Mayor Kenoi wants off on a technicality

[TomK]

Whether it's "Teflon Billy" or "Velcro Billy", I hope people don't forget the interview Kenoi gave in front of a number of journalists. It makes me cringe every time I watch it.

https://youtu.be/nPcct7QC8Ws

[alaskyn66]

Is that video an admission of guilt..he admitted he made personal purchases.

..Bad boys,Bad boys what we gonna do...let ya out on bail for a buck or two...

[leilanidude]

HiloPuna - So do you think he was exempted from keeping receipts and the reporting requirements as well? Maybe you think this exemption was all encompassing and he should have been able to do whatever he wanted with our tax money with no recourse?

[kalakoa]

Maybe you think this exemption was all encompassing

Billy has yet to be sanctioned by the courts or the ethics board... so yes, "teflon".

[HiloPuna]

".... So do you think he was exempted from keeping receipts and the reporting requirements as well..."

No, I don't. And it seems that is the basis for the indictment. It wasn't that he made any allowed purchase, personal or otherwise. We now know* that was legal and within the rules. Instead it's the reporting , or misreporting, that is the issue.

* with the exception of some on this forum

[kalakoa]

Instead it's the reporting, or misreporting, that is the issue.

Take away "theft" and/or "misappropriation", and all you have are these "technicalities".

Billy will probably be in more actual "trouble" from the IRS if any of these pCard purchases can be construed as "income" -- again, merely "administrative" penalties, not criminal wrongdoing.

[HereOnThePrimalEdge]

"Teflon Billy"

When you're standing in the middle of a greasy spot where the dead horse once lay, a non-stick coating comes in handy more ways than one. Whatever the outcome of this fiasco, I'll remain convinced that Billy, and no one else, put himself on the spot.

The newspaper and general public might have, according to some, picked up the torches and pitchforks, but not because of something they misread in the pCard rules manual, which they understood perfectly. It's because they didn't immediately realize someone penciled in a special exemption rule into one copy, and one copy only without telling the public until well after the fact.

Think about the difference in our perception of this investigation if at the time Billy received his exemption, the mayor's office had announced publicly, loudly, clearly that he was from that time forward allowed a broad based exemption to the pCard rules. Then none of us would have had any reason to have been surprised. jmo

- Be pleasant to inefficient workers; give them undeserved promotions. - Work slowly. - Refer all matters to committees for "further study and consideration. - Hold conferences. - Make travel as inconvenient as possible. - Haggle over precise wordings of communications. - Advocate “caution.” Be “reasonable” and avoid haste. (Excerpts from the WWII OSS Simple Sabotage Manual)

[pahoated]

I wonder how many of the Punatwit vigilante lynch mob has bothered to read the state pCard site? Based on past experience, probably zip. The pCard "rules" were written in 2004 and haven't been updated since. This is what it says:

[i]http://spo.hawaii.gov/for-state-county-personnel/programs/pcard/

"The pCard process is fully automated, allowing all
purchases and payments to be tracked and easily managed."

So, what this will turn into, is a "study" of pCard "automation". That "study" should only cost a few million. Eventually, it will be proven that the state and the pCard system were at fault, not operating as claimed. Uncle Billy, back to private law business, can file a lawsuit against the state for defamation, malfeasance, and compensation for all incurred expenses.

*Japanese tourist on bus through Pahoa, "Is this still America?*

[HiloPuna]

HOPTE

"...pCard rules manual, which they understood perfectly. It's because they didn't immediately realize someone penciled in a special exemption rule into one copy, and one copy only without telling the public..."

Did you just throw a Red Herring in the stew? On some of your other points;

I agree, this hot mess is on him. He didn't answer early, clearly, and decisively. A real test of his political acumen and in my opinion it hasn't served him well.

However, when an individual or group is taken by surprise how they initially respond is often instinctual, "gut feelings". When the initial "surprise" is over then one should gather the facts, process them carefully, and respond accordingly. Unfortunately that is frequently not done, including sometimes on this forum.

[leilanidude]

Did Billy's special exemption allow for no receipts and repayment of personal use charges, months later?