Gov. Josh Green on Friday signed a bill into law that will extend the statute of limitations from three years to nine years for the offense of bribery.

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Gov. Josh Green on Friday signed a bill into law that will extend the statute of limitations from three years to nine years for the offense of bribery.

At a ceremony in the state capitol, Green called Senate Bill 2494 “a pretty pretty straightforward piece of legislation.”

“The goal is to combat corruption. You know, there should be no ambiguity,” Green said, adding that the new law — which took effect upon Green’s signature — should help restore public confidence in government.

“When we provide our system the necessary tools to pursue justice, we reaffirm our commitment to leading with integrity,” the governor said.

Senate Commerce and Consumer Affairs Chairman Jarrett Keohoka-lole, an Oahu Democrat, said he authored the bill because of “a cloud hanging over Hawaii government at the beginning of the legislative session.”

The cloud Keohokalole referred to is an ongoing investigation by both federal and state authorities into an unnamed “influential state legislator” who allegedly accepted $35,000 in a paper bag in 2022.

That investigation has so far resulted in Lt. Gov. Sylvia Luke taking an indefinite, unpaid leave of absence after she admitted she received two separate donations of $5,000 each in January 2022 that she failed to disclose.

Luke, then the chair of the powerful House Finance Committee, received the checks at a dinner with her then committee vice chair, former Rep. Ty Cullen — who at the time was working as an FBI informant.

Cullen and former Senate majority leader J. Kalani English both pleaded guilty during the 2022 legislative session of receiving bribes from the late Milton Choy, who owned a Honolulu wastewater company.

English was sentenced to 40 months in prison and Cullen to a lesser sentence of 24 months because of his cooperation with the FBI. Both were released early from federal custody.

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Luke amended her 4-year-old Campaign Spending Commission reports earlier this year to reflect having received the donations, a $5,000 check from Honolulu businessman and lobbyist Tobi Solidum, and another $5,000 check from Solidum’s daughter, Kristen Pae.

According to Luke, she returned the checks in March 2022 but didn’t record them on campaign spending reports due to “clerical oversight.”

Keohokalole said he extended the statute of limitations to give state authorities more time to investigate allegations of corruption and bring charges, if appropriate.

“This was a straightforward way to insure that if there was wrongdoing committed, then the perpetrators could not just run out the clock and avoid accountability and justice,” he said. “Crimes should not go unpunished because of the passage of time. This bill preserves accountability in government at a moment when the public demands it.”

Keohokalole praised Rep. David Tarnas, a Waimea Democrat who chairs the House Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs Committee, who “put a tremendous amount of work into actually getting this bill passed.”

Noting the legislation was passed unanimously in both the House and Senate, Tarnas called the bill “important for building confidence in government.”

“This bill is meant to strengthen our ability to investigate and prosecute bribery while reinforcing the state’s commitment to good governance and accountability,” Tarnas said.

“We’ve had a tough time these past four years, you know,” he said. “Two legislators were indicted for bribery. That’s shameful. As a legislator, it pains me personally because people who work in this Legislature are honorable people. And to have a couple of bad apples spoil the public trust is really unconscionable.

“And so, this bill is to send a message that we have no tolerance for corruption.”

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Email John Burnett at [email protected].