Complaints from residents and visitors about urine and feces left in public places have prompted state Rep. Gene Ward to introduce a measure to impose fines of up to $2,000 for repeat offenders who relieve themselves in certain spots.

Ward issued a news release Friday calling for “urine-free zones” where offenders could be fined for doing their business in public, including at playgrounds and bus stops and in parking lots and parking garages.

House Bill 1595 would give offenders the option of completing court-approved drug or alcohol treatment or mental health treatment programs in lieu of paying the fines.

Unhappiness with homelessness in Hawaii is growing, Ward said, and “there’s under the surface a boiling, and under the surface a dissatisfaction with this growing socioeconomic group.”

He added, “Look, we are a civilized society, and whether you’re homeless or not homeless, you don’t do these unhygienic things in public. I mean, it’s common sense.”

Ward (R, Kalama Valley-Queen’s Gate-Hawaii Kai) said his proposal is not a new idea. The state had a similar law on the books that expired at the end of 2016, he said.

According to state Sen. Karl Rhoads (D, Downtown-Nuuanu-Liliha), the original law was based on a measure he drafted years ago while he was on the Downtown-Chinatown Neighborhood Board. That law prohibited urinating or defecating in public in downtown Honolulu. It was first approved in 2004 and was extended at least four times.

Police reported they did issue citations under the old law, Rhoads said, usually to patrons of downtown bars who were caught urinating in the street. Rhoads said he did not seek another extension for the measure last year because his understanding is the Honolulu City Council adopted an ordinance with a similar ban. (The city enacted a ban on urinating and defecating in public places, and on private property open to public use, in September 2014.)

“In Chinatown it’s for real, you see it all the time,” Rhoads said. “If you live there for a couple of weeks, you’ll understand why.”

Mateo Caballero, legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Hawaii, said Ward’s bill expanding the prohibition statewide is a bad idea.

“Further criminalization of poverty and bodily functions is not the way to go,” Caballero said. “We think that the state should be spending its resources in building more public bathrooms before they pass more bills criminalizing urinating and defecating in public.”

Caballero also questioned how the homeless could possibly afford to pay the fines created by the bill, “so I’m not even sure what type of deterrent a bill like this serves.”

Ward disagreed, saying sometimes sanctions and punishments are necessary to remind people that some rules must be followed. He said homeless people are being treated as if they are part of a “protected class” that does not need to be accountable or responsible to the rest of society.

“If you belong to a society, I don’t care what level or hierarchy or what continent you’re on, there’s accountability and responsibility, and that is what this bill calls in to the individuals,” Ward said. “Whether you’re homeless or not homeless, you have to be responsible for some things.”

Ward’s bill has not been scheduled for a hearing, meaning the ruling House Democrats have not yet announced whether they will consider the measure.

Christine Donnelly is off. Kokua Line returns Wednesday.