OHA seeks TMT moratorium to "address unresolved legal matters"
Alii Place: Where Will the $90M Come From?
PBS Video: Gridlocked by the power grid: Hawaii's Solar Industry
Rail Tax: If You Don't Ask You Don't Get
HB459: The Science and Politics of Casual Sex
Star-Adv: It's time for Mayor Kenoi to resign
SA: Kenoi's blatant pattern of misusing taxpayers' funds for his own benefit has shattered the public trust and makes him unfit to lead Hawaii County.
He should resign, for the good of the people he was elected to serve and instead has betrayed — spending their hard-earned money on personal perks such as sporting equipment, luxury hotels and nights on the town at hostess bars.
Kenoi's personal charisma is no substitute for the honesty, integrity and leadership required of the office. Since it was first reported two weeks ago that Kenoi had misused the county-issued credit card known as a pCard, facts that implicate him as knowingly culpable in a pattern of misconduct keep piling up.
The savvy former criminal defense attorney's initial excuse — that he never intended to defraud anyone — is a common response of those accused of white-collar offenses.
His assertion that he thought it was OK to use his pCard for personal expenses as long as he paid back the money is contradicted by facts revealed since he held a press conference in Honolulu to try to explain himself....
the Hawaii County finance director confirmed that Kenoi had been warned over the years about his misuse, but retained use of the card.
Even worse: Of the $129,580 Kenoi charged on his pCard since taking office, he's paid back more than $31,112 of it. That means a full 24 percent of his total charges never should have been made in the first place. Most damning: Kenoi paid at least $9,500 of that reimbursement only after his misconduct was exposed by a Hawaii island newspaper; $7,500 was paid two days after the article ran on March 29 and another $2,055 on Friday.
Given this sequence of events, how can the mayor plausibly claim that he didn't know he was doing anything wrong and that he never intended to defraud the taxpayers? If a whistleblower had not supplied the newspaper with a key document — which detailed a $892 charge by Kenoi at a Honolulu hostess bar in December 2013 — it is doubtful taxpayers ever would have been fully reimbursed.
Late last week, it was confirmed that Kenoi faces a new controversy, for allegedly failing to report as gifts thousands of dollars worth of travel paid for by others, as required by ethics laws....
Kenoi was living high on the taxpayers' dime at a time when he was preaching austerity for Hawaii County government employees and residents. He took pride in reducing the size and cost of government, and hailed county workers for "their willingness to do more with less." ...
Related: Civil Beat: Kenoi Should Resign--Mayor just a Common Thief
read ... Resign
Spending scandal threatens to end Kenoi's career
SA: Kenoi, 46, was considered a rising star in Hawaii politics with a possible future in Congress or even at Washington Place after his current term ends in 2016. Term limits prevent Kenoi from seeking a third consecutive run for mayor.
Instead, Kenoi — a former Honolulu deputy public defender — has retained Honolulu criminal defense attorneys Howard Luke, Todd Eddins and Richard Sing as he faces the prospect of a potential criminal investigation by the state attorney general; an ethics complaint that could be heard in May; an audit of county pCard use by Hawaii County's new legislative auditor that could come out in June; and the possibility of tough questions about his pCard use on April 22 when the County Council reviews budget requests of both the mayor's office and the finance department, which processed Kenoi's reimbursements.
Kenoi had been repeatedly warned about using his pCard for personal expenses, which included $400 that he spent in 2009 at the Camelot Restaurant and Lounge hostess bar on Sheridan Street on Oahu and an $892 tab at the Club Evergreen hostess bar on Kapiolani Boulevard on Oahu in December 2013.
From 2009, when Kenoi took office, to 2015, county records show lavish spending for drinks, dinners, luxury hotels and more than $100,000 on trips to Washington, Las Vegas, San Francisco, Texas, the Philippines and Japan. Kenoi also used his pCard to pay for a $1,200 surfboard, his $565 Hawaii Bar Association dues and luxury stays at the Marriott Waikoloa Beach at $469 per night....
County officials incorrectly had said that Kenoi's pCard was cut up, but that the mayor could still use the account to make travel arrangements. Instead, the state Procurement Office canceled Kenoi's pCard account Tuesday....
Since the revelations, Kenoi's office every day receives calls from angry constituents demanding his resignation....
Kenoi told HPU grads ... "When I told people I was going to be one lawyer, they said, ‘Bruddah, you need one lawyer. You not going to be one lawyer.'" ...
Voters supported Kenoi despite an arrest on drug charges decades before during the island's notorious Operation Green Harvest raids on marijuana growers. The support continued through more recent traffic violations in Honolulu and on Hawaii island — even as mayor — for driving while using a cellphone; speeding; failing to possess a driver's license, insurance card and safety check; and for not wearing a seat belt, according to Kenoi's court records....
Wille said she faced Kenoi's anger last year when she tried to kill his plan for a waste-to-energy incinerator. "He was livid," she said. "‘How dare you challenge me?'" ....
In 2004, Kenoi went into Kim's office and said he "‘had a minor scuffle with a guy in a bar on Banyan Drive called Shooters and police were involved,'" Kim said. "I said, ‘Let me know what happens.' Later on, he said he got a lawyer because of an assault charge for ‘a little scuffle,' which is the way he put it. Time passed. Much, much later he said the case had been dropped. In my mind it was nothing, pau."
In 2008, Kenoi won his first four-year term despite widely circulated anonymous emails about what purportedly happened at Shooters. Following revelations of Kenoi's pCard spending, new, unsourced (well-sourced details from Hawai'i Free Press' 2008 print coverage) about the Shooters incident have (re)emerged on the Internet....
"For the most part there is a real sadness for all of us,"
(So many of Hawaii's mainstream 'reporters' had hitched their stars to Kenoi and now their years of work has gone down the toilet. Take a moment to step back, soak it all in and laugh in their faces. They are fools led by a clown and now the clown is headed for jail. The 'reporters' should pack it up and retire to Oregon.)
read ... End Kenoi's Career
Sen Josh Green takes heat from psychologists, retirees on potential conflicts of interest
SA: Senate Health Committee chairman and physician Josh Green has amassed more campaign contributions than any other member of the Hawaii Legislature, tapping into a rich pipeline of donated cash from doctors and others in the health care industry.
Now critics, including AARP Hawaii and the Hawaii Psychological Association, are crying foul — alleging that campaign cash and Green's position as a physician practicing at a Hawaii island hospital present unacceptable conflicts of interest for the lawmaker.
Those organizations lobbied hard this year for bills House Bill 1072 and Senate Bill 296 they contend would improve care for elderly residents and the mentally ill, only to watch helplessly as Green killed both measures when they arrived at his Senate Health Committee.
Those bills were opposed by physicians or hospitals, which each account for large portions of the campaign donations Green has accumulated....
Flashback: Oxycontin Contributions: Clayton Hee, Josh Green, Karl Rhoads and HB466
read ... More conflicts of interest
Thirty Meter Telescope construction delayed to April 20
KHON: On Saturday, Gov. David Ige announced that the Thirty Meter Telescope team has informed him it will postpone construction until April 20.
“I thank TMT for its willingness to be respectful and sensitive to all of Hawaii – its special people, its sense of place and its unique host culture,” said Gov. Ige....
On Saturday, KHON2 reached out to the Thirty Meter Telescope team and received the following statement:
“We appreciate the support of the Governor and our community advocates for our decision to hold construction until at least April 20. We are continuing to consult with community leaders, and appreciate their input in the process.” – Gary Sanders, TMT project manager....
read ... Delayed
Shapiro: Ige Turns it Around with Case Nomination
Shapiro: The governor signaled he wants to make peace, not war, with those who defeated Ching, and thus smartly ended a nasty distraction that otherwise could have dogged him for the rest of his term.
Environmentalists felt betrayed by the Ching appointment after they supported Ige over Neil Abercrombie because of their alarm about the former governor's close ties to developers.
The battle scars aren't entirely healed, but these natural allies will be more inclined to give Ige the benefit of the doubt and consider the possibility that the Ching affair may have been brain flatulence rather than an attempt to pave paradise.
A sigh of relief was heard from state senators, who reluctantly said "no" to their former colleague on Ching in response to public uproar and worried the governor might press the fight by coming back with another in-your-face nominee.
Case is expected to win quick confirmation after a hearing next week before the Senate Land and Water Committee....
Meanwhile: Suzanne Case Pays for Aerial Shooting and Eradication: Can Hunters Trust Her?
read ... It takes 2 tries
Kidnap--Inmates Given 'Work Furlough' to Look for a Job
SA: Two work furlough inmates who were supposed to be out looking for jobs were charged Thursday and accused of using the time to commit kidnapping and robbery. ...
"Work furlough should only apply to inmates who have jobs," Prosecutor Keith Kaneshiro said. "No inmate should be out there, supposedly looking for work, without any supervision. Inmates who are inappropriate for work furlough cannot be allowed to put public safety at risk."
Tavares has 18 previous arrests, with convictions for burglary, kidnapping and robbery. Gibson has been arrested 53 times, with convictions for theft, burglary and assault.
HTH: Hawaii County Police investigate a second officer-involved shooting
read ... Get a Job
Union Planning to Represent Marijuana Workers Criticizes Dispensary Legislation
SA: ...At present, the legislation before the Legislature does not ensure vertical integration. Hawaii patients would be faced with a piecemeal retail network of questionable products and the door is left wide open for potential problems like the "diversion of revenue" or "off the book" sales....
...the jobs created in this emerging industry should allow employees to make a decent living with benefits. Workers should also have the opportunity to collectively bargain with their employers. Training will be an important component in professionalizing this new industry and an employee apprenticeship training program similar to other sectors could be adopted. This type of training would go a long way to preventing all kinds of problems and making the system successful....
...all patients have the right to know what is in the product they are purchasing and consuming. Every medical marijuana product batch should be lab-tested for safety and quality. Testing labs should meet the International Organizations for Standardization (ISO) standards — the same standard blood labs use....
When it comes to licensing operators, HB 321 and SB 682 should prioritize those businesses currently involved in clinical medical marijuana research to operate in our state....
AP: Medical marijuana, ride sharing, sex trafficking up for vote
read ... UFCW Marijuana Workers
Marijuana Bills Will be Rewritten in Conference
Borreca: The House and Senate are coming at the issue of marijuana use from different angles. The Senate has repeatedly pushed out marijuana decriminalization bills, but they have been rejected in the House.
Meanwhile, the House has its own marijuana supporters who wanted the new law to allow at least 26 marijuana dispensaries.
It is a tricky political piece of work because while the Senate may appear to be more liberal on the issue, the House has more conservative factions demanding more compromise.
"I think both houses have done a lot of work and now it is a matter of what options are going to be included in the negotiations," said Rep. Della Au Belatti, Health Committee chairwoman.
Although Hawaii is one of 22 states with a medical marijuana program, Hawaii and Alaska are the only states among the 22 without a system for dispensing marijuana....
ND: Pot is all the rage -- and that's dangerous
read ... Conference Committee Coming
Waimanalo family claims UH hemp study land belongs to them
HNN: UH received a permit from the U.S. Justice Department back in January to import the seeds from Australia. Researchers will study the crop as a potential biofuel and soil decontaminant.
But now there may be some unforeseen roadblocks ahead for the university because Lorenzo claims to have deeds to that land. He says this isn't the first time there has been a dispute over land ownership.
Last week, a Circuit Court Judge denied the state's request for a temporary restraining order to keep Lorenzo's family away so it could continue treatments for little fire ants.
"It's hard to give up something that you stole for such a long time. And it's really not their fault, but they continue to protect a lie and that is the problem," Lorenzo said .
read ... Hemp Study
Airport sees dramatic decline in number of homeless people
AP: Only two citations have been issued for trespassing at Honolulu Airport since nightly closures of overseas lobbies and baggage claim areas began nearly a month ago.
State transportation authorities said the closures were implemented to prevent homeless people from camping at the airport, and the problem has been reduced....
"We have gone from 50 to 60 nontraveling loiterers on the first night to almost nil this week," he added....
read ... Solution
Creating a Hawaii electric co-op
IM: An electric cooperative or municipal utility or a privately owned micro-grid can work in Hawai`i. They could replace parts of the HECO Empire. But there are at least three major caveats that must be carefully thought about.
The number one mistake to make is to insist that the idea is good and will work merely because you considered it. Or that talking to others will make it happen. The world is full of dreamers. Persistence is needed to achieve anything....
read ... Creating a Hawai`i electric co-op, municipal utility or private micro-grid
Schatz: I have no 'Head Space' for Reflecting, but I Talk Story with Biden
KGI: ...“I didn’t allow myself to do any reflecting because there was no time and there was no head space for it until this year,” Schatz said last week. “I didn’t even do any of the touristy things in Washington, D.C.” ...
Schatz has grown used to working with colleagues he used to see on television, catching on occasional ride on Air Force One, visiting with President Barack Obama, talking story with vice president Joe Biden and, naturally, legislating in the U.S. Senate.
“Every day I wake up happy about going to work,” he said. “Even if I have to get on a plane two or times a month.”...
"I think the next big thing is Iran."
read ... Biden-Schatz
Kona Church Marks 195 Years
WHT: Hawaii’s first center of Christian worship, the church was founded in 1820 by Congregationalist missionaries, and the building was completed in 1837. That history was discussed at Saturday’s celebration, an event that also included dedication of a plaque honoring Thomas Hopu, the church’s first Native Hawaiian, along with hula, a luau, music and dedication of “Hawaii’s Plymouth Rock” at Kailua Pier where the first missionaries landed.
Church leaders hope to conclude restoration by 2020. Last June, the structure was added to the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s list of 11 most endangered historic sites. At that time, Stephanie Meeks, president of the NTHP, said the church needs critical improvements if its history is to carry forward into a new century.
read ... Present at the Beginning
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