HOW TO TESTIFY

All forms of testimony are part of the public record. Written testimony will be distributed to all Councilmembers, will be available for public review, and may be posted on the council’s website.

WRITTEN TESTIMONY
Council meetings are staffed by the Office of the County Clerk, while committee meetings are staffed by the Office of Council Services. To ensure its distribution prior to the meeting, written testimony relating to a meeting agenda item should be received by noon on the business day preceding the meeting. If written testimony is not submitted electronically but is submitted at the meeting site, 16 copies are requested to ensure distribution at the meeting, except 18 copies are requested for testimony submitted for the annual budget session.

EMAIL TESTIMONY – COUNCIL MEETINGS
For Council meetings, testimony may be sent to the Office of the County Clerk at county.clerk@mauicounty.us or (808) 270-7171 (fax).

ECOMMENT TESTIMONY – COMMITTEE MEETINGS
For Committee meetings, testimony may be submitted via eComment.  For instructions on how to use eComment, please visit MauiCounty.us/eComment.

In the event testimony cannot be submitted via eComment, testimony may be sent to the relevant committee email address, as noted in the contact information section of each Committee’s webpage: MauiCounty.us/Committees.

If you have any questions or need assistance submitting your testimony, please email the appropriate committee email address.

ORAL TESTIMONY
Each testifier shall be given an equal amount of time to testify on each agenda item. An individual’s request to testify shall be deemed withdrawn if the individual does not answer when called to testify. Testimony shall pertain to items on the meeting agenda. Testifiers shall direct their remarks to the presiding officer and not to any individual Councilmembers or person in the audience.

REMOTE TESTIMONY SITES
Testimony may be received from Council district offices when stated on the meeting notice.

SPECIAL ASSISTANCE
People with disabilities requiring special accommodations should contact the Office of the County Clerk for Council meetings or the Office of Council Services for committee meetings at least three working days prior to the meeting date.

DOCUMENTS ON FILE
Documents relating to the agenda items posted on a meeting notice may be inspected prior to the meeting date. Photocopies may be ordered, subject to charges imposed by law (Maui County Code, Sec. 2.64.010). Please contact the Office of the County Clerk for Council meetings or the Office of Council Services for committee meetings to make arrangements for inspection or photocopying of documents.

TIPS ON PREPARING TESTIMONY

State your position.
Councilmembers want to know: Is the testifier in support or opposition, requesting an amendment or just providing information? Consider clearly stating your position at both the beginning and ending of your testimony.

Be concise.
Councilmembers receive a significant amount of verbal and written testimony. They consider each piece of testimony, but concise arguments help them to focus and remember key points.

Include supporting material or detailed descriptions as attachments.
Beyond the body of your testimony, you may have additional supporting facts to provide to Councilmembers. Consider appending them to your testimony, whether in email or printed form.

Prepare a written summary of your oral testimony.
If you plan on providing oral testimony, consider preparing a written summary of your comments as well. This allows Councilmembers to reference your comments later in the meeting and allows them to concentrate on listening to your testimony instead of trying to take notes.

Be respectful and courteous to others.
Although everyone may not agree on everything, every viewpoint is valued and respected. As a community that embodies the word “Aloha,” we should be able to disagree while still respecting and listening to the opinions of others.

Offer solutions.
The challenge to addressing a problem is finding the solution. Often the best solutions come from those in the community with the best knowledge of a situation. Sharing solutions in your testimony helps the Councilmembers to solve problems.