State Sen. Donna Mercado Kim has refused a University of Hawaii Board of Regents request to postpone a Sept. 24 hearing into the Stevie Wonder concert debacle.

In addition, she put the regents and administration on notice that "we trust (they) will cooperate with the committee to restore the public’s trust and confidence in the state’s only public institution of higher learning."

Asked whether she was concerned that one or more of the requested subjects — regents Chairman Eric Martinson, UH President M.R.C. Greenwood, former athletic director Jim Donovan or representatives from the Cades Schutte law firm, who compiled a UH-commissioned report — might not appear, Kim said, "Yes, I thought of that possibility. I’ve been hearing things through the grapevine."

UH did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The Senate Special Committee on Accountability, which last week declared its intention to hold hearings, on Wednesday announced a 1 p.m. session on Sept. 24. It does not have subpoena powers, according to the Senate president’s office.

Later Wednesday the UH regents emerged from an executive session at their Windward Community College meeting to announce the formation of a committee to "evaluate the university’s operational and financial controls and oversight practices."

UH said it sent Kim (D, Kalihi Valley-Halawa) a letter announcing the commissioning of the yet-to-be-composed committee.

Kim said she received the letter Wednesday and "that they wanted us to hold off (hearings) until after that committee" rendered its report. UH had held out a target date of Oct. 18 for the public release of the report.

But Kim said, "we had already posted the agenda prior to getting that" and she said she saw no reason "to wait two months."

Moreover, Kim said, "It (the (UH committee) doesn’t really go to the heart of what it is that the public wanted, certainly transparency and accountability for some of the decisions that were made."

Kim said, "It seems like what they are doing (commissioning a committee) is great, and it probably needs to be done and will probably assist us more so into the legislative session, but as far as things that took place up to this point, I think the public wants some accountability in this and wants to see what went on and what’s happening with our money and so forth."

She added, "I don’t see the harm of two processes going on at the same time, which is what I said to them in my letter (of reply)."

The Senate committee will accept written testimony from the public (10-mega-byte limit) at SCATestimony@capitol.hawaii.gov.