Editorial: Hawaii Gov. David Ige flouts public’s right to records

In response to the first signs of COVID-19’s spread here in mid-March, Gov. David Ige suspended Hawaii’s public records law — even before ordering the 14-day quarantine for people traveling to the islands or the first round of stay-at-home, work-from-home orders.

It’s troubling that the governor ranked shutting down this avenue of public inquiry, thereby blocking government transparency, as a top-of-mind emergency action. Contrary to Ige’s close-to-the-chest impulse, his administration’s decision-making process on coronavirus-related public health and safety concerns warrants more, not less, openness.

Among the declined open records requests is one submitted in May by The Associated Press, which asks Ige’s office to provide copies of communications about the virus that his staff exchanged with the state Department of Health, the tourism industry and other organizations.

In response to similar requests the AP filed with governors’ offices across the U.S. — amid a critical period when they were considering reopening plans after sweeping coronavirus closures — thousands of pages of emails were provided to the nonprofit news agency. They showed that governors were “inundated with reopening advice from a wide range of industries, and sometimes allowed businesses to help write the rules for their own operations.”

The AP received records at no cost from at least 15 states.

That sort of response is needed here. So, it’s frustrating, yet not surprising, that Hawaii is among the states that still haven’t budged in providing records, citing delays in complying with open-records laws because of the virus. The response from Ige’s office: “When the suspension is lifted … and normal government operations have resumed, your request will be addressed.”

Well, there’s no chance of so-called “normal” government operations resuming in the foreseeable future. But surely, COVID-19 should not touch off a prolonged standstill of vital work at Hawaii’s Office of Information Practices (OIP), which is tasked with administering the public records law, or Uniform Information Practices Act.

Now in place for five months, the governor’s suspension is well overdue for lifting. Citizens kept in the dark about the workings of government are deprived of information for much-needed public debate on matters of pressing community concern.

And amid policy missteps, the Ige administration’s lack of transparency has resulted in confusion and an eroding of public confidence in our state’s handling of the COVID-19 crisis.

To help set matters right, Ige should direct the OIP to swiftly comply with the AP’s request, starting with release of Health Department communications about COVID-19 testing, contact tracing and health-care system capacity. Public review of these key elements can inform further steps in effectively curbing virus spread. With more secrecy, more missteps are likely.

On the economic front, since April, Alan Oshima, former chief executive of Hawaiian Electric Co., has been serving as Ige’s point man to helm recovery. Since then, however, the public has had only a murky view of short-term and long-term recovery plans, especially those tied to the now-flattened tourism sector.

Given that Oahu is entering a second round of extensive business shutdown come Thursday, the public is due a candid reckoning on strategy thus far mapped out by Oshima, Ige’s appointed “recovery and resiliency navigator” — as well as by leadership at the state Department of Business Economic Development and Tourism, which has been vague during this marathon effort to build a new normal.

For the sake of protecting our open government standards, which support the public’s right to keep tabs on government actions and funds, the Ige administration must step up transparency and adhere to public access law.