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Friday, March 11, 2011
March 11, 2011 News Read
By Andrew Walden @ 4:09 PM :: 6024 Views

Kyodo: Honshu Quake ruptures 150 miles of crust, over 1,000 feared dead

Photos: Chunks of asphalt litter Alii Drive

Tsunami: Kahului 6ft, Hilo 4.3ft at 4AM, minor flooding reported

Foreclosures: Rep Fontaine opens up Direct Line to Bank Assistance

Hawaii Judiciary seeks non-attorney to oversee Dishonest Lawyers

VIDEO: House debates Taxes, Ground Leases, Transmission Cable, DUI Interlock, Boat Tours

Hawaii Responds to U.S. Supreme Court in Nader Ballot Access Case

Hawaii Robotics Teams Compete across Country

Democrats, Union threaten to cut Tsunami Center funding if GOP Budget passes

The plan approved by the GOP-controlled House last month would trigger (meaning the bureaucrats in charge of NOAA will decide on…) deep cuts for the National Weather Service, including the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii.  (Rescuers are still digging thru the rubble in Japan and Democrats can only think of political word games to play.)

A union (no kidding?) representing workers at the tsunami center said the proposed cuts could result in furloughs and rolling closures of National Weather Service offices.

Barry Hirshorn, Pacific region chairman of the National Weather Service Employees Organization, said the GOP bill would affect the center's ability to issue warnings similar to those issued after Thursday's earthquake in Japan.

This is a Classic Example of the… Washington Monument Gambit

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CoR Punches new $266M hole in Budget—Abercrombie plan missing nearly $1B

The state’s tax revenue forecasting council sharply reduced its estimates in a Thursday meeting, chopping $266 million from what it had previously projected.

The Council on Revenues said gains in net tax revenues had slowed in recent months, prompting a dramatic revision in its forecast to an only 0.5 percent increase for this fiscal year.

The forecast also effects how much money the state will take in during the next two years and push an estimated shortfall during the period to more than $950 million.

PBN:  Hawaii Council on Revenues sees slower economic growth

SA:  State's tax forecast pushes projected deficit to $964M

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Hawaii government spending jumps in new budget

Rising costs, ultimately borne by state taxpayers, mostly come from a loss of federal stimulus money, increased demand for Medicaid, elimination of government employee furloughs, higher debt service payments, rising worker health insurance costs and employee pension payments.

Combined, those items add up to $963 million in new spending between the current fiscal year and the next one, which begins July 1.

By comparison, the budget passed by the House Finance Committee on Wednesday slashes $120 million from last year's projected departmental operational costs, which include personnel and programs.

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Brewbaker plays political games with Council on Revenues Numbers

Paul Brewbaker, an economist and the chairman of the state Council on Revenues, was in caustic form on Thursday as the council met to update the state’s revenue forecast.

Worried about rising oil prices — which could increase travel costs and harm Hawaii tourism — Brewbaker wondered whether oil prices would fall if someone were to assassinate Libyan Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi.

Calling former Gov. Linda Lingle’s decision to delay state income tax refunds last year “refund shenanigans” that have thrown uncertainty into the forecast, Brewbaker made a dismissive comment about Lingle’s potential U.S. Senate campaign.

Afterward, speaking to reporters, a more serious Brewbaker warned that the forecast could be off by as much as 4 percentage points. Each percentage point represents about $45 million in state tax revenue.

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Tax n Spend: Gov. Neil Abercrombie is looking into establishing a state highway patrol, defends soda tax

At a community forum Thursday night in Moiliili, the governor said a state highway patrol could take pressure off county police departments. The governor — who is living in lower Manoa while repairs are made to the governor’s residence behind Washington Place — appeared alarmed by the number of burglaries, many of which he believes are drug related….

Abercrombie also defended his soda tax proposal, not as a sin tax to punish behavior, but as a way to help address health problems such as obesity and diabetes.

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SA: Base state pensions on base pay

As Hawaii and other states struggle with the increasing cost of pensions for state retirees, they have become aware of a pattern of employees spiking hours of overtime worked during their closing years to increase their pension benefits. Gov. Neil Abercrombie has prudently called for basing pensions entirely on base pay, but the Legislature so far has made a mockery of the proposal.

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Bill Watch: Half Way Point

The state says it does not have the facilities to bring prisoners back to the islands

State prison officials are seeking proposals to house about 1,800 prisoners outside Hawaii after the current prison contract ends in June, despite Gov. Neil Abercrombie's call to bring inmates back home as soon as possible.

"It is very clear at this time that we do not have all the facilities to bring the inmates back," said Martha Torney, deputy director of administration for the state Department of Public Safety. "As the state moves toward bringing the inmates back to the islands, that will determine what our needs are in the future."

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Hawaii Public Broadcasters Prepare For Loss Of Federal Money

The resignation of National Public Radio President Vivian Schiller, and angry reaction in Congress over anti-Tea Party remarks by an NPR fundraiser, have local public broadcasting executives worried about loss of federal funding. (Good!)

VIDEO: NPR Execs Conspire to Hide $5M donation from Muslim Brotherhood Group

Bonfire of the Gramscians: YOU WERE WARNED: UH Manoa Anti-Americans place E-W Center funding at risk

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Bill to ban nepotism in hiring for state jobs clears key hurdle

"The Hawaii State Ethics Commission believes that, absent extraordinary circumstances, state officials and employees should not be involved in appointing or hiring their relatives for government office," it said in written testimony. "This practice engenders charges of favoritism and preferential treatment, and erodes public confidence in government hiring practices."

Because of concern that a blanket ban was too sweeping and could exclude the best person for the job in some cases, the bill was amended by the Senate Committee on Judiciary and Labor to allow an exception when the relative is "highly qualified" for the position. The bill was approved by the full Senate on third reading, with 25 ayes, including Sen. Malama Solomon (D, Hilo-Honokaa), who voted "with reservations."

The commission had introduced a similar anti-nepotism bill in 2009 that was carried over to the 2010 legislative session, but the proposal never got a hearing.

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OIP Director: "I Was Terminated."

Gov. Neil Abercrombie's administration has said that the director of the state's open records agency was not fired, but rather her appointment had come to an end.

Reached by phone Wednesday, former Office of Information Practices Director Cathy Takase disagreed.

"I was terminated," she said.

"When the new administration had come in, I had volunteered to stay and continue to serve until a permanent director was appointed. My understanding was that I would go back to my staff attorney position."

Takase's dismissal is not the only time the governor has tried to micromanage the agency charged with enforcing the state's public records and sunshine laws. A week earlier the governor stepped over the line by personally appointing a staff attorney to the office. He has the authority to appoint the director, but not staff.

RELATED: Abercrombie Admin caught in lie as OIP director is fired

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Hooser busted taking free meal from Industry Lobbyists

The state Ethics Commission will meet next week to discuss the bill and related questions about lawmakers’ attendance at similar events, including a free dinner this week that was hosted by a lobbying group.

The dinner, called A Taste of Ag, was organized by the Hawaii Crop Improvement Association, a trade group that represents biotechnology companies and producers of genetically modified food products.

Les Kondo, executive director of the Ethics Commission, said he did not know enough about the purpose and cost of the dinner to determine if officials’ attendance at the event was permissible under the ethics code.

Numerous lawmakers attended the dinner, held Tuesday evening at the Brasserie Du Vin Restaurant on Bethel Street, although few contacted Kondo’s office for a reading on the ethical implications of their attendance.

One state official with regulatory authority over some activities of the genetically modified food industry acknowledged today that he was a guest at the  dinner.

Gary Hooser, named by Gov. Neil Abercrombie to head the state Office of Environmental Quality Control, told Hawaii Reporter that he attended the dinner although he was not on the official guest list.

Hooser said he was meeting an acquaintance for a meal that they had intended to eat at the Brassserie Du Vin, but did not know the restaurant was closed to the public because of the Taste of Ag dinner.

Alicia Maluafiti, a professional lobbyist and executive director of the Hawaii Crop Improvement Association, recognized Hooser at the door and invited him inside, Hooser said.

“It was kind of a happenstance thing,” said Hooser, a former Kauai state senator. (Yeah, right.)

NO ETHICS HERE: Sen. Gary Hooser campaign website linked to Holocaust deniers

ILind: Loophole needs to be removed from nepotism bill

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Child care provider awaits electric service

Hawaiian Electric Co. says it is expects to restore power by this evening to Child & Family Service Hawaii's Ewa complex, which has been without electricity since last Friday.

Howard Garval, president and chief executive officer of Child & Family Service Hawaii, said, "We are looking at opening the Ewa campus Monday."

Winds downed power lines on Fort Weaver Road, and power restoration was delayed because of a strike started that day by HECO's unionized workers.

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Soon-to-be-ousted Hawaii BOE Chair on 2010 Metlife Survey Results

“To ensure all students graduate ready for college and careers, public school systems must offer multiple career and postsecondary pathways that fit the unique needs and aspirations of each student. To accomplish this, Hawaii has prepared students for college with one of the nation’s most rigorous academic standards (as rated by Harvard University’s Education Next study), while also offering them opportunities to train for jobs through various Career and Technical Education programs.”

(Because the higher the standards, the greater the failure.  More failure=more money.)

LINK: MetLife Survey

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Well-intended law requiring ethanol for isle cars backfired

It may be that our truly renewable resource is the Legislature's misplaced hope that there is a quick fix to our many problems.

This week both the House and Senate moved to rid the state of the requirement to add ethanol to the gasoline sold in Hawaii.

If adopted as law, the change would mean that gasoline would be just gas. There is no corresponding requirement that lawmakers and former Gov. Linda Lingle take back their reams of press releases on the new future of renewable resources, such as growing our own ethanol-based additives.

Back in 2006, Lingle flew to Kauai to sign new administrative rules to a then 10-year-old law that ethanol be added to our gasoline. Executives from Kauai's "ethanol and sugar industries" attended the photo op as the glow of self-satisfaction, if not self-sufficiency, emanated from the gathering.

Today there is no sugar and ethanol industry in the state. Ethanol turned out to be a short-lived, semi-good idea to prop up Hawaii's battered sugar plantations, principally the Gay & Robinson company on Kauai.

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Panos: Hawaii Clean Energy Goals and Reality

…in 1993 three large energy projects came online: Two on Oahu, the AES coal plant and the H-Power plant, and one on the Big Island, the Puna Geothermal Venture plant.

As a result of these large new power plant investments, oil consumption in 1993 dropped by 11.5% compared to 1992. Ten years later, in 2002 Hawaii was back at the 1992 level of oil consumption for electricity generation!

This article in the Hawaii Tribune-Herald contains some of my views on energy for Hawaii.

RELATED: Panos on Geothermal: Can Hawaii catch up with Philippines and Iceland?

Crackpots: Hawaii as a Microcosm in the Study of Peak Oil

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Maui WWII internment camps part of research

The Kalana O Maui building in Wailuku and possibly Horizons Academy of Maui in Haiku sit on sites of former World War II internment camps for Japanese-Americans on Maui.

The sites are among 13 in the state identified through preliminary studies by the National Park Service, which is holding meetings statewide to learn more about the WWII internment camps in Hawaii.

What this is about: East-West Center hammered for “sustained, biased and politically-motivated attack on World War II veterans”

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DOH finds high arsenic levels in Kilauea neighborhood, risk “nil”

DOH said the risk is low because the soil in the most affected residential yard is covered with grass and clean soil, and the ditch is fenced and clearly marked to restrict access.

“We’re feeling more confident than ever that the health impact is nil to zero,” said Gill, adding that the DOH has spoken to doctors in the area who have been tending to the community for decades and found no issues reported.

“We haven’t had any reports of people getting sick,” Gill said.  (Give them time to get going on this….)

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Lawmaker Wants Welfare Benefits Spent in Missouri – Not Hawaii

In response to an investigation that reveals residents of Missouri receiving welfare benefits are spending taxpayer money in top vacation spots, a state lawmaker introduced a bill requiring in-state purchases.

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FACE Maui leading the fight on foreclosure reform

The problems and controversy continue today, with evidence that piles of foreclosure actions were approved without review and signed without a notary present.

“I think that the homeowners out there need some relief as we go through and start doing some investigations in terms of ‘robo-signing’ and some of the other issues that have come up with some of the Mainland banks,” said South Maui Rep. George Fontaine during a recent meeting with residents.

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Hawaii absent from world’s largest travel exhibition

The largest travel exhibition in the world, ITB Berlin, opened today in Germany with a total of 11,163 exhibiting companies and organizations from 188 countries presenting their products and the latest travel trends. All available space at this 45th edition of ITB was once again fully booked up at the world’s leading travel trade show, which is expecting some 100,000 trade visitors and 60,000 members of the general public to attend. Visitors will be able to obtain details about the entire range of the value-added chain in tourism in 26 halls covering an area of 160,000 square meters.

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Wisconsin Governor Rescinds Layoff Notices as Republicans save jobs from Union Bosses’ Attack

Gov. Scott Walker announced on Friday that he was rescinding layoff notices for 1,500 state workers after Wisconsin lawmakers approved his plan to cut collective bargaining rights and benefits for public employees. The approval, after nearly a month of angry demonstrations and procedural maneuvering, will create enough budget savings, Mr. Walker said, that layoffs will not be needed now.

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