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Opinion Letter No. 06-05
July 19, 2006
Amendment of Agenda; Executive Meeting Agenda
OIP opined that section 92-7(d) of the Sunshine Law
did not allow amendment of the Hawaii County Council’s meeting
agenda to consult with its Corporation Counsel in executive session
regarding issues related to settlement of a pending case brought
against the County and other parties, commonly referred to as
the “Hokulia lawsuit.”
An agenda may not be amended to add an item if it
is of reasonably major importance and action on the item will
affect a significant number of persons. Haw. Rev. Stat. §
92-7(d) (Supp. 2005). Given the potentially widespread legal effect
of and substantial County liability that could arise from the
Hokulia lawsuit, OIP found that consideration of matters relating
to the lawsuit that could realistically affect settlement of the
litigation was of reasonably major importance and that action
on those matters would affect a significant number of persons.
An opinion was also sought on whether the
Sunshine Law allows a board to place a generic entry of “executive
session” on all of its agendas without identifying the subject
matter of the executive meeting. OIP opined that the Sunshine
Law does not allow the use of generic “executive session”
entries on an agenda to allow a board to consider an undisclosed
matter in an executive meeting. Such entries would not provide
the public with the statute’s expressly required public
notice of the agenda item to be considered and the purpose for
which the executive meeting is being held.
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