City, state came in under budget on APEC spending

Hosting the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation in November cost the city and state less than half of what was budgeted for the high-profile international event; but both governments still are waiting on approval of millions of dollars in federal reimbursements.

The city spent roughly $21 million of the $43 million that it had set aside to pay for APEC, which brought President Barack Obama and heads of state from 20 other nations to Hono­lulu, Mayor Peter Carlisle said yesterday.

"Hosting APEC was a challenging task, and Hono­lulu did a remarkable job," Carlisle said. "We made sure everything was in place to ensure a safe, smooth event that made Hono­lulu proud, while keeping expenses to a minimum."

Carlisle said unspent APEC funds would offset increased electricity and fuel costs for city operations, costs that rose by 30 percent in 2011 due to increased world energy prices.

Likewise, the state only spent about $2.7 million of a projected $7.5 million, said state Adjutant General Darryll Wong.

"We were prepared to spend more to protect people and property during APEC but were able to avoid doing that because we had few problems," Wong said.

"The security plan set in place by the Secret Service and local and federal law enforcement officials was well thought out and effective."

More than two-thirds of the state’s APEC funds were spent on National Guard and State Civil Defense activities, while $10.5 million in APEC-related costs spent by the Hono­lulu Police Department accounted for the city’s biggest event expenditure.

The city and state have applied for the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s National Special Security Event grants to help defray costs, Wong said. The city has asked for about $5.2 million in qualified National Special Security Event reimbursements, and the state has asked for about $2.7 million, he said.

Together the city and state have asked for more than the $7.48 million in National Special Security Event funds that FEMA may distribute this year, Wong said. However the city and state budgeted about $2.2 million in Department of Homeland Security Funds in 2010 to cover potential APEC shortfalls, he said.

While the state is waiting for its FEMA reimbursement, it has asked the Hawaii Legislature to provide $2.7 million in interim support, Wong said.

"This emergency appropriation is truly just an interim measure until we can draw on the NSSE grant," he said.

On Tuesday the state Senate Committee on Public Safety, Government Operations and Military Affairs passed SB 2771 without amendments and forwarded it to the Senate Ways and Means Committee for consideration. Its companion bill, HB 2509, has not been heard in the House.

"This funding request was not unanticipated or unusual," said state Sen. Will Espero, who chairs the Senate public safety committee. "This was for a necessary expense. It goes to the question of the value of APEC to our state and its economy."

Espero said lawmakers are working to ensure that there will be no negative impact on the budget if the state has to draw from the general fund prior to receiving the anticipated National Special Security Event funds.