Papahanaumokuakea: OHA’s Power Grab will harm State's ability to continue its trust responsibility to Native Hawaiians
Hawaii Pension System $8 Billion in Trouble
Sen. Sam Slom Endorses Kelii Akina for OHA Trustee
Hawaii Police Departments decreasing in size per capita
County by County: Where are the People Doped Up?
Video: Tulsi Gabbard Nominates Bernie Sanders for President
Lawsuit: Compel Department of Health to post long term care home inspection reports
Hawaii Supreme Court: Hanalei Boatyard Connected to Area 51?
Honolulu Tops Cities Where Coffee Costs the Most
Hawaii County Mayoral Candidate Wally Lau Fears Perjury Charge in Billy Kenoi Case
CB: In an interview with a Civil Beat reporter in mid-July, Hawaii County mayoral candidate Wally Lau brought along a guest: his lawyer.
As Lau talked about his vision for the Big Island, sitting in his air-conditioned campaign headquarters at the Hilo Iron Works Building, attorney Stanley Roehrig listened intently and made notes on a yellow legal pad.
Roehrig’s presence underscored the drama around an inescapable issue in the contest to replace Mayor Billy Kenoi: the incumbent’s indictment on several counts, including felony theft stemming from his alleged misused of a county-issued purchasing card.
Kenoi used the pCard, as it is called, for personal expenses such as buying a surfboard and bicycle and paying tabs at hostess bars.
Lau, who served as Kenoi’s deputy managing director and then managing director, resigned in January to focus on his own mayoral run. But Lau retains Roehrig’s counsel because Kenoi’s legal battles continue and Lau thinks he has to be careful what he says to the media.
“He testified under oath to the attorney general, and nobody knows how it’s going to shake out,” Roehrig explained. “And we don’t want to have the front page of the newspaper say, ‘Oh, Wally Lau said this or Wally Lau said that,’ because we respect the attorney general’s process, the investigation, and we do not want to get involved in that.”
(Translation: If he’s caught lying, he could go to jail.)
read … Perjury
Djou is Only Candidate Pledged to Not Raise Taxes
SA: Djou differs from Caldwell and Carlisle in that he vowed not to seek an extension of Oahu’s existing 0.5 percent surcharge on the general excise tax….
KITV Poll: If the election were held today, who would get your vote for Honolulu mayor?
read … No Tax Hike
If voters don’t elect new leadership at City Hall, we’re all in big trouble
CB: …Djou said he wants to take the city in a direction that is fundamentally different from that of his opponents. Carlisle wants to build rail all the way to Ala Moana Center, while Caldwell wants to stop at Middle Street until the funding can be secured to build the full 20-mile route from East Kapolei.
“Both have used the phrase ‘stay the course,’ but the problem is we are way, way, way off course,” Djou said of his opponents’ stands on rail.
In fact, Djou said there was no comparable example of a rail project so off course as Honolulu’s, which is over budget and delayed. Rail will “consume everything if it is not fixed,” he said, and the only solution is to have a new mayor — him….
Djou says that, from Honolulu Hale to Washington, D.C., Americans no longer trust their government. Here at home, Caldwell promised that rail would be “on time and on budget,” but it is way behind schedule and billions over budget.
Enough already with the blank check to pay for rail, Djou says. If voters don’t elect new leadership at City Hall, we’re all in big trouble….
Djou pointed to a Honolulu Star-Advertiser series that reported Oahu is behind the times when it comes to road repair. While Caldwell defended the city’s approach as standard across the country and the world, Djou said the city had failed at this basic function of government….
As for homelessness, one of the major issues in the mayoral race this year, Caldwell said the city has made progress and that the problem “is not out of control.” Djou said common sense shows that things are worse than they were four years ago when Caldwell was elected….
Djou needs to be more “strategically patient” rather than engaging immediately when confronting issues….
HNN: Beleaguered rail project takes center stage in mayoral race
HNN: Djou proposes moving rail project to street level
KHON: What needs to happen now is the government needs to fix itself
read … As Caldwell And Djou Sharpen Attacks, Carlisle Goes For Laughs
Darby damage was avoidable?
SA: This seems to happen with each major rainstorm Hawaii endures: The facilities meant to protect neighborhoods and businesses from damage don’t.
This was starkly eviden with Tropical Storm Darby. Not only were areas such as Mapunapuna swamped — a fairly common occurrence there — but waterways, such as Kalihi Stream, became clogged and overflowed….
Big Q: Do you think Oahu was adequately prepared for Tropical Storm Darby, which flooded streets and clogged streams with debris?
read … Caused by Caldwell
Fasi Building Air Conditioning Broken—Will Stay Down for Two Weeks Due to Caldwell’s Incompetence
KHON: …Employees that work in the Fasi Municipal Building had been sent home early these last two days thanks to a broken AC system, but because the city wants to keep services available to the public, employees will have to work their whole shift starting Wednesday.
According to the city Department of Facility Maintenance, the earliest the air conditioning could be fixed is a week from Tuesday, leaving all but the basement and first floor of the 15-story building without AC until then….
read … Two Weeks to Fix an AC Unit?
‘That Ocean Belongs To Us,’ Former Governor Tells Feds
CB: Former Gov. George Ariyoshi said Tuesday that he doesn’t want “somebody from the outside” dictating how Hawaii residents can use the waters around the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands.
A few dozen opponents of the proposed fourfold expansion of Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument stood behind him in the Capitol Rotunda, holding signs saying “Not so fast” and “Protect our local food source.”
“That ocean belongs to us,” Ariyoshi said….
Former U.S. Sen. Dan Akaka followed suit, saying the public needs to know more about the proposal before President Barack Obama considers using his executive authority under the Antiquities Act to expand the monument.
“It’s unconscionable for us to enact a new policy of expanding Papahanaumokuakea without proper transparency,” Akaka said. “What does it do to the people of Hawaii?” …
Ariyoshi, Akaka and former Gov. Ben Cayetano sent the president a letter last week that says “the proposed expansion will impact the State’s ability to continue its trust responsibility to native Hawaiians.” “The native Hawaiian traditional fishing practice to bring fish and other resources back to their families and communities is prohibited in that area,” they wrote, explaining how federal permits are required to access the monument.…
Schatz’s proposal calls for elevating OHA to a co-trustee of the monument and pushing the monument’s expansion boundary slightly farther west so it includes a weather buoy that fishermen use as a fish-aggregating device.
That helped secure the OHA Board of Trustees’ support in May, save for one “no” vote from Peter Apo and one abstention from John Waihee.
“By becoming a co-trustee, we will have a greater voice and more influence on policy, protections and programmatic activities,” said Kamanaʻopono Crabbe, CEO of OHA….
Hawaii longliners hauled in 27 million pounds of fish in 2013, with a dockside value of $85.4 million. The fish include bigeye and yellowfin tuna, known as ahi in Hawaii, along with swordfish, mahimahi, opah and ono. (And phony environmentalists and OHA money-grubbers are doing everything they can to steal this money for themselves.)
SA: Fishermen, ex-politicians rally against expansion
HNN: “I feel it's unconscionable for us to enact a new policy of expanding the Papahanaumokuakea without proper transparency," Akaka said.
read … ‘That Ocean Belongs To Us,’ Former Governor Tells Feds
HECO to Control Solar Development on Oahu?
IM: …The Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam issued a Solar Facility Draft Environmental Assessment in April 2015.
There has been speculating that three major solar projects planned for Central Oahu were killed by NextEra during their proposed takeover of HECO.
Now, with NextEra having just pulled out of Hawai`i, HECO may seek to control the development of new solar on Oahu….
SA: Due to Global Cooling, Honolulu set new record for coolest temperature Tuesday
SA: SunRun Starts Peddling Batteries
SA: Model for monopoly power companies needs to change
read … Control
State, Feds Hand out $23.3M to so-called High Tech Companies
PBN: The High Technology Development Corp. has awarded $3.3 million in funding to two grant programs, it announced on Tuesday.
The funding will go to 13 Hawaii companies and be used to support the development of new products to solve critical issues.
The two grant programs are the Hawaii Small Business Innovation Research program and the Hawaii Office of Naval Research program.
The HSBIR funds new technology products in four phases with each progressive phase meaning more funding. The HONR program is a two-year effort to develop energy projects funded by the U.S. Office of Naval Research.
In addition to state funding, the federal government awarded nearly $20 million in research and development grants to the same companies.
read … Your Taxes at Work
State high court rejects ethics charges against Hilo charter school administrator
ILind: The July 19 ruling by the Supreme Court shredded what had been one of the commission’s most extensive and significant enforcement actions in decades.
William Eric Boyd, an assistant administrator at the Connections New Century Public Charter School in Hilo, had been charged with violating the state ethics code by approving or processing purchases of supplies, equipment and school lunches from two companies controlled by Boyd and his wife.
In its decision, the Supreme Court noted that Boyd had actually followed all of the charter school’s policies and procedures, and faced the ethics charges despite apparently having done everything according to the rules.
What didn’t make it into the CB column is that there was no evidence that Boyd was anything other than the lowest bidder, providing needed products and services to the school at the lowest cost.
For example, Hilo attorney Ted Hong, who represented Boyd in the appeal, told me in a telephone interview that products ordered through through the Boyd’s Amway distributorship were sold to the school at their wholesale cost. And the court decision noted that meals for high school students purchased from Boyd’s wife cost just $3 each.
read … Reject
Kauai Anti-GMO Activist Booted from Dem Convention After Giving Hillary Clinton the Finger on Live National TV
KE: So today we have Dylan Hooser in The Garden Island talking about what an honor it was to represent Hawaii at the Democratic National Convention, yada, yada, yada.
Meanwhile, he's prominently featured in a news clip with Chelsea Lyons Kent, who is standing next to former Gov. John Waihee, and behind Sens. Brian Schatz and Mazie Hirono, flipping the bird as delegate votes are announced for Hillary Clinton.
Dylan laughs and smirks at her gesture, like a kid who has just seen someone throw a spitball at the teacher.
Wow. Immature, much? Talk about sore losers among the Bernie brigade. Where's your dang “shame” banner when we really need it, Dylan?
Kent lost her DNC credentials when she refused to apologize for her childish act. According to an email from Hawaii State Chair Tim Vandeveer:
After consulting with the party leadership that was gathered on the convention floor, I made the decision to revoke this member's floor pass for the evening and provide her an opportunity to apologize for her actions in exchange for being allowed to attend the rest of convention. She was unwilling to do so. Therefore, her floor credentials have been revoked for the duration of convention and she will no longer be a part of our delegation.
Delegates of both campaigns have expressed their shock and disappointment at the incident and have asked me to stress that this in no way reflects the sentiments of the rest of our delegation, regardless of their candidate affiliation. This incident notwithstanding, we have had an excellent convention thus far.
Kent used GoFundMe to raise money for her trip to the DNC, but from the recent comments left on that page, it appears her actions have generated blowback:
Neil Carmody: What a shameful disgrace you are! You should return every dime and go back to wherever your no class I joke came from. AUWE!
Anna Peahu: You're an embarrassment. You don't deserve a single cent raised on GoFundMe. Do the right thing. Refund everyone their money and apologize. You're a disgrace!
Reinaldo Pacheco: You just wasted 85 people's money and embarrassed a state you aren't even from. Keep your disgraceful actions away from Hawaii.
Kent's obscene gesture reflects poorly on the Aloha State, but mostly on her, and also Dylan, was was fully aware of what went down, and even bragged about — wow — getting on TV:
So these punks are the “seeds of the revolution?” Their juvenile behavior is reflective of what Dylan described as “our progressive values?”
As I've pointed out repeatedly, none are so regressive as the new “progressives," like Kent and her fellow anti-GMO activists, who have been pulling cheap stunts like this for a while now….
read … Musings: That's Their MO
BLNR OKs transfer of land lease in Milolii from Kahele to relative
HTH: State Sen. Kai Kahele has passed along a controversial state land lease in Milolii to a relative.
The state Board of Land and Natural Resources approved transferring the residential lease to Orasa Fernandez during its meeting Friday in Honolulu.
Kahele held the lease since 2011. He continued to live in Hilo even though he was required to use the Milolii home as his primary residence….
The low-cost leases were established for those displaced by the 1926 Mauna Loa eruption. (Translation: He gets free land use.)
Kahele told the Tribune-Herald that he knew about the residency requirement when he took on the lease, contrary to earlier statements he made to reporters. (Translation: He’s a liar.)
The Land Board did not issue any penalties for the lease violation. (Special treatment.)
The issue was raised following Gov. David Ige appointing Kahele in February to the District 1 seat previously filled by his father, Sen. Gil Kahele, who died in January. Gil Kahele grew up in Milolii and founded Pa‘a Pono Miloli‘i, which his son later took over. (Translation: He’d keep on unless somebody spoke up.)
Kai Kahele, a Democrat, is running for election to the District 1 seat in the Aug. 13 primary…. (He’s already elected, the rest is just a formality.)
read … Special Treatment
HPD Arrests City Employee in Gay Sex Scandal
SA: Honolulu police have arrested a city worker, who was allegedly depicted on live video late last week propositioning a transgender probationer for sexual favors.
Police arrested Harold Villanueva Jr., 47, on a charge of fourth-degree sex assault at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday. Villanueva appeared in court this morning. His bail was set at $500.
Police began investigating Villanueva after Makana Milho, 21, secretly recorded and posted live to Facebook Friday approximately 30 minutes of conversations that she alleges were between her him and the city worker who was supervising her his court-ordered community service….
In the viral video a man can be heard telling Milho that she can go home early if she will perform sexual favors. Milho, who is represented by Honolulu attorney Myles Breiner, also alleges that the man tried to hold her his hand and pinched and slapped her his buttocks while she was cleaning park bathrooms….
read … Busted by a Tranny
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