HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.R. NO.	119
TWENTY-EIGHTH LEGISLATURE, 2015
STATE OF HAWAII

HOUSE RESOLUTION

 

 

REQUESTING THE AUDITOR TO CONDUCT A FINANCIAL AND MANAGEMENT AUDIT OF THE HONOLULU AUTHORITY FOR RAPID TRANSPORTATION.

 

 

 

     WHEREAS, the Honolulu Rail Transit Project, referred to as the largest public works project in the State's history, is a 20-mile elevated rail transit project spanning from East Kapolei to Ala Moana Center and is scheduled to be completed by 2019; and

 

     WHEREAS, paying for this $5.2 billion project includes $1.55 billion that was awarded to the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation (HART) by the Federal Transit Administration, a half-percent general excise tax and use tax surcharge for rail that has been collected since 2007, and funds from other federal and locally-generated sources; and

 

     WHEREAS, HART, a semi-autonomous public transit authority approved by voters in 2010, is responsible for the planning, construction, operation, and extension of the rail system; and

 

     WHEREAS, with construction underway, budgetary and funding concerns threaten the continued viability of the rail transit project, with costs to construct the rail transit project outpacing money coming in from federal and state sources, huge shortfalls in the budget, delays in construction, cost overruns, and anticipated construction cost increases; and

 

WHEREAS, the reported nearly $1 billion shortfall, and size and projected growth of the rail transit project necessitates a financial and management audit of HART for internal accountability and public transparency, particularly at a time when public discussion and deliberation centers on the fiscal soundness and continued viability of this project; now, therefore,
     BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-eighth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2015, that the Auditor is requested to conduct a financial and management audit of HART's governance and operations; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the audit examine, at a minimum, the following:

 

(1)  HART's management and operations with respect to HART's financial and management policies, practices, and processes associated with the plans, design, bidding, and construction of the Honolulu Rail Transit Project;

 

(2)  HART's financial plan and related systems of accounting and internal controls;

 

(3)  The contracts awarded and expenditures associated with the rail transit project contracts, including payments to contractors, subcontractors, and consultants, and what the expenditures are being used for;

 

(4)  The factors contributing to cost increases, cost inflation, and cost escalation of the rail transit project, including delays in the project; change orders; requirements affecting the planning, design, bidding, and construction of the project; work restrictions; and bidding procedures; and

 

(5)  Cost containment measures, efficacy of fiscal operations and decisions, and other actions HART has taken to mitigate the burgeoning costs and shortfalls of the rail transit project; and

 

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Auditor is requested to submit to the Legislature a report of the completed audit, including its findings and recommendations, no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2016; and
     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Governor, Mayor of the City and County of Honolulu, Council Members of the Honolulu City Council, Acting Auditor, and Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer of HART.

 

 

 

	OFFERED BY:	_____________________________

Report Title: 

Financial and Management Audit; Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation