Telescope Protests: Hawaii is not the A'ole State
HB500: Hawaii Legislators Vote on Secret Budget
Rep Luke Gives One Hour Notice for Hearing on Open Government Bill
HPD to Face on-site Accreditation Commission
Local 5 Pushing Self-Funded Insurance Scheme
Senate Committee Amends, Approves Interisland Ferry Resolution
Study: At Home Care Costs Increase in Hawaii
Small Business Group Challenges Employment Law Proposals
Scrounging for More Money, Health Exchange Falsely Claims to Hold Prepaid Health Care Act Hostage
SA: The federal government is threatening to take over the state's health insurance exchange within months and has restricted grant money to support operations of the Hawaii Health Connector. (But at the bottom of this story, you will find out this is a lie.)
Jeff Kissel, the Connector's executive director, told lawmakers at a briefing Thursday that if the exchange created by the Affordable Care Act does not get state funding soon, the federal government will abolish Hawaii's marketplace and run it directly.
"The federal government recently has made it clear that they need time to migrate these functions if the state is not going to support them, so they put a little more pressure on us," he said. "They want to see a sustainable state-based marketplace in Hawaii for open enrollment 2016, which commences November 2015."
State officials are (being suckered into) worrying that if the federal government assumes control of the exchange, Hawaii's 1974 Prepaid Health Care Act, requiring employers to provide health insurance for employees working at least 20 hours per week, will be abolished, and more people will become uninsured.
"People who are now covered under Prepaid and enjoy better benefits would no longer necessarily be covered by their employer," said Rep. Angus McKelvey (D, Lahaina-Kaanapali-Honokohau), chairman of the House Consumer Protection and Commerce Committee. "That could, in essence, create more uninsured people. It could drive rates up if you have more people uninsured. That's the threat right there."
The Connector needs $9 million to $10 million in additional funding from the state in fiscal 2016, starting July 1, to continue operations, Kissel said. Lawmakers appropriated $1.5 million for the exchange this year.
The Legislature also is considering a bill that would allow the Connector to borrow as much as $28 million in bonds backed by the state over six years. The Connector projects it will need the $28 million to operate through 2022, when it anticipates becoming self-sustaining....
Roughly 38,000 people have enrolled (sort of) on the Connector to date, though not all have paid, Kissel said. "We don't know if when they get the bill they're going to pay the bill, because it's such a huge increase over last year," Kissel said. "I don't want to say that all 38,000 are going to really end up buying insurance." (Uh huh.)
The ACA, also known as Obamacare, requires that exchanges be sustainable in 2015.
"That doesn't mean they have to have cash flow, but they have to have a commitment from their home states to provide the difference," Kissel said. "The most important thing to the federal government is the ability for individuals to enroll in ACA plans in 2016, so they want to be sure all state-based exchanges are financially solvent and sustainable through 2016. If there is any doubt, they have asked for contingency plans." (Translation: The Feds are not going to take over the Connector.)
(So get a contingency plan, not a $28M blank check.)
read ... Desperate Bureaucrats
Ige Negotiates with Feds to Shunt Failed Health Connector into DCCA
SA: Gov. David Ige is hoping to keep Hawaii's health insurance exchange under state control and is in discussions with the federal government to negotiate a "corrective action plan."
"The federal government has requested discussions with the governor and/or his representatives to address their concerns about the Hawaii Health Connector," said Laurel Johnston, Ige's deputy chief of staff, in an email Friday. "We wish to maintain a state-based marketplace and we wish to protect the Prepaid Health Care Act."
(Connector boss Kissel claims) the federal government is threatening to take over the state exchange within months (but there is no independent evidence of this) and has restricted grant money to support operations of the Hawaii Health Connector created by the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare.
One option Ige's administration is considering is to turn the nonprofit exchange into a state agency attached to the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, according to an email to state officials from Betsy Kim, special adviser to the governor. Another option would be to move the Connector to the federal marketplace if the first option fails, the email said.
The restriction is affecting the Connector's ability to improve its technology, which has been a problem for users since its inception in October 2013.
"Our system works but it's not 100 percent, and I believe that's what the Feds want," said Sen. Roz Baker (D, West Maui-South Maui). "Sustainability is the other piece, but part of what will get us to that point is for the Feds to allow us to use some of the grant funds they are sitting on to do the tech pieces that need to be done."
Lawmakers appropriated $1.5 million for exchange operations through June 30.
The Legislature also is considering a bill that would allow the Connector to borrow as much as $28 million in bonds backed by the state over six years. The Connector projects it will need the $28 million to operate through 2022, when it anticipates becoming self-sustaining.
"If the Feds are going to deal with us fairly and openly, then there needs to be negotiations, not an ultimatum — that's what it seems they're trying to give us," Baker said. "The time frame doesn't give us an opportunity to move everything inside (the state) to create a new arrangement with the Connector. I don't believe at this point we should be bullied by the federal government. There is no reason for Hawaii's Health Connector to go to the federal exchange because it puts Prepaid at risk (and) it opens us to lesser health care for our people."
read ... Not Fooled by Kissel
Feds Won't Confirm Health Connector Takeover Claims
AP: Tasha Bradley from the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services would not confirm what plans are under consideration for Hawaii, but she said in an email that federal officials are having "discussions with the state on the options and steps they need to take to best serve their state's consumers."
The Hawaii Health Connector will need about $28 million to maintain operations through 2022. At that point, it's expected to break even and to begin paying off interest for a loan.
The deadline for submitting the funded sustainability plan to the federal government is May 11, a few days after the 2015 legislative session ends, Kissel said. But lawmakers had different impressions of the deadline.
"Everybody has a different version. It's like a telephone game," McKelvey said.
read ... Liar's Poker
Kenoi failed to report $1000s of 'gifts'
HNN: Less than two weeks after apologizing for excessive spending on his county credit card, Big Island Mayor Billy Kenoi is facing a new ethics controversy.
Hawaii News Now has learned that Kenoi has received thousands of dollars worth of travel from third-parties but failed to report them as gifts as required by law.
"I do think there is a double standard," said Big Island Councilmember Margaret Wille.
"I think the mayor is somewhat above the law."
A review of Kenoi's credit card records show that sponsors picked up the tab for a lot of the mayor's travel since he took office in 2009.
A list of some of those gifts include:
- $3,600 paid for by the Hawaii Island Visitors Bureau for a trip to Japan in 2010;
- $200 paid for by the organizers of the 2011 Na Hoku music awards for travel to Oahu;
- $500 in travel to other neighbor islands.
The list is hardly exhaustive because it's based on Kenoi's county credit card records, which don't provide details on all of his travels.
A spokesman for the mayor acknowledged that the proper gift disclosures weren't filled out and that the mayor is working to address the issue.
On the Big Island elected officials are required to disclose any gifts that they receive that are worth $100 or more. Failure to do so could mean a fine of up to $1,000.
read ... Another Scandal
Honolulu Releases 100s of P-Card Records
KHON: Click to view the following (.pdf):
- pCard holders with the City and County of Honolulu
- pCard holders with the Board of Water Supply
- Mayor Kirk Caldwell’s travel summary
- pCard program and procedures for the City and County of Honolulu
read ... Honolulu P-Card Records
Star-Adv: Audit the P-Cards
SA: ...a comprehensive, statewide audit of the entire program is needed. The last one, in 2010, focused on only three executive branch agencies, when the pCards were in use in 33 government entities. Although the audit found that internal controls were "generally adequate" to "prevent and detect fraudulent, improper and abusive purchase card activity," the report emphasized that procurement officers failed to utilize all the electronic compliance tools at hand. Notably, few accessed monitoring reports that could flag improper spending.
At the time of the audit, there were about 3,900 authorized users in Hawaii government jobs, who spent a total of more than $104 million a year on their pCards. Today the number of authorized users has grown to more than 5,340. That number does not include Hawaii County Mayor Billy Kenoi. His pCard was belatedly revoked on Tuesday. Hawaii County's experience serves as a lesson to tighten up the pCard program statewide....
read ... Audit the P-Cards
Growing larger is the thing state government does best
Borreca: ...no governor in Hawaii has succeeded in rolling back the growth of state government.
The AG soon needed a separate building.
Budget and Finance took up residence throughout downtown Honolulu.
What the state government can do best is grow.
The state bought the Hemmeter Center and built the State Office Tower back in 2001 and then marched through the old federal courthouse back in 2003, bought it for $32 million and renamed it the King Kalakaua Building.
The Department of Hawaiian Home Lands abandoned downtown and built itself a new building in Kapolei.
And still government grows.
Those bumper crops of bureaucrats now need a new building, and the Legislature and the governor appear ready to help.
Using the reasoning that it is cheaper to buy an existing building instead of constructing a new one, Gov. David Ige and legislative leaders are eying the 25-story Alii Place, with an estimated $90 million price tag....
read ... Growing larger is the thing state government does best
PKF Pacific Standing by Indicted Partner
KHON2: Reg Baker, who’s now in charge with two other partners. He says the accusations are a personal matter between Oki and four former partners who turned him in.
Baker also believes Oki will be back managing the company.
“If it turns out he’s found guilty, what happens to the company?” KHON2 asked.
“If that should happen, and we’re hopeful that it will not, but if it does, then we’ll explore options with communicating with PKF North America,” Baker said.
Oki was arrested Sunday and charged with theft, money laundering, the use of a computer to commit a crime and forgery.
Baker said there had been a falling out between Oki and four partners who left the company. Those same four partners reported the alleged crimes to the police.
“Of course, you know, whenever you’ve got a falling out of partners, there’s probably some emotions involved,” Baker said. “I believe that it will all come out in court. I believe that Pat is a good person and he will make sure that the truth is told.”
Baker said Oki and the four former partners had been negotiating a settlement so Baker was just as shocked as everybody else at PKF when Oki was arrested.
read ... Standing by Indicted Partner
Tow Truck Could have Closed Zipper Lane
HNN: A large tow truck could have solved the huge traffic jam last week when both ZipMobiles went down, according to the company that previously held the ZipMobile contract for 16 years.
When both ZipMobiles became inoperable and lost power last Tuesday, thousands of people were stuck in traffic for hours on Oahu because the Zipper lane remained open, cutting off two of four Ewa-bound lanes on the H-1 Freeway....
Several times in the last few years, Safety Systems used a large tow truck to tow the ZipMobile to close the Zip lanes when the machine lost power or broke its drive shaft....
read ... Fake Crisis timed to Rail Tax
Under Suzanne Case, Nature Conservancy in "Acquisition Mode"
PBN: Suzanne Case brings to the table 28 years of experience with The Nature Conservancy of Hawaii, including as its executive director since 2001. The nonprofit protects more than 200,000 acres across the state, including oversight of 16 preserves totaling 53,000 acres. It has a staff of 76 and an annual operating budget of $11 million.
Under her leadership, The Nature Conservancy has been in acquisition mode. It added the 116,000-acre Kahuku Ranch to Hawaii Volcanoes National Park and acquired eight preserves, Palmyra Atoll, and new national wildlife refuges at Hakalau on the slopes of Mauna Kea and at Oahu Forest.
Its marine conservation efforts include local community networks to restore near-shore resources and large-scale projects to remove invasive algae from reefs and coasts.
KE: Kauai to Legalize 10 B&Bs Per Year
read ... Supply and Demand
Senators want state to explore interisland ferry system
AP: Senators are asking the state to explore whether it's time to take another swing at creating a statewide interisland ferry system.
The Senate passed a pair of resolutions Thursday asking the state Department of Transportation to study the feasibility of building a system inspired by Washington state.
"We are an island state surrounded by the Pacific Ocean. It just makes sense," said Sen. Michelle Kidani, D-Mililani Town, who introduced the pair of resolutions.
Kidani wants to encourage cheaper options for interisland travel, and she said that airlines no longer offer discounted fares to local passengers who buy in bulk. These days, if a local family of six wants to visit a neighbor island, they're looking at $1,000 to $1,200 in airfare alone, she said.
"I've heard people say that they can go to Vegas for cheaper, and a lot of them do," Kidani said.
Many of her constituents are still asking her why the state discontinued the Superferry six years ago, she said....
read ... Super
Proxy materials detail Next Era takeover of Hawaiian Electric
ILind: Hawaiian Electric Industries’ proxy statement covering the proposed merger with Next Era Energy, to be voted on at a special shareholders meeting scheduled in Honolulu on the morning of May 12, 2015. The proxy statement was mailed to shareholders “on or about March 30, 2015″ and is now available online....
This official document explains and makes the case for the merger from the company’s perspective. There are lots of interesting tidbits buried in here. For example, it contains a section describing the analysis of the deal by J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, retained as HEI’s financial advisor. This starts on page 44.
read ... Proxy
Oil — not renewables — touted as isles' linchpin
SA: Joseph Israel, president and CEO of the Houston-based company that bought Tesoro's Hawaii operations in 2013 and the state's 76-brand gas stations this year, said Thursday Hawaii's renewable energy goals are unrealistic and that the cheapest energy source for the foreseeable future is oil.
"All of this discussion about clean energy, for me (is) categorized as nonsense," said Israel, head of Par Petroleum Corp., which operates Hawaii's largest refinery as part of its Hawaii Independent Energy subsidiary.
Hawaii's policymakers should stop trying to force the market's hand by pushing for the use of more renewable energy when it is not the most economical solution, Israel said.
"Economy sets pricing and the right mix for every market around the world. Governments stay out of the way when it comes to the right solution," Israel said. "What governments all over the world don't do is what is happening here. The business solution will find its way eventually."
"Let the economy do its magic," Israel said. "We have enough crude that can support relatively low prices for a long time."
State lawmakers are currently considering a bill in the Legislature to increase the state's renewable-energy goal for electric power generation to 70 percent by 2040 and 100 percent by 2050.
"Seventy percent is a dream, and 100 percent … Maybe one day our grandkids will benefit from something like that one day," said the 43-year-old CEO. "Policy is a dream. Right now it is a very expensive dream.
read ... Oil
Anti-GMO Neocolonialism in Agriculture
KE: ...In following the biotech debate in America and Europe, I've been frequently repelled by the smug, neocolonial attitude of affluent Westerners who are trying to dictate agricultural policy in developing nations by funding anti-GMO activities there.
So while we were traveling through India, we frequently asked farmers: “What would you say to people in the west who believe biotech crops are harmful and you should not have access to them?”
Not one farmer voiced support for outside interference in India's agricultural policies. Instead, they invariably said farmers should decide what they want to grow. Here are some of the farmers we met, and some of the other comments we heard....
read ... Musings: Neocolonialism in Agriculture
Senate Passes Resolutions Calling for Removal of US Flag from State Buildings Jan 17 each year
FH: On Monday, April 6, the full Senate unanimously passed Senate Concurrent Resolution (SCR) 39 and Senate Resolution (SR) 14: Requesting the Governor to order the exclusive display of the flag of Hawaii over state buildings on January 17 of each year.
The SR 14 is now adopted by the Senate, while SCR 39 has been transmitted from the Senate to the House for consideration.
read ... Senate Passes Resolution Calling for Removal of US Flag from State Buildings Jan 17 each year
Telescope protesters appeal to Office of Hawaiian Affairs
KHON: Last July, the trustees voted to withdraw their request to participate in a contested case hearing against the University of Hawaii’s sublease on Mauna Kea for the Thirty Meter Telescope.
That withdrawal was sent in a letter to the Department of Land and Natural Resources, which grants leases and subleases, while UH manages the activity on the mountain.
On Wednesday, self-proclaimed “protectors” of the mountain called for the trustees to reconsider last year’s vote.
They also urged the board to provide financial and other forms of support to the Native Hawaiians who are protecting Mauna Kea, including a call to halt the arrests of peaceful protestors.
“OHA’s decision to support the TMT was made six years ago, there are a number of new trustees and opposition to the TMT is now reaching critical mass and resulting in the arrests of Native Hawaiians. It is time for (the) board to support its beneficiaries and take a position against the construction of what would be the 14th telescope on our sacred summit,” said MANA leader Jon Osorio.
read ... Collect the Rent
Protesters: OHA Should Demand 'Back Rent'
CB: Shelley Muneoka of MANA called on the board to start with low-hanging fruit, like improving communication with the public, going after back rent from the 13 other telescopes already atop Mauna Kea and helping to prevent the Thirty Meter Telescope project from being built by opposing a renewal of the 65-year lease that’s up in 2033.
“You are considered the voice of the Hawaiian people,” she said.
“There’s a lot of easy, clear, common sense stuff you guys can do that I don’t think is gonna expend too much political capital on either side for you because I know you’re answering to the state and you’re also answering to beneficiaries.
“That lease that’s coming up in 2033 is a huge opportunity for us to tell them ‘pau already.’”
read ... All About the Money
Ige Spends Hours with Protesters on Mauna Kea
SA: Meanwhile, Gov. David Ige journeyed to the mountaintop Wednesday evening to pray, make an offering and meet with the demonstrators a day after he announced a one-week "timeout" in construction to "evaluate the situation from multiple perspectives."
Asked about the visit, Cindy McMillan, Ige's communications director, said Thursday that the "governor is honoring the ‘timeout,' and we won't be providing any additional information or statement at this time."
But word of the Mauna Kea visit came out at the OHA board meeting in Honolulu, and the "protectors" on the mountain later described the visit as "light and positive" with "no hard conversations and no negotiations."
Kealoha Pisciotta, a leader with the Mauna Kea Hui, said the governor's staff asked in advance whether the governor could travel up the mountain and pray without having it turning into a photo opportunity or political debate.
Pisciotta said the group honored Ige's request, saying the governor would at least benefit from soaking in the majesty of the mountain and help put the dilemma in context.
They greeted Ige and his chief of staff, Mike McCartney, at the 6,000-foot level and accompanied them to their camp at the 9,200-foot level, where they prayed with the demonstrators.
Next, the governor gave an offering of maile lei at the altar behind the nearby Visitor Information Center. According to the center's website, the "ahulele" is for offerings to "family, the earth/environment and gods/goddesses."
Ige then went with some of the Mauna Kea Hui members in a van to the summit, where they watched the sunset and the rising stars. Later, Pisciotta said, Ige and staff ate with the protesters down at their camp, sharing hot noodles and hot chocolate.
The group shared stories, Ige asked questions and the group members answered as much as they could, Pisciotta said.
"They talked about why they believe and what they believe in and why they want to make a change," she said.
Lanakila Mangauil, another anti-telescope leader, said he hoped Ige was able to gain a new perspective.
"If anyone is in the midst of it, that person would make a deeper connection either way," he said. "In my heart I hope he could feel the place for himself."
Earlier in the day, Ige spoke of the project to a Kona-Kohala Chamber of Commerce luncheon and, according to the West Hawaii Today, said, "You can rest assured that all previous agreements and decisions will be honored."
Ige also said he has "done a lot of listening to get a 360-degree view of the project," and will continue to listen during the next few days, the newspaper reported.
"It's really about listening and finding a way for discovery and sacred sites to coexist on a very important asset," Ige said.
read ... About who they have time for
Science, Not Superstition, Brought Polynesians to Hawaii
CB: Polynesians were among the world’s greatest explorers. By mastering the science of celestial navigation, our ancestors were able to explore and colonize the world’s largest ocean at a time when most European vessels dared not venture beyond sight of land.
This is an extraordinary achievement which has cemented Polynesian culture’s place in world history beyond all comparison to any contributions made by their religious/superstitious beliefs.
Ancient Hawaiian religious beliefs were not nearly as impressive from a historical viewpoint as our ancestor’s real world application of the science of astronomy; not by a long shot. Every culture has superstitious beliefs, but not every culture discovered America and brought back sweet potatoes in the First Millennium. Not every culture conquered the vast Pacific Ocean.
It was science, not the irrational fear of pagan deities and inanimate objects, which brought Polynesians to Hawaii....
read ... Science, Not Superstition, Brought Polynesians to Hawaii
Resurrected media access bill heads to Senate floor
HTH: Senate lawmakers advanced a bill Wednesday that would, among other things, give greater access to media personnel covering natural disasters, amending it to include language recommended by the Hawaii Department of Defense.
“We felt as though it was very broad and there needed to be clarification in terms of the definition of who is a journalist,” said Lt. Col. Chuck Anthony, a DOD spokesman.
In February, Brig. Gen. Arthur Logan, director of the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency, testified against the measure, saying it would allow almost anyone, including bloggers, into a restricted area. In written testimony Thursday, however, Logan said he supported the intent and requested language that clarifies who is a journalist and ensures state and county agencies would not be held liable for injuries or bear the costs associated with related search and rescue operations.
Anthony said the liability issue came up during a consultation with the state Attorney General’s Office.
State Sen. Lorraine Inouye, D-Hilo, who co-introduced the measure on behalf of the Big Island Press Club and later resurrected it by having it inserted into a separate piece of legislation, said she hopes that with the recent amendments and DOD’s support, the bill will becomes law.
After twice being deferred, the measure appeared doomed. Last week, however, at Inouye’s request, a Senate committee amended House Bill 1344 — a measure that, when introduced, solely aimed at mitigating hazardous situations by appropriating funds for two additional DOD positions — by inserting the media access provision. Ironically, HB 1344 was sponsored by Rep. Gregg Takayama, D-Pearl City, the very representative who effectively killed the media access measure. By a unanimous vote Thursday, the Senate Committee on Ways and Means recommended HB 1344 be passed with DOD’s requested amendments. It will head to the Senate floor Tuesday for a third reading, according to Inouye.
Karin Stanton, a board member of the Big Island Press Club and editor of Hawaii 24/7, said she is happy to see the bill make it this far and to have reached a point where a conversation involving all parties can continue. The whole intention, she said, is to allow for journalists and newscasters to work with government agencies instead of being shut out, as they were during the June 27 lava flow.
read ... Resurrected
Hawaii campaign contribution case still awaiting 9th Circuit ruling after 18 months
DN: 18 months ago today the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals heard oral arguments in two appeals to a Hawaii case concerning disclosure of campaign contributions and the burden or ban on political contributions under various Hawaii laws.
Now called Yamada v. Snipes, the case was originally heard by Judge J. Michael Seabright in Hawaii District Court as Yamada Et Al. v. Kuramoto Et Al, also referred to as the A-1 A-Electrician case (1:10-cv-00497-JMS-LEK).
read ... Hawaii campaign contribution case still awaiting 9th Circuit ruling after 18 months
Criminals with 88 priors and 60 priors Out on Streets of Waikiki Thanks to Hawaii's Soft on Crime Judiciary
HNN: At around 3:10 a.m., one of the officers stopped the two suspects -- both on bicycles -- near Ala Wai Boulevard and Wai Nani Way during a traffic stop. One of the suspects, 34-year-old Shane Mara, took off and ran while 43-year-old Pesamino Letuli threw the officer to the ground, according to the Honolulu Police Department. When he tried to get up, Letuli kneed him in the head, but the officer managed to spray him with pepper spray.
Meanwhile, as the second officer arrived on scene, Mara came back and tackled him.
The two officers were taken to Straub Clinic and Hospital where the first officer suffered head injuries and abrasions to his knees and elbow, and the second officer had injuries to his leg.
Both suspects were arrested and face charges for assaulting a police officer and resisting arrest. According to HPD, Letuli is wanted on three $20,000 warrants and has 88 priors (but is somehow out on the streets). (80/43=1.86 arrests per year) Mara has 60 priors (and is somehow out on the streets) and was booked on two additional charges: One for detaining stolen property and the other for unauthorized control of personal confidential information for having stolen credit cards belonging to an 85-year-old woman, police said. (60/34=1.76 arrests per year)
Supreme Court: Letuli uses Samoan Interpreter to avoid charges
read ... Soft on Crime
Homeless Who Refuse to Accept Shelter Whine About Raids
KHON: Two homeless woman (who refuse to accept shelter) claim that city crews didn't allow them to retrieve identification documents when their homeless camps were cleared recently. But the city says its policy should have allowed them to get the ID's.
Until recently, Linda Hillier lived in a tent on Kuwili Street in Iwilei. She's been on the streets since last July, when her social Security disability insurance money wasn't enough to pay her rent and utilities. She was returning to her tent last Monday morning to find a city crew clearing the area.
"It just happened so quick, and I was just in tears. I was just hurt," said Hillier. "Because it happened to be me before, so I figured, there goes my life -- again."
Hillier said the crews took her tent, her air mattress, her books and several other belongings. She claims she wasn't allowed to retrieve an important piece of identification. "My birth certificate. I just got it from Norfolk, Virginia. And it's gone. they took that, too."
Another homeless woman who suffers from diabetes also said she wasn't allowed to get important belongings when her homeless camp at Aala Park was cleared at 2:30 a.m. Thursday....
if the women want to retrieve their identification, Sasamura said there will be no fee charged. "Anything related to the retrieval of life necessities does not require payment of any kind," said Sasamura.
But even without payment, it will still be a challenge for Hillier. "I need transportation, and I don't have nobody to help me," she said. (Always an excuse.)
read ... Excuses
Panhandling Laws: ACLU Working Hard to Keep the Homeless Homeless
HTH: Changes to Hawaii County’s panhandling laws are scheduled to be considered Tuesday, as two County Council committees tackle bills responding to a federal judge’s opinion that the local ordinances violate First Amendment rights.
The bills, sponsored by Council Chairman Dru Kanuha of Kailua-Kona, expand the county’s solicitation laws to include other forms of solicitation, rather than just soliciting for money. The changes respond to U.S. District Court Judge Susan Oki Mollway’s September opinion that the 1999 county ordinance is content-based. The judge granted a temporary restraining order prohibiting the county from enforcing its panhandling law.
The American Civil Liberties Union, along with Honolulu attorney Matthew Winter of Davis Levin Livingston, asked Mollway to overturn the county ordinance banning aggressive solicitation anywhere and the blanket ban against panhandling in any county park.
The attorneys represent Justin Guy, who was cited in June while holding a sign off Kaiwi Street in Kailua-Kona saying, “Homeless Need Help.” The citation was later dropped.
SA: 2 homeless men arrested in separate incidents
read ... Homelessness represents the success of the ACLU
Legislators Secretly Scheming to Gut n Replace Uber/Lyft Bill
IJ: ...deciphering what exactly the Hawaii Legislature is doing with its piece of ridesharing legislation, S.B. 1280, is no easy feat. Consider that, in its current form, the bill has an effective date of July 1, 2112, and that it just passed the House Finance Committee unanimously.
Now, one of two things could be going on here: either Hawaii really wants to ensure that both insurers and transportation network companies truly have ample time to conform to the new regulatory standards, or something else entirely is transpiring behind the scenes. My bet is on the latter.
A national compromise between TNCs and insurers, reached in March, has provided model ridesharing language for state legislatures across the nation. Yet, Hawaii, like other states, has been working on its own piece of ridesharing legislation since session began at the beginning of the year. Changing the expectations and the objectives of legislators so far into the legislative process is no easy feat.
To give themselves time to embrace the national compromise, Hawaii legislators have grafted the tongue-in-cheek “defective date” into S.B. 1280 to allow it to continue through the process, while simultaneously telegraphing to all parties that the current legislation is a work in progress. Thus, in spite of the fact that insurers and TNCs lined up on opposite sides of S.B. 1280 when it was it last appeared in committee April 7, it was with the certain knowledge that the bill is bound to be amended.
What we at R Street are hearing is that S.B. 1280 will pass out of the House in the coming weeks and returned to the Senate for concurrence. Once there, instead of proceeding to a floor vote for referral to the governor’s desk, the bill will likely be referred to a conference committee, where it will take on a form similar to the national compromise.....
Background: Major Insurers to Strike Deal to Support Compromise TNC Language
read ... Gut n Replace
Obama's Bank of Hawaii Pick for the Fed May Be in Danger
AB: One issue is that Chairman Richard Shelby is waiting for the White House to nominate someone for the other Fed position so he can examine both nominees at the same time.
"What I've heard out of the Shelby office is that they don't want to have a hearing for one person, which is not unusual," said Mark Calabria, a former Shelby staffer and now head of the financial practice for the Cato Institute. "Once there are another couple of [nominees] in the queue, there will be hearings. Whether they decide to move them or not is another question."
But there are other potential pitfalls for Landon as well....
read ... Federal Reserve
Not as Robust as Projected: Gay Tourist Weddings up by 2% After Legalization
TW: "Our business in that market has increased somewhere between 20% to 30%," said Carolee Higashino, the owner of Purple Orchid Wedding, a Hawaii-based wedding planner specializing in same-sex marriages.... (Translation: Gay weddings are up 2% from 10% before legalization to 12% after legalization.)
Miller noted, however, that his LGBT weddings business in the Aloha State has not been as robust as he expected after Hawaii's same-sex marriage legislation passed 16 months ago.
"It has increased, but not drastically," Miller said, noting that year over year his same-sex wedding bookings in Hawaii are up 20%. "It isn't what we thought initially. We just haven't seen that surge of weddings."
Through the end of February, there were nearly 2,300 same-sex weddings among nonresidents across the Hawaiian Islands since same-sex marriage was legalized, according to Hawaii Department of Health data. That figure accounts for nearly 12% of the total number of nonresident weddings across the Islands since same-sex marriage legislation was ratified in late 2013. (10% x 1.20 = 12%)
read ... Paying their own kind
Artificial Sweeteners May Cause Obesity, Diabetes
SA: Many of us, particularly those who prefer to eat our cake and look like we have not done so, have a love-hate relationship with artificial sweeteners. These seemingly magical molecules deliver a dulcet taste without its customary caloric punch. We guzzle enormous quantities of these chemicals, mostly in the form of aspartame, sucralose and saccharin, which are used to enliven the flavor of everything from Diet Coke to toothpaste. Yet there are worries. Many suspect that all this sweetness comes at some hidden cost to our health, although science has only pointed at vague links to problems.
Last year, though, a team of Israeli scientists put together a stronger case. The researchers concluded from studies of mice that ingesting artificial sweeteners might lead to—of all things—obesity and related ailments such as diabetes. This study was not the first to note this link in animals, but it was the first to find evidence of a plausible cause: the sweeteners appear to change the population of intestinal bacteria that direct metabolism, the conversion of food to energy or stored fuel. And this result suggests the connection might also exist in humans.
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