Green: Out of Respect for Democracy, I will not Appoint Waianae Senator until After Primary
Michaels CEO Indicted: 12-year racketeering conspiracy
Green Signs 112 Bills Into Law
HB1800: Green Signs $19.1B Budget
Green Vetoes Seven Bills
HGEA Plan: Steal $12K, get rewarded with $230K paid vacation
CB: … Whether the Honolulu prosecutor’s office investigator fudged his mileage reimbursements or not is still an open question.
At best, the county employee is the victim of confusing office policies, according to case records. At worst, he is allegedly guilty of the theft of $12,018.29.
In either case, taxpayers have lost out on so much more.
While the prosecutor’s office has pursued the case, more than three and a half years have gone by. The investigator has been on paid administrative leave since October 2020, collecting a paycheck while under orders not to do his job.
To date, the county’s effort to right an alleged wrong of $12,000 has cost taxpayers more than $230,000, a sum that continues to grow by the day.
The investigator is still on paid leave. …
(CLUE: With benefits and pension credits.)
Some 350 employees across more than two dozen state and county agencies were put on paid leave due to investigations into suspected wrongdoing from 2020 through 2023…
paying these employees not to work cost taxpayers at least $9.5 million in that three-year period.
At least 50 employees were paid to stay home for a year or more. Of those, eight workers were on paid leave for more than two years. Five collected a work-free paycheck for more than three years. …
“If the person did what they are accused of doing, it’s basically a de facto vacation,” said Hilo-based labor attorney Ted Hong. …
HNN: Morning Beat: Hawaii government workers get paid not to work as misconduct investigations drag on
read … Government Workers In Hawaii Get Paid Not To Work As Misconduct Investigations Drag On For Months Or Years
Army establishes ‘environmental justice concerns’ as bargaining chip in Master Lease Negotiations
HNN: … The Army’s leases from the state were signed in 1964 for $1 and expire in 2029. The U.S. government leases about 6,322 acres of land from the state at the Makua Military Reservation, Kahuku Training Area and Kawailoa-Poamoho Training Area near Schofield Barracks.
In its draft environmental impact statement, the Army looks at three alternatives:
- Retaining all of the land
- Retaining most of it
- Or retaining only 162 acres in Makua while giving up Kahuku and Poamoho.
(CLUE: The Army would happily fund a few more environmental initiatives as part of a deal renewing its land leases. By introducing this subject, they are setting terms of negotiation.)
HNN: Army officials listen to West Oahu residents amid debate over future of state-leased lands (hawaiinewsnow.com)
read more … Army concedes ‘environmental justice concerns’ amid debate over future of state-leased lands (hawaiinewsnow.com)
Begging county to clear squatters from Maui beaches
MN: … a client asked me to look at a vacant lot in Kahana to add a modular home so Lahaina could house a displaced family.
When showing the prospective buyer (via FaceTime), we saw the ocean nearby, so the prospect asked me to show him the beach.
I drove around the block and parked legally on the street in front of the beach park, a beautiful little cove. As soon as I approached the beach, squatters on the beach approached me and started yelling profanities and insults at me.
They told me that I cannot set foot off the public road onto the public beach which they claimed was theirs. I had just had spinal surgery, and feared for my safety. I turned around and walked back to my car, accompanied by one of the bullies, yelling at me inches from my face until I sat down in my car and closed the door….
read … Begging county to clear squatters from beaches
Maui Council: After Fires, 'the Most Critical Challenge We Face' is to … Confirm New Housing Director
CB: … “I will encourage looking at any new programs,” he said. … Mitchell said he also plans to make sure the county identifies and pursues all federal grants for different housing options that it could be eligible for, saying he has a “general sense there are additional opportunities that we have not leveraged.”… “I kept dipping my toe into housing not-for-profits or housing organizations, trying to figure out this one component.”… Mitchell said while he hasn’t worked as a builder, “I have sufficient experience to not be lost in the construction world.” He explained while working on the census in Jamaica, he also worked for an architect….
(TRANSLATION: Even after Lahaina burns down, nothing is more important than ‘creating positions’.)
read … 'The Most Critical Challenge We Face': Maui Council On Track To Confirm New Housing Director
Short-Handed Kona Public Defender's Office Won't Accept New Drunken Driving Cases or ‘Class A’ Felonies
CB: … The Kona public defender’s office notified the Judiciary on June 12 it would no longer handle new DUI cases or Class A felonies “due to our current staffing shortage.” The memo indicated private, court-appointed lawyers would have to handle those cases until further notice.
Former Third Circuit Chief Judge Robert Kim, who retired as a judge on July 1, said the Judiciary was scrambling late last month to try to hire private lawyers to represent a dozen people who were arrested for driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
“We see an immediate impact of this decision,” Kim said. “It definitely is a looming problem, and I fear for the safety of the community if we have to get to the point where these kinds of cases are dismissed.”….
(IDEA: Make the Judiciary more efficient so less time is wasted on each case.)
read … Short-Handed Kona Public Defender's Office Won't Accept New Drunken Driving Cases
Hawaii Governor Says Media Operations Should Be Protected During Emergencies
CB: … Gov. Josh Green on Tuesday said he would sign a bill intended to protect First Amendment rights of freedom of speech and the press during times of crisis.
House Bill 2581, which would have removed the authority of the governor or a mayor to suspend electronic media transmission during a state of emergency, landed on Green’s intent-to-veto list just last month. The governor said then he thought the governor or mayor should have that power.
But then he changed his mind.
“I felt that people who care about transparency were right,” the governor said following a bill-signing ceremony at the State Capitol. “And we heard from a lot of different parts of our media community. They were unanimous in their position that this should be law, so I thought it was the right call.” .…
read … Hawaii Governor Says Media Operations Should Be Protected During Emergencies
Aloha Petroleum: $880K and counting to Defend Against Climate Change Suits
INN: … The insurers deny any potential for coverage based on a pollution exclusion. In its lawsuit against the AIG insurers, Aloha said it incurred more than $880,000 in defense costs in connection with the climate change lawsuits, and "expects that it will continue to incur significant additional defense costs, as the litigation progresses." ….
read … AIG subsidiary insurers in legal fight over Hawaii climate-related claims
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