I’ve been noodling around with the financial disclosures of Honolulu city officials, available online via the Honolulu City Clerk’s office, and thought I would take you along for a tour of their system.

These public financial disclosure reports have to be filed by candidates for elected city offices as they start their campaigns, and annually by elected city officials, along with top appointed officials (department directors and deputy directors).

If you are not familiar with the requirements for financial disclosure, there are a number of categories of financial interests and assets that hve to be reported. Here’s the complete text laying out the disclosure requirements (Section 1-19.4 Revised Ordinances of Honolulu).

(c) The disclosure of financial interests shall state, in addition to the financial interests of the person disclosing, the financial interests of the person’s spouse and dependent children, and shall include:

(1) The source and amount of all income of $1,000 or more received, for services rendered, by the person in such person’s own name or by any other person for such person’s use or benefit during the preceding calendar year and the nature of the services rendered; provided that information that may be privileged by law or individual items of compensation that constitute a portion of the gross income of the business or profession from which the person derives income need not be disclosed;

(2) The name of each creditor to whom the value of $3,000 or more was owed during the preceding calendar year and the original amount and amount outstanding; provided that debts arising out of retail installment transactions for the purchase of consumer goods need not be disclosed;

(3) The amount and identity of every ownership or beneficial interests held during the disclosure period in any business incorporated, regulated, or licensed to carry on business in the State having a value of $5,000 or more or equal to 10 percent of the ownership of the business and, if the interest was transferred during the preceding calendar year, the date of the transfer; provided that an interest in the form of an account in a federal or State regulated financial institution, an interest in the form of a policy in a mutual insurance company, or individual items in a mutual fund or a blind trust, if the mutual fund or blind trust has been disclosed pursuant to this paragraph, need not be disclosed;

(4) Every officership, directorship, trusteeship, or other fiduciary relationship held in a business during the preceding calendar year, the term of office and the annual compensation;

(5) The street address, if any, the tax map key number, if any, and the value of any real property in the City and County of Honolulu in which the person holds an interest whose value is $10,000 or more, and if the interest was transferred or obtained during the preceding calendar year, a statement of the amount and nature of the consideration received or paid in exchange for such interest, and the name of the person furnishing or receiving the consideration; provided that public disclosure shall not be required of the street address and tax map key number of the person’s residence;

(6) The amount and identity of every creditor interest in an insolvent business held during the preceding calendar year having a value of $5,000 or more; and

(7) The names of clients personally represented before city agencies, except in ministerial matters, for a fee or compensation during the preceding calendar year and the names of the city agencies involved.

When you click on the link provided above, you’ll end up at a page that contains electronic versions of financial disclosures grouped by year, currently showing 2018 through 2024.

Just for fun, take a look at the folder for 2024. These were filed in January 2024, although some may have been amended subsequent to the initial filing.

On the first page, there are several city officials who filed disclosures for 2024, and then had to file candidate disclosures when they ran for reelection (including Prosecutor Steve Alm, Mayor Rick Blangiardi, and several city council members).

Browse around a bit. You’ll be surprised at how much you can tell about someone from their financial disclosures.

Perhaps check the person who represents you and your district on the city council.

Don’t know who your council member is? Enter your home address on this “Find my councilmember” page, and you’ll get the answer.

This is the Honolulu site. The state, and each county, maintain their own systems for similar financial disclosure.

Although the legislature had mandated state and county ethics codes in a 1967 bill, ethics and the requirements for financial disclosure were elevated to constitutional status when the reform-minded Constitutional Convention proposed adding a section to the Hawaii State Constitution requiring the legislature, the state and counties, along with future Constitutional Conventions, to adopt a code of ethics that includes financial disclosures, among other provisions.

Voters approved the change, which now makes up Article XIV of the Hawaii Constitution.

The bottom line: In Hawaii, we have a constitutional right to expect our public officials and employees to display the highest standards of ethical conduct.

I’ll circle around later comment a bit further on the issue of financial disclosures, but for now thought it would be useful to share this basic info and invite you to explore further on your own.