Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2003

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Water, Land, and Agriculture, to which was referred Governor's Message No. 311, submitting for study and consideration the nomination of:

begs leave to report as follows:

Upon review of the background information submitted by the nominee, your Committee finds that Rae McCorkle earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from San Francisco State University and a law degree from Gonzaga University School of Law. She held two prestigious law clerk positions, one with the Hawaii Supreme Court, before joining the law firm of McCorriston Miller Mukai MacKinnon. There she was a litigation partner, but retired this year. Ms. McCorkle has been active in community, business, and professional organizations, including the Federal Bar Association, the American Bar Association Tort and Insurance Practice Session Auto Law Committee, Criminal Justice Act Federal Review Panel, Junior League of Honolulu, Young Republicans, and the Hawaii Opera Guild. She has volunteered for the Drugs and Kids Program, Hawaii Bar Association Pro Bono Legal Program, Child Advocacy Center, Court Annexed Arbitration Program, and is a pro bono counsel for Hawaii International Child.

Testimony in support of the nominee was submitted to your Committee by: the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations; the Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii; Urban Land Institute Hawaii; AIG Hawaii Insurance Company, Inc.; Speech and Language Pathology Associates; Pacific Century Fellows; Hawaii International Child; and eighteen community members. The Sierra Club submitted comments on the nominee.

Your Committee members diligently questioned the nominee regarding her administrative qualifications, her vision and priorities for the Land Use Commission (LUC), and related policy issues presently before the Legislature. In addition, your Committee questioned Ms. McCorkle about any possible conflicts of interest between her past position as the Governor's finance director and her position on the LUC, which will require decision-making on potentially profitable land use petitions. Ms. McCorkle responded that her job as campaign finance director ended upon the Governor's election, and that the LUC has a code of ethics which she would abide by, as well as following advice from the Attorney General on a case-by-case basis. Your Committee finds that the nominee has a good reputation for ethical decisions, including taking a leave of absence from her partnership in a law firm and resigning her leadership positions from the Federal Bar Association and American Bar Association before taking the campaign finance director position. Ms. McCorkle has since retired from her partnership with the law firm.

Your Committee finds that Ms. McCorkle's critical thinking skills, experience with interviewing people and gaining background information, and ability to learn new, complicated subject matter thoroughly and quickly will enable her to understand the varied and complex issues that come before the LUC. She is known as an able consensus builder who is both able to listen and to communicate well.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Water, Land, and Agriculture that is attached to this report, your Committee, after full consideration of the background, character, experience, and qualifications of the nominee, has found the nominee to be qualified for the position to which nominated and recommends that the Senate advise and consent to the nomination.