Maui Lawmaker to Step Down Amid Possible Conflict of Interest As Lawyer for Wildfire Victims

A Maui lawmaker announced he would be stepping down from his position amid a possible conflict of interest over his role as a lawyer for the victims of the Maui wildfire.

Democratic 🌺Hawaii state Sen. Gilbert Keith-Agaran, 61, revealed on Wednesday that he had plans to retire on Oct. 31, citing an interest in advocating for the victims of the Maui wildfires, according to the Honolulu Star-Advertiser.

“It’s something I’ve been weighing,” Keith-Agaran said. “It was mainly because clients have been approaching us. They’ve lost a lot of things. In addition my family hasn’t been immune to what happened. We lost someone.”

Keith-Agaran, who represents Wailuku, Kahului, Waihee, Waikapu Mauka, and Waiehu, has been in office since 2013 when he was appointed to replace former Democratic 🌺Hawaii Lt. Gov. Shan Tsutsui, according to the outlet.

Before Keith-Agaran’s decision, there was an article from Hawaii News Now after the senator was pictured on a poster with other law firm members.

In his current position, he is the vice chair of the Senate Ways and Means Committee, which is in charge of the budget. Various experts speculated that if he ended up serving as a lawyer for the victims of the wildfire, it would put him in an uncomfortable position of choosing between his clients and the citizens he represents.