The Hawaii Ethics Commission plans to create a uniform fine schedule — similar to standardized traffic fines — and voted unanimously Wednesday to have a bill introduced in the next legislative session that would speed up the issuance of fines, which now takes up to six months.
Accused violators will still have the right to argue why they shouldn’t have to pay a penalty and later challenge any fines, said Ethics Commission Executive Director Robert Harris. But anyone accused of committing offenses would know the size of the fines they face and would have the option of paying them “faster and more efficiently.”
“They can have the matter resolved pretty quickly,” he said.
The commission ensures compliance with state ethics and lobbying laws. According to the commission’s website, the State Ethics Code requires approximately 1,900 state officials to file annual financial disclosures and that any state official who receives certain gifts report those gifts to the commission.
Harris said not every alleged ethics offense would be found on the proposed fine schedule if there are multiple and complicated allegations with “more factors to consider.”
Others, such as a simple, single offense, would.
“The intent is to make sure there’s consistency between cases,” Harris said. “Some are pretty objectively the same, such as failing to file on time. The facts are pretty clear, so that’s pretty cut and dry.”
More serious cases include violating rules against campaign contributions by lobbyists during the legislative session, and elected officials and state employees making social media posts for campaign purposes or in favor of a business on state time or while using state resources such as state social media accounts, Harris said.
In 2023, the Ethics Commission took in 329 ethics complaints from sources or anonymous sources, launched 17 formal investigations, issued three formal charges, and assessed $9,500 in penalties, according to its annual report. The panel also closed 360 cases due to lack of jurisdiction, successful settlements or enforcement, and other factors.
The commission can make the fine schedule on its own but needs legislative approval to streamline and simplify the enforcement process, Harris said.
The commission currently has to approve a charge, give alleged violators time to respond, and perhaps schedule a hearing. Anyone issued a fine may request a contested case hearing to challenge their penalties.
Accused violators would still be able to go through the current process.
Bills the commission voted to approve Wednesday would ask Senate President Ron Kouchi and House Speaker Nadine Nakamura to introduce bills in their individual chambers that would streamline the process for those who want to resolve their cases quickly.
The maximum fine for an Ethics Commission violation is $5,000.
The Ethics Commission previously voted to have a separate bill introduced next session that would make it a violation for a lobbyist to request that a contract bid be issued in such a way that most likely would be written only for their client.
Similar rules already are in place for the Legislature.
A new bill also would apply to lobbying of the state’s executive branch and would include requests for contracts to directors or deputy directors of state agencies, members of the governor’s cabinet, University of Hawaii regents, and boards and commissions.
Lobbyists would be required to disclose any attempts to request contract proposals to members of the executive branch that would be “on file in a public database,” Harris said.
It would not apply to members of the public or community groups that want specific projects, as long they don’t represent a client who would benefit, Harris said.
