Leadership shuffle at Legislature could shape Hawaii gun control debate

State Sen. Karl Rhoads is expected to take over as chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee and state Rep. Chris Lee is expected to become head of the House Judiciary Committee in a leadership shuffle at the Legislature that could shape the debate on gun control in Hawaii in the years ahead.

Rhoads and Lee have both supported bills to tighten Hawaii’s firearm laws, including the so-called Rap Back system of “continuous background checks” for gun owners that passed in 2016, and a bill approved this year to ban “bump stock” devices that can be used to modify some rifles to simulate automatic weapons fire.

The House and Senate Judiciary committees are generally considered among the most powerful at the Legislature.

One issue that may surface at the Legislature next year is “open carry” of firearms in public, which is the subject of a lawsuit working its way through the courts.

A three-member panel at the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals on July 24 struck down a Hawaii law that limited open carry privileges to people “engaged in the protection of life and property,” declaring the law to be unconstitutional. The court also prohibited Hawaii County from enforcing the law.

Rhoads has said that allowing open carry of firearms is a “terrible idea,” and would make Hawaii more dangerous.

Sources familiar with the House and Senate reorganization said current Senate Judiciary Chairman Brian Taniguchi plans to take control of the Senate Labor Committee, a slot that will be vacated by Sen. Jill Tokuda when she leaves office. Tokuda, (D, Kailua-Kaneohe), made an unsuccessful run for lieutenant governor this year.

The move by Taniguchi, (D, Makiki-Tantalus-Manoa), will clear the way for Rhoads to take charge of the Senate Judiciary Committee. That committee handles matters related to criminal and civil law, and also vets the nominations of most judges before the candidates are put to confirmation votes in the full Senate.

In the House, Judiciary Chairman Scott Nishimoto said he fulfilled his commitment to handle that job for two years, and now wants to try another position.

Lee, (D, Kailua-Lanikai- Waimanalo) is expected to replace Nishimoto, and state Rep. Nicole Lowen is expected to take charge of the House Energy and Environmental Protection Committee that is now headed by Lee.

The proposed changes in committee leadership would not become official until after the general election and Rhoads declined to discuss them in an interview. Taniguchi and Lee did not respond to requests for comment.

Rhoads, (D, Downtown-Nuuanu-Liliha), is a lawyer who previously served as House Judiciary chairman. He has also been an outspoken advocate for Hawaii’s gun control laws, which are among the strictest in the nation.

In the open carry case, the 9th Circuit Court ruled 2-1 that the U.S. Constitution’s Second Amendment right to “keep and bear arms” creates a core right for citizens to carry firearms for self- defense outside of their homes or businesses.

During arguments in the case, a lawyer for Hawaii County admitted that to his knowledge no one other than security guards “or someone similarly employed” had ever been issued an open carry license by the chief of police on Hawaii island, according to the decision.

That restricts the “right” to open carry to a select few, and therefore forecloses law-abiding citizens from exercising a core constitutional right, according to the court decision. The state and county have asked the court to reconsider the decision.

Hawaii Rifle Association President Harvey Gerwig said lawmakers next year may consider passing new limits on open carry of firearms that would survive a legal challenge. The 9th Circuit decision acknowledged the right to carry a gun in public is subject to some regulation, such as prohibiting firearms in schools or government buildings.

For instance, Gerwig said the state may impose new training requirements for people who seek an open carry permit, an approach that has been used in other states. “What we don’t want is a bunch of criteria above and beyond the fact that you are a legal gun owner,” he said. “That should be the only criteria.”

Gerwig said his organization anticipates lawmakers will be “anti-gun” next year because of the recent series of highly publicized mass shootings on the mainland.

“We would just really prefer that instead of making all these rampant nonsense laws that only impact the legal gun owners, that they go out and go after the criminals,” he said. “None of this stuff has any impact on the criminals. Let’s focus on getting to the criminals, not your most law-abiding segment of society — the legal gun owners in Hawaii. It’s just nonsense.”

The HRA won’t be introducing its own proposals to crack down on criminals, but Gerwig said there are “tons and tons of laws on the books that could take care of the criminals. They aren’t taking care of the criminals because there’s not enough bodies in the police force to make it happen.”

In other changes in the works at the state Capitol, state Rep. Joy San Buenaventura, (D, Pahoa-Kalapana) is to become chairwoman of the House committee on Human Services and Homelessness, while state Sen. Russell Ruderman would be chairman of the Senate Human Services Committee, according to lawmakers who asked that they not be identified.

Rep. John Mizuno will be chairman of the House Health Committee. Mizuno, (D, Kamehameha Heights- Kalihi Valley), is currently chairman of the combined Health and Human Services Committee, which would be split into two committees next year.

State Sen. Donna Mercado Kim, (D, Kalihi Valley- Moanalua-Halawa) is expected to become chairwoman of the Senate Higher Education Committee, and state Sen. Kai Kahele would become chairman of the Senate Water and Land Committee.

State Sen. Stanley Chang (D, Diamond Head-Kahala- Hawaii Kai), is expected to become chairman of the Senate Housing Committee.