{"id":9091,"date":"2022-01-16T22:04:35","date_gmt":"2022-01-16T22:04:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hawaiioceannews.com\/?p=9091"},"modified":"2022-01-17T18:19:37","modified_gmt":"2022-01-17T18:19:37","slug":"hawaiis-state-legislature-has-been-convicted-of-a-crime","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hawaiioceannews.com\/index.php\/2022\/01\/16\/hawaiis-state-legislature-has-been-convicted-of-a-crime\/","title":{"rendered":"Hawaii&#8217;s legislature has been found guilty of a crime . . . it&#8217;s time to right wrongs"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"pl-9091\"  class=\"panel-layout\" ><div id=\"pg-9091-0\"  class=\"panel-grid panel-has-style\" ><div style=\"padding: 0px 0; \" data-overlay=\"true\" data-overlay-color=\"#000000\" class=\"panel-row-style panel-row-style-for-9091-0\" ><div id=\"pgc-9091-0-0\"  class=\"panel-grid-cell\" ><div id=\"panel-9091-0-0-0\" class=\"so-panel widget widget_sow-headline panel-first-child\" data-index=\"0\" ><div style=\"text-align: left;\" data-title-color=\"#443f3f\" data-headings-color=\"#443f3f\" class=\"panel-widget-style panel-widget-style-for-9091-0-0-0\" ><div\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\tclass=\"so-widget-sow-headline so-widget-sow-headline-default-f73b9af17ef5-9091\"\n\t\t\t\n\t\t><div class=\"sow-headline-container \">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"sow-headline\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\tHawaii's Supreme Court has found our State legislature guilty of repeated violations of the State's Constitution . . . violations that went on for more than a decade\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"decoration\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"decoration-inside\"><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h4 class=\"sow-sub-headline\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\tPast laws, illegal, now need to be culled and repealed\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/h4>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><div id=\"panel-9091-0-0-1\" class=\"so-panel widget widget_black-studio-tinymce widget_black_studio_tinymce panel-last-child\" data-index=\"1\" ><div style=\"text-align: left;\" data-title-color=\"#443f3f\" data-headings-color=\"#443f3f\" class=\"panel-widget-style panel-widget-style-for-9091-0-0-1\" ><div class=\"textwidget\"><p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Trebuchet MS, Geneva; font-size: 20px;\">For the past at least ten years, our legislature has been introducing and passing laws that have been in violation of the State's Constitution, according to a recent <a href=\"https:\/\/www.courts.state.hi.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/SCAP-19-0000372.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Supreme Court ruling<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Trebuchet MS, Geneva; font-size: 20px;\">If our system of lawmaking is to retain any semblance of credibility, all of the laws that were legislated through this reoccurring illegal process need to be culled out and repealed as expeditiously as possible.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Trebuchet MS, Geneva; font-size: 20px;\">Since Hawaii's government leadership isn't pono enough to find the means to <a href=\"https:\/\/hawaiioceannews.com\/index.php\/2019\/03\/15\/registry_of_shared_testimony\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">police itself<\/a>, it's up to us, the residents who are affected by this illegal legislation, to demand justice.\u00a0 The legislature was called to the carpet by a lawsuit filed by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lwv.org\/local-leagues\/lwv-honolulu\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><em>The League of Women Voters of Honolulu<\/em><\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.commoncause.org\/hawaii\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><em>Common Cause Hawaii<\/em><\/a>.\u00a0 Since public input is <a href=\"https:\/\/hawaiioceannews.com\/index.php\/2021\/04\/21\/hawaiis-dysfunctional-legislature-doubles-public-tenants-rents-while-governor-forces-private-landlords-to-show-forbearance\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">mostly ignored<\/a> by our legislators, it seems likely that lawsuits may be the only effective way to communicate with them. \u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Trebuchet MS, Geneva; font-size: 20px;\">In fact, this may be a good opportunity for every resident in Hawaii to have their voice heard, loud and clear:\u00a0 every citizen in this State should consider signing on to a class action lawsuit demanding that all of the legislation passed illegally over the last ten years be repealed and, if necessary, reintroduced following the letter of the law. There should be no ambivalence or hesitation in doing this, as this would send a strong message from the people of Hawaii and set the tone for all future legislative processes, and would restore whatever remains of the credibility of our lawmaking system.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Trebuchet MS, Geneva; font-size: 24px;\"><em><strong>They lied to you . . .<br \/>\n<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Trebuchet MS, Geneva; font-size: 20px;\">Senate President, Ronald D. Kouchi (representing Kauai and Niihau), and House Speaker, Scott Saiki (representing <span id=\"ctl00_ContentPlaceHolderCol1_GridView1_ctl40_LabelDistrict2\" title=\"McCully, Kaheka, Kakaako, Downtown\">McCully, Kaheka, Kakaako, Downtown<\/span>), flat out lied \u2014 under oath \u2014 to their constituents and the people of Hawaii when they said that they would uphold and protect Hawaii's constitution.\u00a0 Instead, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.civilbeat.org\/2021\/11\/hawaii-supreme-court-ends-legislatures-gut-and-replace-tactic\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">they knowingly violated it<\/a> \u2014 not just once, but repeatedly over at least the last ten years.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Trebuchet MS, Geneva; font-size: 20px;\">And remarkably, when finally found guilty, their responses ranged from being \"<a href=\"https:\/\/www.civilbeat.org\/2021\/11\/hawaii-supreme-court-ends-legislatures-gut-and-replace-tactic\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">disappointed<\/a>\" that they had to follow the constitution, to they were <a href=\"https:\/\/www.civilbeat.org\/2021\/12\/hawaii-lawmakers-grapple-with-ruling-that-bars-last-minute-bill-changes\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">confused<\/a> about how to proceed, now that they had to follow the rules. While this might have made a wonderful SNL skit, the sad truth is that we trusted these people and now they've outed themselves for their agendas and who they really are \u2014 none of it beneficial to the people of Hawaii.<br \/>\n<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Trebuchet MS, Geneva; font-size: 24px;\"><em><strong>This is the stuff of dystopian political landscapes<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Trebuchet MS, Geneva; font-size: 20px;\">The illegal manipulation of agenda items within any given piece of legislation has been going on for decades \u2014 in clear violation of <a href=\"https:\/\/ballotpedia.org\/Article_III,_Hawaii_Constitution#Section_14\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Article 3, section 14<\/a> of Hawaii's State constitution.\u00a0 Textbook example, <a href=\"https:\/\/hawaiioceannews.com\/index.php\/2021\/03\/17\/underwoods-dobor-attempting-to-crush-public-access-to-public-recreational-boat-harbors-via-illegal-rules\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">SB795 2021<\/a>.\u00a0 Not only was the core premise of the so-called \"fair market value\" rationale based on a <a href=\"https:\/\/hawaiioceannews.com\/index.php\/foot_notes_13-234-details\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">fraudulent appraisal<\/a> (and in court because of this), the agenda items shoehorned together in that same bill were mutually exclusive, in violation of the constitution (<a href=\"https:\/\/ballotpedia.org\/Article_III,_Hawaii_Constitution#Section_14\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Article 3, section 14<\/a>).\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Trebuchet MS, Geneva; font-size: 20px;\">But your legislators, most of them dead silent during committee hearings (leaving one to wonder if they weren't catching up on some sleep or had cut out on the hearing shortly after roll call), and clearly clueless about the details surrounding the measure, voted, with but a single dissent, to allow the illegal and unconstitutional bill to proceed.\u00a0 During that whole legislative process, there was only one single lucid comment in dissent \u2014 coming from Representative\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.capitol.hawaii.gov\/memberpage.aspx?member=wildberger&amp;year=2022\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Tina Wildberger<\/a> (<span id=\"ctl00_ContentPlaceHolderCol1_GridView1_ctl49_LabelDistrict2\" title=\"Kihei, Wailea, Makena\">Kihei, Wailea, Makena<\/span>) \u2014 <a href=\"https:\/\/hawaiioceannews.com\/index.php\/2021\/04\/01\/tina-wildberger-sees-right-through-and-opposes-illegal-sb795-h1\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">questioning<\/a> the murky basis of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=WZyDNPu8XMc&amp;t=32s\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">SB795<\/a>.\u00a0 One dissent. (Watch as legislators are brutally conned by a minor DLNR administrator, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=LAFrMsPhRBQ&amp;t=538s\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">here<\/a>.)<br \/>\n<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 20px; font-family: Trebuchet MS, Geneva;\">It appears that a move towards a class action lawsuit demanding the repeal of all laws passed unconstitutionally (according to the recent <a href=\"https:\/\/www.courts.state.hi.us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/SCAP-19-0000372.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Supreme Court ruling<\/a>) may be our only option. This one single act could transform our legislative process into a more equitable and pono lawmaking system here in Hawaii.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&nbsp; &nbsp; For the past at least ten years, our legislature has been introducing and passing laws that have been in violation [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":146,"featured_media":9158,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[30,33,31,16],"tags":[49],"class_list":["post-9091","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-hawaiis-government-imploding","category-irresponsible-hawaii-lawmaking","category-lawsuits","category-lying-to-hawaiis-public","tag-russian-sub-nearly-collides-with-recreational-fishing-boat"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/hawaiioceannews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/Hawaii-state-legislature-BW-green-letters-.png?fit=800%2C534&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hawaiioceannews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9091","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hawaiioceannews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hawaiioceannews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hawaiioceannews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/146"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hawaiioceannews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9091"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/hawaiioceannews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9091\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9196,"href":"https:\/\/hawaiioceannews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9091\/revisions\/9196"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hawaiioceannews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9158"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hawaiioceannews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9091"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hawaiioceannews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9091"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hawaiioceannews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9091"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}