HILO — A bill to give the County Council more oversight of the administration’s temporary hires was unanimously endorsed Tuesday by the council Finance Committee.
Bill 29, sponsored by Hilo Councilwoman Sue Lee Loy, requires a report detailing “the name and the qualifications of the temporary employee, the cost of the contract, the service to be performed and an explanation of why existing county personnel is unable to provide that service,” within 30 days of a contract signed for $5,000 monthly or higher.
The bill now goes to the council for possible amendments and two more votes.
Lee Loy said she checked with Human Resources and was told the department used a 16-point checklist to determine if individuals are appropriate for contract hires.
“This bill just would give us a heads-up on individuals being hired on contracts,” Lee Loy said. “To me, this is pure accountability to our taxpayers.”
Council members agreed.
“This is just an extra layer of transparency,” said Kona Councilman Dru Kanuha.
Hilo Councilman Aaron Chung said perhaps the bill should be amended to include all 89-day contracts, not just those over a threshold.
Lee Loy said she drafted the bill out of concerns Mayor Harry Kim’s administration was paying high monthly rates for temporary employees he’s hired to date. She said she wanted the administration to think twice before paying a lot of money for temps.
Contracts are for 89 days or less because a 90-day contract sets county rules into effect that could have an impact on a county retiree’s pension and other benefits.
The most recent 89-day hire is Curtis Sharp, who started Monday to trouble-shoot and manage the beleaguered Mass Transit Agency until a more permanent administrator is hired. He will be paid $9,584 a month, according to a copy of the contract obtained Tuesday.
Former County Councilman and state legislator Andrew Levin, who served as executive director during Kim’s prior administration, had a $16,000-per-month contract through April 21 as a legislative assistant.
Stanley Nakasone, who retired in 2013 after 45 years at the Department of Public Works, had a $10,000-per-month contract through April 28 as a Civil Defense emergency response trainer.
The contracts were also used extensively by former Mayor Billy Kenoi. Kim in his prior tenure hired 10 contract workers at an undetermined cost, mostly lava view interpreters for the Kalapana lava eruption.
Lee Loy said if the council sees a pattern developing, it could refine the bill to give the council more say.
“But that’s for later,” she added.