The Honolulu Board of Water Supply, which wants to raise rates on consumers 70 percent over five years, is among the top spenders on lobbying by Hawaii public agencies.
The board has spent more than $489,000 since 2006 on lobbyists at the state Legislature and the City Council, according to state and city ethics reports. But the agency said it might stop hiring lobbyists next year as the board tries to contain costs while it prepares to increase rates.
The semiautonomous board tracks a range of water policy, land use and bond-finance legislation. The board has hired lobbyists even in years when there were few urgent or pressing issues at the state Capitol and Honolulu Hale, a luxury that has become difficult to justify.
Dean Nakano, the board’s acting manager, said he would recommend against hiring lobbyists next year.
"In my present capacity, I have no inclination of extending it or going forth with another (lobbyist)," he said.
The board has proposed a 70 percent water rate increase over five years to help maintain and replace aging infrastructure, the first rate increase since 2006. While Oahu’s water rates are significantly lower than those of many metropolitan areas, the potential rate hike has caused renewed scrutiny of the board’s finances.
The Board of Water Supply — which manages reservoirs and pipelines and delivers more than 150 million gallons of water a day to Oahu consumers — is led by a seven-member board. Five board members are appointed by the mayor and approved by the City Council, and the other two are the director of the state Department of Transportation and the chief engineer of the city’s Department of Facility Maintenance.
The board has a manager and a chief engineer with in-house expertise on water policy issues. The board is financed by water rates, not by state or city funding, so it does not have to compete for money every year with other public agencies.
The board has been among the top spenders on lobbying by public agencies, second, since 2006, to the Hawaii Tourism Authority, which has spent more than $510,000.
Former congressman Charles Djou, who served on the City Council, said it is distressing that a city agency would use ratepayer money to lobby the Council.
"I think this is exhibit No. 1 of waste of money," he said. "And before the Board of Water Supply goes forward trying to foist a massive increase upon the public, they ought to be eliminating this."
Like the Hawaii Tourism Authority, the board has hired lobbyists for their insight into the legislative process and their access to lawmakers. Mike McCartney, president of the HTA, is a former state senator and chairman of the Democratic Party of Hawaii who has friendships with many lawmakers and is a fixture at the state Capitol during session. But the HTA still regularly turns to Jon Okudara, a well-connected lobbyist, to help advance the authority’s legislative agenda.
For the past several years, the Board of Water Supply has hired SPJ Consulting LLC as lobbyists. James Pacopac and Scott Matsuura have represented the board at the Legislature, while Patrick Lee has handled the City Council.
The lobbyists monitor legislation directly related to the board — such as the adoption by the City Council in 2010 of the Koolauloa Watershed Management Plan, or a bill that passed the Legislature in 2009 authorizing the board to issue revenue bonds — along with dozens of other measures that might have impact.
"Most of the time, I would have to say that it’s just an awareness. Ninety percent of the time it’s purely defensive," Matsuura said of attempting to prevent laws that could overly burden the board with regulation.
While the board manager and chief engineer have expertise on water policy, a lobbyist can detect the behind-the-scenes political pressures that influence which bills move forward. Savvy lobbyists also become part of the fabric at the Capitol and Honolulu Hale, often building social relationships with lawmakers that can benefit their clients over time.
"I do believe that it is essential that you maintain that kind of awareness and those kind of contacts up at the Legislature, because you kind of never know what’s about to happen," Matsuura said.
Nakano, the acting board manager, said the board would determine whether in-house staff should handle lobbying.
"Maybe this is something that we can take on ourselves, something that we can do in light of the fact that we have to cut costs where we can," he said. "So we’re making a conscious effort to really look at our contracts — the services that we’re currently being provided — and take appropriate action."
