Honolulu City Auditor Resigns Nearly Halfway Through Her 6-Year Term
The City Council has not set a date to start a search for her replacement.
The head of the Honolulu office charged with providing accountability for city institutions is stepping down Friday, nearly three years after assuming the role.
Arushi Kumar, who was appointed to a six-year term in October 2021, said she is moving back to Seattle, citing 鈥渃hanging personal circumstances and family commitments.鈥
She formally informed the City Council of her plans to resign in an Aug. 8 letter to council Chairman Tommy Waters.
No timeframe for a search has been set. Her deputy, Troy Shimasaki, will serve as interim auditor.
鈥淲e have not yet determined when the search will begin, but the designation of an interim auditor will allow us to conduct a thorough search and vetting of the best possible candidates for the position,鈥 council spokesman Kevin Imanaka said in an email.
Kumar 鈥 the third person officially appointed to the job since it was created 鈥 was selected after a search that lasted more than two years. She replaced Edwin Young, who retired in February 2019. Shimasaki, who has been with the office since 2004, also served as interim auditor during that period.
“I’m deeply appreciative of the opportunity provided to me,” she said in an interview. “The staff of the city auditor are truthfully some of the most hard-working and honest folks, who are very committed to the goal of transparency and accountability in a government where that’s not always valued.”
She worries the office may face challenges to its ability to continue its work in an independent manner as mandated in the city charter.
鈥淚 hope that the City Council continues to provide the appropriate support so that the office can continue to support transparency and accountability in city government,鈥 Kumar said Wednesday in an interview.
Imanaka said the city auditor鈥檚 work is an important component of ensuring public trust.
鈥淲e are looking forward to announcing the new auditor when that selection is made and are confident that the important work of the auditor鈥檚 office will continue seamlessly,鈥 he said.
The office鈥檚 main duties include audits investigating the fiscal activity and performance of city agencies and programs. Kumar鈥檚 salary was $187,488.
The last audit during Kumar鈥檚 tenure was released Thursday, finding that the Honolulu Police Commission鈥檚 oversight of HPD has been 鈥渋nconsistent and ineffective.鈥
In previous years, her office conducted audits showing problems with Honolulu鈥檚 Covid pandemic relief spending, efforts to fill thousands of city job vacancies and HPD’s overtime policies, among others.
The office, which has a dozen other employees, was created approved by voters in 2002.
Read Kumar’s resignation letter below:
