Big Island Police Arrest Three at Protest Against License Plates
Gun Control Nuts Tout Hawaii as Example
Ige Budget Does not Include Union Pay Raises
CB: …The 13-member State-County Functions Working Group that unanimously approved the report included representatives from four state agencies, including Budget and Finance, which Machida heads.
As such, Luke said she had assumed that the administration supported the working group’s proposal. But instead, Machida said that’s not the case and ended up apologizing.
“I’m sorry, I should have paid more attention to that committee,” he said.
As of now, the budget does not account for giving the counties more hotel tax money. If that changes, Luke said, she expects at a minimum that the state departments that supported the proposal would revisit their budgets and determine what areas will be cut to account for the loss in state revenue.
Before Ige took office in December 2014, the Legislature had started working with former Gov. Neil Abercrombie’s administration to improve budget transparency by eliminating vacant positions that departments had come to rely on to cover vacation payouts and other expenses. Ige was head of Ways and Means at the time.
Luke said she recalled then-Budget Director Kalbert Young telling lawmakers that one of the achievements of that administration was eliminating all unbudgeted positions. And yet, Machida said the current administration is still working to do so.
“Was the Abercrombie administration not telling the truth?” Luke said, pressing Machida for an explanation.
Tokuda jumped in too, asking how many unauthorized positions still exist and how the administration has been able to create them without legislative approval.
“We’ll get that information to you,” Machida said.
Luke and Tokuda also asked him why the financial plan doesn’t reflect collective bargaining cost increases and why the budget includes $400,000 in grants-in-aid to the counties, since that money traditionally goes to support nonprofits.
Machida acknowledged that continuing to provide annual raises to union workers as expected in the coming years could mean adding “significant numbers” to the financial plan.
“There’s a lot of X factors in here,” Tokuda said, adding that she hopes the administration focuses more on reining in costs and not just making investments.
PDF: Machida Budget Testimony
Forbes: Beware Of Pension Obligation Bonds
read … House Finance Chair To Hawaii Budget Director: Don’t Waste Our Time
State Steals Money from Conservation to Subsidize Fancy Waikiki Eco-Conference
SA: …State Sen. Laura Thielen (D, Hawaii Kai-Waimanalo-Kailua) has correctly questioned the decision to divert money to help pay for the congress from a fund and a department that support state parks, conservation and environmental efforts. Thielen, former DLNR director and one-time chairwoman of the Board of Land and Natural Resources, asked: “Why is it taking money from land and resource management?”
Somehow the allure and prestige of hosting the conservation congress have overshadowed the state’s own conservation efforts. As it stands, DLNR’s portion of the state general fund is but a sliver, amounting to about 1 percent of the total state budget — an amount that local conservationists already consider too meager for a stewardship department.
For the September gathering, the state has committed to deliver $11.48 million in cash and in-kind contributions, plus $1.8 million in operation costs — a huge obligation.
It took a years-long lobbying campaign to secure the World Conservation Congress. It will take millions of dollars to see the event come to fruition. And while it’s important to showcase the state’s conservation efforts worldwide, it’s even more critical to protect the funds that will finance those efforts for generations to come.
read … Environmentalism is just a scheme to create luxury environments for environmentalists
After Negative Audit, KOLEA Touted as Model for Hawaii IT Reform
GT: …They were able to complete the project on time for two main reasons, said Craig Grivette, principal at KPMG. First was cooperation from the state and hard work from everyone on his team, many of whom relocated to Hawaii for the project, he said. Second was the fact that KPMG built KOLEA using off-the-shelf IBM and Oracle products, rather than building an entire system from scratch.
"I think the lesson out of that is one that many states can learn from, which is that the need for large customized solutions is a very dated perspective," Grivette said. "The market has matured and the opportunity for simpler, more configuration-based solutions, versus large custom software solutions, is upon us."
Using a non-custom solution is also what is allowing the state to expand the system's reach, using it for other analyses. General tools, Grivette said, allow for a broader range of solutions….
In the coming months, the state will look at applying its integrated database toward the improvement of public health, education and employment. Officials can perform analysis and predict what the outcome of different decisions will be, Wong said.
"We're trying to take advantage of a platform that's already been built," said Hawaii CIO Todd Nacapuy. "We're being smart as a state and seeing if there are ways to access all the hard work that the team has put in from DHS on this very large, engineered solution — to use it to do larger big data or data analytics within our environment."
The state will first apply the system toward financial and budgetary questions, Nacapuy said, adding that it also wants to answer questions the state Legislature might have so decisions can be made based on empirical data, ultimately ensuring that money being spent is in accord with what the budget allocated….
But: KOLEA: After Burning $155M, Hawaii’s Other Obamacare Eligibility System Falls Short
read … KOLEA a Model
Merger or Not, NextEra is Writing HECO’s Renewable Energy Plans
SA: …NextEra Energy Inc., the company looking to buy Hawaiian Electric Industries for $4.3 billion, is assisting HEI on the utility’s renewable-energy plan at no charge, which has raised concern among at least two groups involved in the sale’s review.
In a document submitted to the Public Utilities Commission on Thursday, Florida-based NextEra said it will be assisting Hawaiian Electric Co. with its Power Supply Improvement Plans, 15-year renewable-energy plans the utility is required to file with the state….
“It appears that NextEra Energy has, and continues to be, actively involved in the HECO Cos.’ energy resource planning,” said Nathan Nelson, general counsel for Hawaii Gas. NextEra is helping HEI with long-range plans “despite contradicting statements that it cannot undertake comprehensive resource planning until after the close of the merger,” Nelson added….
If NextEra is assisting HEI in long-range planning, it makes it harder to evaluate the difference between the two companies’ vision of the future, said Henry Curtis, executive director of the environmental group Life of the Land.
“It is concerning from the point of view that the question for the merger proceeding is how will NextEra improve on the HECO plan,” Curtis said. “But if they write it together they have the same plan.” …
read … NextEra aids power utility on fuel plans at no charge
Hawaii’s strict gun laws will not be affected by President Obama’s proposals
KHON: Stricter firearms laws are coming nationwide, but experts say it will have no effect on Hawaii gun buyers. That’s because Hawaii’s gun laws are stricter than many other states….
As Explained: Gun Control Nuts Tout Hawaii as Example
read … Already Way too Strict
Homeless Sweeps Push 51 into Shelters
KHON: …“For the past two months, we have moved a number of people off the streets and into housing. One woman got on a bus on a Tuesday to go to a shelter. By Friday, she signed a lease for an apartment in a permanent housing unit. We want to make sure we’re offering a variety of options for folks. We know shelter isn’t always the best option for people.”
Morishige says the state’s working with the homeless who are refusing to go to shelters by offering temporary and permanent housing options.
“We do continue to have space available in our shelters, and additional funding is available for Housing First to get people in rapidly,” he said.
Morishige says 51 people have moved into shelters, including 20 who were placed in permanent housing.
City and County of Honolulu spokesman Jesse Broder van Dyke says island-wide “sidewalk nuisance enforcements” cost $15,000 a week….
read … Keep The Pressure Up
Tomorrow is Deadline for UH to appeal NCAA sanctions for men’s basketball team
SA: The University of Hawaii expects to announce Wednesday whether it will appeal NCAA sanctions against its men’s basketball team, a spokesman said.
That is the 15-day deadline under NCAA rules by which the school must provide notice of intent if it plans to appeal to the Infractions Appeals Committee.
Athletic director David Matlin has declined comment except to say school officials have been “doing our due diligence prior to making a decision.”
read … UH may appeal NCAA sanctions for men’s basketball team
Hawaii workforce drug tests show hike in cocaine use in 2015
KHON: …Drug usage discovered in workforce drug testing remained quite flat in 2015, according to end-of-year statistics compiled by Diagnostic Laboratory Services, with the exception of a hike in cocaine usage, which showed a 100 percent increase year over year.
Cocaine use jumped from 0.2 percent in fourth quarter 2014 to 0.4 percent, fourth quarter 2015. The rising trend started in the second quarter 2015, moving from 0.2 percent in first quarter 2015 to 0.4 percent in the second quarter, dipping to 0.3 percent in the third quarter and back again to 0.4 percent in the fourth quarter.
“The increase in cocaine abuse is significant even though the usage is low in comparison to most of the other drugs. Higher use was still synthetic urine, which rose to 0.8 percent in the fourth quarter 2014 and remained at that higher level throughout 2015,” said Carl Linden, scientific director of toxicology.
Methamphetamine, or ice use, declined by 22 percent year over year, but is still at about 0.7 percent, which is about four times the average ice use found in workforce drug testing on the mainland (0.17 percent for 2014)….
read … Doped Up
Prosecutors seek to revive major gambling case dismissed in 2014
HNN: …In 2012, hundreds of sweepstakes machines, deemed gambling devices, were seized from businesses like Winner's Zone, Lucky Touch and Prize World. Nine people were named in a historic, 414-count indictment.
But the criminal case failed and in 2014, all charges were dismissed. The prosecutors handling the case were scolded by the judge.
The machines, though, were never returned to the business owners. One of those business owners, Tracy Yoshimura, says the case has cost him hundreds of thousands of dollars and damaged his credit.
"It's going to take years and years to re-establish whether it's our fault or not, not paying those bills it will take a long time to recover from," says Yoshimura.
Sources say two different prosecutors are now assigned to the case. They are offering plea deals to some of the defendants from the previous case as they look at returning to the grand jury to re-indict….
read … Gambling?
Former HPD officer to report to L.A. prison
HNN: …Vincent Morre plead guilty to violating the civil rights of two men in an assault on two men in an Ala Moana game room in September 2014.
He originally could have received five years in prison, but the judge reduced his term to two-and-a-half years because he took responsibility and made a training video for HPD recruits….
read … Prison
2015: The Year in Claims Against the State of Hawaii
MT: …this report, transmitted to the Legislature on Dec. 22, 2015, which is whimsically titled State of Hawaii Department of Accounting and General Services Annual Report of Claims and Lawsuits Arbitrated, Compromised, or Settled for $10,000 or less for Fiscal Year 2014-2015. Okay, so maybe the title needed some trimming, but fear not: the meat of the report is juicy and delicious.
As the title makes clear, this is just a 30-page list of all the claims (of up to $10,000) made against the State of Hawaii during the last fiscal year. The report lists 174 such claims for a total of $239,055.18 (the fact that the report shows the state paid out $210,431.53 indicates that filing a claim may be a wise decision). Most of the claims are pretty routine–pothole damage to cars, lost property, etc.–but some stand out (my favorite is the very first claim listed in the report: $1,189.59 to Justin Agustin because “On 05-28-14 an inmate’s denture was lost after a shakedown at Oahu Community Correctional Center”….
read … The Year in Claims
2016: An Opportunity to Finally be Rid of Gary Hooser
KE: …JoAnn Yukimura should bow out gracefully. I don't want to denigrate her years of public service, but 'nuff already. It's become painful to watch her in Council meetings, especially when she and Mel lock horns. Net result: She has zero effectiveness. Mason Chock and Gary Hooser are her only pals, and even those alliances are strained, considering how Hooser threw her under the Bill 2491 bus.
Hooser has announced his desire for re-election, but after perusing his most recent blog, it's pretty clear he doesn't give a shit about his job.
Titled “2015 rocked – A short candid review of the good stuff going on in my life during the past year ;)” Hooser's blog post covers, in this order: his kids getting married, crashing the Syngenta shareholders' meeting in Switzerland, serving as president of HAPA, “doing” two Grateful Dead concerts, going to the beach and watching Baby Hoos (Dylan) play soccer on Sunday afternoons.
Only then does he bring up his actual job — serving as an elected member of the Kauai County Council. Hooser offers this description of his term to date:
Had an interesting year on the Kauai County Council. Would not call it particularly productive but it was never dull. Though I tried really, really hard, it seems the 4 man majority that controls the agenda had other ideas. Two of the worst of those ideas was a repeal of the “barking dog ordinance” and new rules forbidding Councilmembers from asking questions during public testimony.
Gee, his enthusiasm for his job is palpable. Yawn.... And let's not forget his contribution to the inanity: the fireplace ban bill.
Why, pray tell, would you want to re-elect someone who admits he's totally ineffective and considers his commitment to the voting public and taxpayers less relevant to his life than watching his adult son play soccer, but slightly more meaningful than eating pecan pie in Georgia?
Hooser also takes credit for what he estimates is a 20% reduction in the seed companies' footprint on Kauai. Oh, yes, Da Hoos is more powerful than global commodity prices. Not.
There's only one reason why Gary wants to be re-elected. Actually, make that two: Easy money and good benefits; and use of the County Council letterhead and title to advance his HAPA agenda.
Mason, meanwhile, took to The Garden Island with a mealy-mouthed, namby-pamby piece about how the Council isn't really working together well….
read … Hooser Free Kauai?
Maui Anti-GMO Activists Spray Pesticide in their own Homes, Call Heath Department
TH: …Three houses in Paia were found to be contaminated inside with herbicides, according to local sources.
The Hawaii Department of Agriculture itself tested a home in Paia after a resident complained that nearby fields were over being sprayed. Their test results came back positive for 6 different kinds of herbicides in the bedrooms, the kitchen and on the trees in the yard. Dicamba, Diruron, 2,4-D, Pendimethanlin, Ametryn, and Hexazinone were all found inside of the home….
read … Hype to Fool the Ignorant
Why Are Online Classes, Degrees Hard To Get At The University Of Hawaii?
CB: UH Manoa offers two fully online degree programs, a stark contrast to the 16 programs offered on average at comparable institutions….
read … Online
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