Page 5 - MidWeek Windward - January 25, 2023

I often hear the com- plaint: “Just catch peo- ple setting off illegal
willing to testify. By the time police respond, perpetrators have ceased the illegal activ- ity. Law enforcement needs neighbors to report the crime if they witness it, but the accused neighbor also has a right to know who accused them. This confrontation clause is in both the United States and Hawai‘i constitu- tions. Many neighbors, how- ever, fear retaliation and are hesitant to stand as witness- es. I can’t say I blame them, as the ones setting off fire- works have already shown a disregard for the law.
But can we prevent fire-
works from entering our community in the first place? Nearly all illegal fire- works come through our ports. Legislative attempts to inspect every shipping container coming into the island, with dogs or other technology, have proven im-
I’ve introduced legislation to require inspection on cer- tain more suspect containers and have even proposed in- spections on container ships during transit to not slow down our ports. Hopefully, we can make progress in this legislative session.
during celebrations. Spar- klers and small fireworks, although still having hazard- ous potential, are not as dan- gerous as aerials and give people a pyrotechnic outlet. The fireworks ban is a City & County of Honolulu issue, so this solution would need to originate there.
Hawai‘i is not the only state that condemns the use of fireworks. Massachusetts has completely banned all consumer fireworks, only al- lowing for displays to be put on by professionals. Vermont and Ohio also ban the prac- tice with a $1,000-$2,000 fine if caught, followed by up to 18 months in jail.
Contact state Rep. Scot Matayoshi (District 49 — portions of Kāne‘ohe, Pū‘ōhala Village and Maun- awili — at 808-586-8470 or repmatayoshi@capitol.ha- waii.gov.
fireworks already!” The solution, as always, is more complex. In 2011, the use of fireworks was banned island- wide on O‘ahu, yet firework use has only increased each year. This past New Year made it clear that the ban on fireworks is not effective.
possible.
More than 1.5 million
Another option is legaliz- ing smaller fireworks again and making a renewed effort to enforce the ban on more dangerous aerial fireworks.
Our current ban on fire- works includes a fine of up to $2,000 if caught with less than 25 pounds and up to a year in prison. If caught with more than 25 pounds, per- petrators could be looking at a $10,000 fine and/or five years in prison.
The main reason the issue persists is that it is a difficult ban to enforce. Neighbors know who is setting off fire- works, but unless a police officer sees the violation, they need an eyewitness
containers come through our ports each year (over 4,000 each day on average). Searching each one would re- quire a massive state invest- ment and slow the ports to the point where goods could not get to store shelves.
While this is not a solu- tion many people — or my dogs — want to consider, many families in Hawai‘i view fireworks as a tradition
STATE REP. SCOT MATAYOSHI
Fireworks Getting Worse But What’s The Solution?
JANUARY 25, 2023 5
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