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Commission split over Sunshine Law appeals, minutes and meeting conduct; OIP guidance sought

Elections Commission · January 8, 2026
AI-Generated Content: All content on this page was generated by AI to highlight key points from the meeting. For complete details and context, we recommend watching the full video. so we can fix them.

Summary

A series of Sunshine Law appeals and public-record requests prompted split votes and heated debate over meeting minutes, the chair's discretion to mute or remove speakers, and whether the deputy attorney general's draft responses should be authorized — several draft responses failed to gain the commission's approval.

The commission considered multiple appeals under Hawaii's Sunshine Law and public-record statutes alleging violations that included denial of public testimony on agenda items, selective distribution of documents to commissioners, and ejection or muting of a commissioner during deliberations. The deputy attorney general submitted draft responses to several appeals; commissioners repeatedly split on whether to authorize those drafts.

Key dispute areas included:…

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