Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1913-01-14

of government for Honolulu and of
revision for the present city charter,
is the keynote of the meeting called
by the Civic Federation this even
ing at the new Carnegie Library.
The meeting is. to be held in the
public hall of the library building,
which Is on the second floor, and as
the library is not yet entirely COM
pleted, those who attend the meeting
tonight are requested to proceed di-
rectly to the auditorium, which Is on
the Eva side of the second floor.
4 At toriight's meeting papers Will be
read by Prof. w. A. Bryan, Ed ToWse,
senator c.. II. Dickey,, and the discus
sion will be informal Governor
Frear, Judge Dole, Judge Whitney
and other prominent men are expected
to be present and join in the dis
cussiori.
!. One Of the features is expected to
be the presence Of q number Of older
school, children, invitations having
been sent to the senior classes of the
various schools.
At tonight's meerlng Prof. w. "A.
Bryan will present in brief his pro-
posed form of city government which
has several notifications and veria-
tons Of the commission form. The
accompanying small chart shows
graphically the organization Of mu-
nicipal. departments and officials un-
der his plan In his paper embody-
ing these Ideas, Prof. Bryan says:
Charter FOR Honolulu
The council should be composed of
five members Including the mayor
all to be elected for four years. To
establish continuity in the council two
commissioners should be elected BIZ
ennially and the commissioner .desig-
mated as mayor by the council, by
reason Of that fact should be required
10 stand for Endorsement by re-elec-
ton, as commissioner, by the people
after his second year in office. Thus
every two years the voters would
elect or return two new commission.
ers and re-elect or recall the mayor
commissioner then in office, or else
elect three new commissioners. This
plan in practice would admit of a
continuation and Endorsement of an
alteration in the city policy by the
result Of a regular biennial election
without the intervention of general
partisanisna
After six months In office all cleo
tive officers should be subject to a re-
call initiated by q petition stating the
reason for the demand and signed by
at least twenty-five per cent of the
Citizens voting at the last preceding
election
The salary of the commissioners
should be $4,000 per annum, but each
commissioner on election should be al.
lowed discretion, by which IL he
chooses, but with the consent of his
associates, he may divide his salary,
retaining not more than $500 for HIM
self as head of his department, paying
at least $1,000 to an administrative as
sistant to be appointed by him with
the consent and approval of. and sub
ject TO dismissal from the council,
FOR City Manager. -
The council should also have power
after election by a four fifths vote (but
not until sufficient opportunity has
been given for referendum proceedings
If there should develop popular. 'disap-
prevail to appoint a city manager who,
under the council as a body, would be
the administrative head of the city
enforcing territorial and municipal
Notwithstanding to the department
heads written notice of acts of the
council, designating the office to per-
form and carry out the various ordi-
nances of the council, and to be re-
sponsible to the council for the prompt
and business-like execution OF all func-
tons of the city government.
His salary should be not less than
four or five thousand dollars per an
mum and should be paid month by
month from fund made, up pro rata
commissioners. The mayor as the
head of the council would be the cere-
monial head of the city; the manager,
the general business agent of the coun-
Gil.
The commission departments could
we'll be the usual ones adopted else
where. This would save Encouragement
of departments at later date. The
council, however, should have power to
combine and transfer divisions of city
business from one department to an
other in the interest of economy or to
effect better administration.
The department of public affairs
might include such divisions as civil
service, law, city clerk, and publicity
The department of finance and &C
counts would have to do with the work
of the treasurer, department auditors
and assessors. The department of
public safety would include the police,
fire. health and relief divisions. The
public works department would in
clude the engineering, survey, water,