Name on ballot:

Bill DeCosta

Running for:

Political party:

Nonpartisan

Campaign website:

N/A

Current occupation:

State Environmental Resource Teacher

Age:

55 years old

Previous job history:

No answer submitted

Previous elected office, if any:

Never held office

Please describe your qualifications to represent the voters of your county.

Local resident, married for 23 yrs, raising 3 sons, have two bachelor degrees, economics and education, local cattle and goat farmer, property owner, and I love our culture and people of Kaua’i and Ni’ihau!

What will be your top priority if elected?

Create a farm to live community where residents can obtain a long term lease on state or private land (20-50 yr lease) to farm produce and live stock to be processed at a community certified kitchen / Slaughter house and it can be sold locally at our community coop store and or export legally to other islands, states, or countries. Our farmers will be able to grow grains to feed their live stock, build and live off the grid in single wall unregulated plantation style homes, with a tertiary (3 times processed) septic system that is the leader in clean, environmentally friendly potable water that is able use in your garden, does not hurt our watershed table and used in your household. These farmers will be able to have a 9-5 job and farm on their own time. Our high schools and community college students will supply work to graduate helpers. These students will learn and deliver skilled duties that will assist in all aspects of farming, from cultivating, carpentry, mechanical, electrical, and many other responsibilities.

As Hawaii faces the COVID-19 pandemic, what more should county government do to protect residents’ health?

Follow CDC guidelines, pre and post testing, have our tourists quarantine to areas in and around the hotel, like beaches and restaurants in walking distance. Any movement by tourists will be in shuttles. Tourists will come in traveling groups every week so we can monitor their group locations and movements. If they decide to stay longer then 2 weeks, a third test needs to prove a negative result and only then can they move throughout our island in a rental car and stay at a vacation rental.

What should county government do to help residents who have been economically affected by the pandemic?

Our County officials can have discussions with our utility companies to give a break on their bills, a payment plan is not enough. Our county can make sure we have food agencies ready to support our struggling families. Our mortgage companies are already working with their borrowers.

Should public worker furloughs, pay cuts or downsizing be used to help the county deal with lower tax revenues and higher expenses during the pandemic? Why or why not?

If any cuts should and need to be made, we need to cut from the top administrators down. This is our last resort but people needs to understand, if we have less money coming in through tourism, then we need to generate other income and or cut our expenses.

What specific solutions do you propose to combat homelessness?

In my previous answer to my first priority in council, I would create a farm to live community. Within this community, our functioning homeless will be able to earn a work spot on the farm and have a tiny home or shed with hygienic facilities and meals on the farm provided by farm to table foods. We need to get off of government dependency programs.

Do you support reforms to policing in Hawaii? If yes, please explain what reforms you support.

Personally, I feel like our police department on Kaua’i has held a respectable relationship with its community but there always is room for improvement. Kaua’i County Police Department should address any misconduct and have all administrators and officers held to the highest standard of accountability.

Is there anything more that you would like voters to know about you?

I am a genuine man with integrity and a hard working demeanor. I have a high set of morals and values that I Practice. I have a visionary ability to think out of the box and the drive to carry out my actions. When I was the Waimea High School Wood shop teacher, we build many projects for the county and state and private sectors with my students. We made picnic tables for our county parks, we built natural wood signs for DLNR, and our schools, we built wood lawn furniture for the private sector, we air layered new Koke’e plums trees to add to our state park inventory for our community, and many more. I am a man of action.