HONOLULU — Hawaii County finance officials had warned Mayor Billy Kenoi several times that his personal purchases on a county credit card were improper.
But the spending practice didn’t stop until December 2013, when he charged $892 at a Honolulu hostess bar, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported Saturday.
County policy prohibits using county cards for personal expenses or for alcohol.
The mayor was forthcoming whenever he made a personal purchase with the card, county Finance Director Deanna Sako said. But Sako said she and then-Finance Director Nancy Crawford spoke to the mayor when it became a practice rather than an exception.
“Basically, we had some discussions with the mayor about not using it for personal use,” said Sako, who was deputy finance director at the time.
Kenoi has reimbursed the county for a total of $26,000 in personal and county-related charges. He has apologized for the credit-card use.
His use of the credit card first came to light when West Hawaii Today reported on the $892 charge at Club Evergreen in Honolulu. The mayor said he reimbursed the county three months later.
Kenoi requested and got approval at the beginning of his first term in December 2008 for a $10,000 credit limit.
Credit-card statements from 2009 to 2015 reflect a pattern of spending for drinks, dining and luxury hotels. Kenoi has also used his card to pay for his $565 Hawaii Bar Association dues, luxury stays at the Waikoloa Beach Marriott for $469 per night, $280 at the Lava Lava Beach Club and $120 at the Kamuela Big Island Brewhaus.
A 1999 memorandum forbids the purchase of alcohol for consumption by county employees or for county functions because it is “an inappropriate use of public funds” and liability issues. The exception is the entertainment of dignitaries by the mayor, the County Council chairman or their authorized representative.
The mayor said he flew to Honolulu for official county business (a tea ceremony) the same day he visited Club Evergreen, but he would not divulge who he was with or what he paid for.