Honolulu Council Chair Tommy Waters is taking advantage of an ambiguity in the City Charter and hoping the courts don’t rule against his effort to get reelected.

Mayor Rick Blangiardi said he would veto the part of the city’s budget that cuts positions from the Office of Economic Revitalization.

Members of the public had little opportunity to comment on the raises, which are paid for with their tax dollars.

The provisional account would be used for covering disaster relief and routine operations.

Salary commissioners say the pay bumps are necessary to keep pace with public sector union raises and to ensure salaries are on par with officials’ job duties.

If approved, it would be the third raise in three years for top city officials. 

Mayor Rick Blangiardi pledged Wednesday night to make city services work faster for Oʻahu’s residents.

With 1 in 5 city jobs unfilled, some departments would lose millions of dollars while others would lose nothing.

After years of budget increases as the city emerged from the pandemic, this year the mayor proposed a lower budget than last year’s.

As the city housing program behind it comes under the microscope, the Makiki building has struggled to clear the last bureaucratic hurdles.