The Hawaii County Fire Commission chose battalion chief Kazuo Todd as fire chief gain April 14, following a revote amid transparency concerns, according to a press report.
Todd has been with the department for 16 years, most recently serving as a battalion chief after overseeing the West Hawaii Fire Prevention Bureau. Previously he was a fire inspector for two years after six years as a firefighter/EMT.
“I really want to have a department that’s focused on clear, consistent, transparent communication that is multi-channeled so we are getting the message out, whether it be within the department or externally of the department, to our stakeholders, the public, the media and through Facebook so people know what’s going on and why we're doing it and also how we stack up against other departments,” Todd said following the vote.
The fire commission, reportedly one of only a few county commissions that don't stream meetings online, had been holding executive sessions to discuss the candidates. At the last meeting it conducted the vote behind closed doors.
The commission has since thrown out its March 10 choice of the county's next fire chief after questions were raised regarding the board's ratification of an executive session vote.
The county charter and the state's sunshine law allows commission members to enter executive sessions to interview candidates and discuss personnel decisions “where consideration of matters affecting privacy will be involved,” according to state law.
Hilo City Councilman Aaron Chung says state laws and laws on privacy are important, but transparency should be prioritized.
“The overriding interest is the public’s interest to know what’s going on,” Chung said. “I’m not questioning the selection at all. It’s the process by which they made the selection.”
The fire chief is appointed by the fire commission, which is made up of nine members (one from each district) appointed by the Hilo mayor and confirmed by the city council. The position oversees 470 employees and a $52 million annual budget, according to the state charter.
Duties of the commission include reviewing the budget prepared by the chief and making recommendations to the mayor, managing director and council, examining the fire department's operations to recommend improvements and reviewing staff to ensure they properly adhere to current policies.
Additional duties include hearing resident complaints regarding actions taken by the fire department or its staff and recommending corrective actions.
Current members include Shon Magsalin, Kyle Keamo, Gregory Henkel, Danny Paleka, Gene Nakashima, Wesley Mattos, Benjamin Agdeppa and Corey Luke. There is one vacancy.