[§201B-2] Hawaii tourism authority; establishment; board; staff. (a) There is established the Hawaii tourism authority, which shall be a body corporate and a public instrumentality of the State, for the purpose of implementing this chapter. The authority shall be placed within the department of business, economic development, and tourism for administrative purposes only.
(b) The authority shall be headed by a board of directors which consists of ten public, voting members, one public, nonvoting member, one ex officio voting member, and one ex officio nonvoting member; provided that:
(1) Ten public, voting members shall be appointed by the governor as provided in section 26-34, except as otherwise provided by law;
(2) The ten public, voting members shall be composed of one representative each from the city and county of Honolulu and the counties of Hawaii, Kauai, and Maui; the remaining public members shall be appointed at- large;
(3) Of the ten public, voting members, two shall be appointed by the governor from a list of three names nominated by the president of the senate, and two shall be appointed by the governor from a list of three names nominated by the speaker of the house of representatives;
(4) At least six of the ten public, voting members shall have knowledge, experience, and expertise in the area of visitor industry management, marketing and promotion;
(5) The governor shall make appointments to ensure the fulfillment of all requirements;
(6) The director of business, economic development, and tourism, or a designated representative, shall be an ex officio voting member;
(7) The director of transportation or a designated representative, shall be an ex officio nonvoting member; and
(8) The governor shall appoint a public, nonvoting member.
(c) The public members shall be appointed by the governor for terms of four years, except that the terms of the members first appointed shall be for two and four years, respectively, as designated by the governor at the time of appointment. Each public member shall hold office until the member's successor is appointed and qualified. Section 26-34 shall be applicable insofar as it relates to the number of terms and consecutive number of years a member may serve on the board.
(d) The board shall elect a chairperson from among the voting members. The director of business, economic development, and tourism shall not be chairperson of the board.
(e) Six voting members shall constitute a quorum, whose affirmative vote shall be necessary for all actions by the authority. The members shall serve without compensation, but shall be reimbursed for expenses, including traveling expenses, necessary for the performance of their duties.
(f) The board shall appoint an executive director, exempt from chapters 76 and 77, who shall oversee the authority staff, and shall be compensated at a salary level set by the governor.
(g) The authority may employ persons not subject to chapters 76, 77, and 78 to perform and execute the functions of the authority. [L 1998, c 156, pt of §2]