Wrapping up what has been an occasionally contentious 2009 with quite possibly its most heated meeting to date, the Kaua‘i Board of Ethics on Thursday laid out the path it will take on its way to clarifying a controversial section of the County Charter.

What first began as a declaratory order has become a draft interpretive rule, and upon further advice from the Office of the County Attorney, could be destined to become a proposed ordinance for deliberation by the Kaua‘i County Council.

The rule, like the declaratory order drafted by board Vice Chair Mark Hubbard, would define some key terms left unclear by Charter Section 20.02D, which bars county officials from appearing on behalf of private interests before other county agencies.

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Source: Michael Levine, The Garden Island