan and Stephanie Salazar

[Video by David Corrigan]

HILO, Hawaii: Just in time for the holidays!

There could be a gift that you don’t know about, waiting for you to simply put in your claim.

Its possible that you have unclaimed property, being held by the state of Hawaii – which collects and holds abandoned and dormant property, just waiting for you to pick it up.

This was the message at the Hawaii County Council Finance Committee earlier this week, during this presentation.

To see if you have unclaimed property at the State of Hawaii, simply follow this link: www.ehawaii.gov/lilo/ap

Each person needs to check the Unclaimed Property Search webpage for their name using last name, and first and possibly middle initial

Businesses should search for every conceivable spelling and abbreviation of their name including titles of departments. Zero balances indicate something other than cash (e.g. safety deposit boxes, stock, etc…)

By David Corrigan and Stephanie Salazar

[Video by David Corrigan]

KAILUA-KONA, Hawaii: The county is moving forward with its planned creation of a new park site on Alii Drive, with the added benefit of a new parking area for the nearby Magic Sands Beach and La’aloa parks.

From the council committee agenda:

Adds Public Works: Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR) Addition to the Development of New Park Site at Ali‘i Drive ($500,000); funds shall be provided from General Obligation Bonds, Capital Projects Fund – Fund Balance and/or Other Sources ($500,000). Funds would be used by the Parks and Recreation Department to acquire TMK: (3)7-7-008:100 to complement the acquisition of TMK’s: (3)7-7-008:020 and 031 to be developed into a new park site, as well as on and off-site improvements such as a parking area for La‘aloa and Magic Sands Beach parks.

South Kona councilwoman Brenda Ford explained during Tuesday’s County Council Finance Committee meeting. Ford said the new park will be named Kipapa Park.

Bill 149 now goes up to the full council.

BACKGROUND: VIDEO: Kingman property purchase in Kona advances

By David Corrigan and Stephanie Salazar

KONA, Hawaii: South Kona councilwoman Brenda Ford’s opponent in the 2010 county council election is seeking approval to join the Public Access, Open Space and Natural Resources Preservation Commission.

Enock Freire lost to Ford in a heated District 7 primary. He has been nominated by Mayor Billy Kenoi to serve on the body that forwards to the council a prioritized list of land recommendations for possible purchase using the 2% fund. The money, which comes from 2% of real property taxes, amounts to roughly $4 million annually.

The nomination will go before the Finance Committee today. Ford is the chairwoman of the committee.

The two debated each other numerous times on the campaign trail in August of last year.

Meanwhile, on Wednesday, Ford’s effort to initiate a charter amendment to make the 2% land fund a requirement of county charter will get its third and final reading. The voter initiative will replace the current mandate of 1% if passed.

by David Corrigan & Tiffany Edwards Hunt

HILO, Hawaii: Although South Kona councilwoman Brenda Ford’s proposed Aliyah’s Law would combat drunk driving by allowing police to impound the cars of drunk drivers, there were some activists who opposed the provision to

A provision that would allow police to impound cars because of fraudulent plates drew the ire of these testifiers… many of whom have Hawaiian Kingdom license plates on their cars and ID cards in tehir wallet.

The opposition caught Ford by surprise, who said she had never even heard of the Hawaiian Kingdom license plates. The councilmembers discussed the issue with their lawyer, Corporation Counsel Lincoln Ashida.

Tomorrow, a former Puna councilwoman testifies…

by David Corrigan & Tiffany Edwards Hunt

HILO, Hawaii: Last week, we reported on a pending bill introduced by South Kona councilwoman Brenda Ford that would authorizing police to impound vehicles driven by intoxicated or unlicensed motorists.

The bill is being named after Aliyah Braden, who was only 17 months old when she was killed after a drunk driver crashed into a car being driven by her mother in Kona.

However, the bill caught the attention of some well known faces in Puna… Hawaiian sovereignty supporters who were alarmed that Ford’s bill might allow police to take their cars because of their license plates.

These subjects of the Hawaiian Kingdom have been using these Hawaiian Kingdom license plates on their cars in place of the State of Hawaii issued license plates for years, and some have taken their case to court after being ticketed by local police.

Ford’s proposed law, if passed, will also allow police to tow cars that make – quote – “fraudulent use of plates, tags, or emblems”… a provision that prompted an outcry at Wednesday’s county council meeting.

The bill still passed first reading with unanimous support.

Tomorrow, what do the lawyers have to say about these license plates, and will this new law apply?

KONA, Hawaii: The Hawaii County Council voted to pass three new county code bills on Friday, one of which was a controversial new building code that has been heavily scrutinized by the public, building trades, and officials alike.

The new code has been a tough sell to some members of the public, who balked at the mention of “safe rooms”, rules interpreted to mandate insulation and concerns over building permit transfers.

After hours of testimony and discussion, the council voted to pass Bill 268 enacting the 2008 National Electrical Code, Bill 269 adopting the 2006 Uniform Plumbing Code, and the hotly debated Bill 270, adopting the 2006 International Building Code.

The codes replace guidelines from 1983.

After numerous public meetings about the proposed code, there was still concern on the part of some that the code will increase the costs of building a home, making construction less affordable. No cost analysis was provided, however, and an attempt to delay the vote so that stake holders could do the analysis was defeated.

In this video, South Kona councilwoman Brenda Ford asks Public Works director Warren Lee to explain some of the commonly misunderstood areas of concern with the new code.

Bill 270 passed with a 5 votes for and 4 votes against.

Video by David Corrigan

The political back and forth over the Hawaii County budget that played out in the media between Mayor Billy Kenoi and the council majority has come to an end.

The original budget proposed by the mayor four months ago will become law.

All alterations to the $366 million spending plan by the council over recent months have been rendered moot, since the council could not muster the 6 votes needed to override the mayor’s veto of the council’s amendments.

The mayor and the corporation counsel (which also represents the county council) said the amended budget was illegal and violated county code. Some councilmembers did not agree.

With all the debate over open space funds, deferred payments, and golf subsidies, the final votes were cast mostly along political allegiance lines.

As expected, Dominic Yagong, Angel Pilago, Brenda Ford, Brittany Smart and Pete Hoffmann voted to override the mayor’s veto. The five councilmembers shared the philosophy that the county should pay as much as possible into the GasB45 payment obligation.

The three Hilo councilmembers, Donald Ikeda, J Yoshimoto and Dennis Onishi voted “no” to the override, supporting the mayor’s decision to go with his original proposal without the changes.

The x-factor in the vote was Fred Blas, who also voted “no” to the override.

A bill to adjust the county code pertaining to the 2% public access and open space land fund was withdrawn by Dominic Yagong at Thursday’s special council meeting. The amended budget called for a reduction in the contribution to the land fund, but it would have conflicted with the county code.

The final details, for those trying to keep score of the ever changing county budget:

The West Hawaii Golf Subsidy survives

$20 million in GasB45 payments will be deferred in full till the next fiscal year.

The 2% public access and open space land fund remains untouched

An amendment to fund the purchase of police radios fails.

Mayor Billy Kenoi and his family are currently on vacation in Japan. Administration officials say the trip, which includes a visit with his children’s great-grandmother who lives in Kagoshima, will return home on July 3.

Voice of Stephanie Salazar

South Kona councilwoman Brenda Ford wants to re-write the county code when it comes to barking dogs…

At present, a police officer responding to a call about barking dog must wait for one hour to determine if the animal is being a continued nuisance. Ford says this is an unreasonable burden for the police department.

The issue was debated at a committee meeting earlier this month.

There were two testifierson the subject, and their opinions represented both sides of the issue when it comes to man’s best friend as a potential noise-pest.

The Council Committee on Human Services, Social Services and Public Safety gave bill 27 a positive recommendation. It now goes to the full council for first reading on April 6th.

Video by David Corrigan

The Hawaii County Council chamber in Hilo was packed with department heads and county employees on Monday, as the lawmakers began the process of reviewing the administration’s budget.

Front and center sat Mayor Billy Kenoi, who was the first to answer questions on the council’s departmental review. Kenoi presented a proposal for a balanced budget to the council on March 1st, without new taxes or employee layoffs.

But his critics on the council say that the proposal puts too much of a burden on the future.

South Kona councilwoman Brenda Ford, the chair of the Finance Committee, went head to head with Kenoi, arguing over philosophical differences, and also semantics. The mayor took isue with Ford’s use of the word “deferred” in reference to a proposed payroll lag that would save $6 million this fiscal year.

This video shows the lengthy back and forth between Ford and Kenoi that played out over the course of the presentation.

The council will be conducting reviews, department by department, over the next two days in Hilo.

Video by David Corrigan

The Hawaii County Council called a last minute emergency meeting on Saturday evening. The local lawmakers met at the new West Hawaii Civic Center for the first time, and teleconferenced with east side councilmembers in Hilo, as well as Hawaii County Civil Defense director Quince Mento.

Mayor Billy Kenoi was alos at the meeting, and he provided the councilmembers with an update on his administration’s survey of the damage, conducted earlier that day.

Councilmember Dominc Yagong said that the meeting needed to be held in order to ensure that issues related to water and roadways were under control after the 9.0 earthquake sent tsunami waves crashing along the Big Island’s leeward coast. Yagong also said he wanted the answers provided by the administration to be part of the public record so residents could be better informed. He reminded everyone that Hawaii is under a state of emergency, signed by the governor.

After an executive session followed by council Q&A with Kenoi, the mayor excused himself and his staff, who had been operating for hours on end with minimal rest.

After the mayor left, the remaining councilmembers spoke about their own experiences since the tsunami hit, and some even pushed the issue of the island’s need for more emergency infrastructure. Pete Hoffmann mentioned tsunami sirens, while Brittany Smart reiterated the need to release the funds for an emergency shelter in Pahala.

We will have more info on Brenda Ford’s inquiry into the situation at Napoopoo, the particularly hard hit village in her South Kona district, where she has spent a lot of time in the last few days. We will also have more video from the field at Napoopoo, and the extraordinary community cleanup underway.

Video by David Corrigan | Voice of Stephanie Salazar

On Tuesday evening, the Hawaii County Council held a special meeting to approve the mayor’s nine nominees for the Hawaii County Redistricting Commission.

The mayor submitted the list of names for approval on February 15th, giving the council what he says is plenty of time before the March 1 deadline to vote on the matter.

But the mayor’s opinion on the timeliness of the delivery is not shared by all councilmembers.

South Kona councilwoman Brenda Ford, having interprited a “no” vote as a violation of the county charter, an act that may carry strict penalties, said she feels she was forced to vote in the affirmative or else suffer the consequences. She voted “kanalua two times” on all nominees, and stated “If each councilmember cannot vote except to rubber stamp the mayor’s choices, we the people no longer have a representative government.”

The mayor defended his choices for the commission the night before, during an interview in Waimea.

Kenoi also downplayed concerns that the lateness of the nominee list is somehow an attempt to serve the political interests of Hilo.

Video by David Corrigan | Voice of Stephanie Salazar

As the state of Hawaii battles to balance its operating budget, so does the Big Island.

At a Town Meeting in Kona Tuesday night, Hawaii County Councilwoman Brenda Ford laid out the grim outlook for this year’s budget process.

“The mayor has not given the council a single bit of information as to how bad the deficit is” said Ford, “or wheres he’s planning to make cuts to get this online. ”

“Furloughs are on the table, layoffs are on the table, tax increases potentially could be on the table, depending on how bad this is. There’s nothing that’s gonna be sacred this year.”

The Mayor has until March 1st to submit a preliminary budget to the council.