Emails Show Hanabusa Was Doing Rail Work Before She Got A Big Contract … Colleen Hanabusa says she drafted bills and monitored legislation on her own, not because she expected a contract or financial reward from the transit board.
Months before she was awarded a lucrative rail-consulting contract, former Hawaii Congresswoman Colleen Hanabusa was already doing some of the work envisioned in that deal to help the rail agency’s governing board, newly released emails show.
Specifically, Hanabusa was drafting bills for state lawmakers to consider in the 2021 legislative session that aimed to fix the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation board’s quorum and voting challenges, which occasionally hamper the board’s ability to take action for the beleaguered transit project.
HART emails obtained through a public records request by Civil Beat on Tuesday further indicate Hanabusa was monitoring legislation during the most recent session on the rail agency’s behalf.
