Congressional District's changes get initial approval

By Kevin Dayton
Advertiser Capitol Bureau Chief

A plan to expand urban Honolulu's 1st Congressional District to include Waipahu, 'Ewa and portions of Mililani won preliminary approval yesterday from the state Reapportionment Commission.

The proposal would enlarge the district now held by Rep. Neil Abercrombie, D-Hawai'i, to reach from Hawai'i Kai to Mililani and 'Ewa. Rural O'ahu and the Neighbor Islands would remain in the 2nd Congressional district now held by U.S. Rep. Patsy Mink, D-Hawai'i.

The changes are designed to equalize the population in the two districts. The proposal will be discussed at a series of public hearings around the state, and the commission can amend it later if it chooses.

Wayne Minami, chairman of the reapportionment commission, said the commission plan will spell "minimal changes" to voters. The plan would move 35,000 to 40,000 residents from Mink's rural district to Abercrombie's urban district.

In another development yesterday, Common Cause Hawai'i asked the state Office of Information Practices to determine if the reapportionment commission violated state open records or open meetings laws.

Commission member Harold Masumoto showed state lawmakers maps of proposed boundaries for the state House and Senate districts in closed-door briefings Wednesday. However, similar maps won't be presented to the public until Tuesday.

Larry Meacham, spokesman for Common Cause Hawai'i, said state law does not entitle lawmakers to a preview of those maps. And once the maps are shown to lawmakers, they should be available for review by the public, he said.

Masumoto said he conducted the briefings with lawmakers in their Republican and Democratic caucuses because it made more sense than answering each lawmaker's individual inquiry.

He said lawmakers were shown proposals, not final plans.

"I would assume that I have the right to consult with whoever I want," Masumoto said.