Honolulu Council overrides mayor's veto, expands sit-lie ban
Source: Associated Press
Honolulu Council overrides mayor's veto, expands sit-lie ban
By CATHY BUSSEWITZ, Associated Press | June 3, 2015 | Updated: June 3, 2015 10:17pm
HONOLULU (AP) — Honolulu is expanding its ban on sitting and lying down in public places to additional parts of the city, despite Mayor Kirk Caldwell's veto. The City Council voted 6-3 Wednesday to override the veto and enact its recent bill that expands the ban to additional locations.
The island first banned reclining on sidewalks in commercial parts of Waikiki, after the tourism industry complained that the city's problem with homelessness was deterring some visitors from returning to its iconic beaches.
Caldwell vetoed the sit-lie expansion bill last month because it took the ban from commercial zones to areas off sidewalks, such as the bank of a canal where a small tent city emerged. That could make the city vulnerable to legal challenges, and he doesn't want to jeopardize current city laws that ban sitting and lying down in Waikiki and other parts of Oahu, he said.
"If they make an argument that this legislation is based on targeting homeless, and not about commerce and business, then the whole bill is jeopardized," Caldwell told reporters Wednesday after the vote. Even so, he vowed to enforce the new law and defend it if challenged. The bill goes into effect immediately.
Read more: http://www.chron.com/news/us/article/Honolulu-Council-override-veto-of-sit-lie-ban-6305173.php
= new reply since forum marked as read
