Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1913-02-08
MANY new IDEAS
FAVORED FOR
CITY
Charter Committee Approves
Plan for Honorary Commits
sioners and City Mgr.

Five commissioners. elected for
four-year terms and serving without
pay, and a CITY manager to be select
ed by the commissioners, are the i'm
portant points decided upon by the
special charter revision committee
last night at a meeting in the eXecu-
tive building.
The committees decision necessi-
tated such change in the prelimin-
airy outline of the charter as prepared
by the drafting committee that when
discussion was concluded, the outline
was sent back to the committee for a
new draft embodying the new ideas
and carrying them out in the scheme
of government proposed. Under the
original draft the commissioners
themselves would assume the active
oversight and management of city af-
fairs. Under the new managership
system the commissioners appoint a
manager to handle the details of city
government, the commissioners acting
as advisers and determining the gen.
eral policies so far as is in their dis
Gre ion under the charter.
When the committee got through
with its work last night the form Of
charter approved bore little resem-
blance either to the present system
or to the draft prepared by the draft
ing committee. If there are any of the
later ideas" in municipal government
that are not incorporated in the draft
to be now prepared they did not occur
to the progTessives who argued vigor-
ously last night to go the whole
length of Short-ballOt and city man
agership government in planning Ho-
h0lulu's new system. T. NJ. Church
spoke for an entire change, insisting
on the city managership. When it
came to a vote, there were nine votes
to one in favor of the honOrary-com-
missioner, City-manager plan. w. K.
Farring,On voted against the plan,
saying ne is strongly in favor Of the
city-manager idea and believes in the
progressive forms of government, but
does not favor loading down the char
ter with so many new, locally-untrted
features that the people will reject 1t.
Having decided upon the general
form of the system, the discussion
over details was comparatively slight.
The terms of the commissioners are
to be four years. At the first election
the three receiving the highest num-
Der of votes will serve for four years,
the lower two serving for two years,
when new election takes place.
Thereafter elections will be every two
years, two and three commissioners
being elected alternately for four-year
terms. Moreover, it is proposed TO
hold elections in the spring or early
summer, not in the fall, to get away
from the partsanship Of municipal
elections at the same time as terri
torial elections The city fiscal year
is to begin July |. The mayor is TO
be elected every two years by the
commissioners themselves.
One radical change was in declining
to deal with the subject Of franchises,
owing to the probability OF a pubic
service commission being established
" the next legislature, which Will
handle the franchise matters.
Direct Legislation Provided.
Direct legislation is provided for.
TWENTY-FIVE per cent of the voters
may initiate an ordinance to be sub
mittcd to the council OF commission
ers The council may pass an ordl-
nance without alteration or submit
il TO vote Of the people. twenty-five
per cent of the voters may protest
within sixty days after the council
passes any ordinance and the council
must thoreupon call special cleo
ton on it, 80 ordinance proposed and
adopted by vote of the people may be
repealed or amended within two Years
after is adoption except by another
referendum TO the people.
The city is given power to establish
such commissions, such as parks and
play grounds commission, library COM
mission, etc. \ civil service commits
sion and civil service for the City en-
plOyeS. was also discussed. but the
committee members heard some tax
to the effect that to bring up this SUN
jeCt now might ALLEVIATE a large part
Of the electorate who oppose civil