Caldwell Hammered on Bank Job, Lack of Ethics
Will Olympic Visitors Bring Zika Back With Them?
TOU Pricing: A Cool New Way to Raise Your Electric Rates
Honolulu Ethics Commission Appoints New Director
Hawaiian Electric Begins Peddling Batteries
Elderly 45.8% More Likely to Suffer Traffic Fatality
Hawaii Offshore Windfarms An Expensive ‘Political Agenda’
CD1 Special Election Set for General Election Day
Truth and Transparency Lacking at OHA
Poll: Djou Ahead 42-33
CB: Charles Djou leads incumbent Kirk Caldwell 42 percent to 33 percent in the race for Honolulu mayor in The Civil Beat Poll, suggesting that neither candidate will garner a majority of the votes in the Aug. 13 primary necessary to win the contest outright.
The poll also shows the massively over-budget Honolulu rail project beats out homelessness, ethics and cost of living when it comes to influencing how people will vote.
Djou and Caldwell are likely headed to a runoff in November, a repeat of the 2012 primary that sent top vote-getter Ben Cayetano and second-place finisher Caldwell to the general election….
PDF: Poll Details
read … A vote for Carlisle is a Vote for Caldwell
Money: OHA Cronies Demand Control of Papahanaumokuakea
KGI: …Around 200 people showed up at the meeting hosted by the Obama Administration to gather feedback from Hawaii’s people on the potential expansion of the monument, which would establish the largest protected marine area in the world.
Since the beginning of the conversation, proponents of the expansion and the Native Hawaiian Cultural Working group that proposed the expansion have been gathering supporters.
On Kauai, more than a dozen restaurants have joined a list supporting the expansion and thousands statewide have added their support to the expansion letter.
Tuesday’s testimony was roughly evenly split between those opposed and those supporting the monument.
Many of those testifying at the Tuesday night meeting said they’d be in support of the monument expansion, if there is Native Hawaiian management of the monument.
Kawika Riley, with the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, said that is very much part of the proposal.
He said OHA’s board voted to adopt the expansion proposition with the condition that the federal government elevate OHA to co-trustee status.
“I’m for it if it will be managed and decisions made about it by Native Hawaiian cultural practitioners, who knows better to take care of that place,” said Kauai resident Puanani Rogers. “I would like it to be run by native people that know the place, who is going to manage this?”
Rogers said she is still deciding her opinion on the monument expansion and cautioned against rushing forward with the expansion with too many unanswered questions.
Governance of the monument was also a point of concern for Leilani Josselin, who said she’d like to see more Native Hawaiian influence over management.
She said she does see a benefit to expanding the monument when it comes to the military, however.
“I think with this expansion there will be more accountability with the military presence,” Josselin said. “After the first expansion, there was an increase in the military presence.”
Keith Robinson, also a Kauai resident and part owner of the island of Niihau, also touched on the military’s presence in the monument, however he’s against the expansion of the monument.
“I’m against the expansion of the reserve because I don’t want environmentalists to have an excuse to cripple Navy operations,” Robinson said….
KHON: 300 at Papahanaumokuakea Meeting in Waipahu
read … Money
Caldwell Continues to Protect Chief Kealoha from FBI
HNN: …The contenders also disagreed on Honolulu's police chief, who is facing a federal probe over alleged civil rights violations.
As in months past, Caldwell said the decision on whether to put police Chief Louis Kealoha on leave or fire him sits with the Honolulu Police Commission. "The commission was created to take politics out of" the Honolulu Police Department, he said. "I believe that you need to let the process play out."
Djou and Carlisle, meanwhile, said they would seek to put the chief on temporary leave as the federal investigation continues.
"It's a disgrace to law enforcement," Carlisle said, of the allegations against the chief and his prosecutor wife.
Djou added, "We have to make sure there's a basic level of trust between the police force and the people."….
Djou, a former Congressman, appears to be heading into the primary election with an edge.
A Hawaii News Now/Star-Advertiser poll released earlier this month showed Djou with an early lead in the race. Some 39 percent of likely voters said they would back him.
Meanwhile, 30 percent said they would vote for Caldwell. Carlisle trailed the pack, with just 15 percent of likely voters saying they would vote for him.
Djou said he was buoyed by the poll results, but wasn’t taking anything for granted.
He added the strong numbers are a “reflection not of me, but my campaign team’s hard work and more importantly about the community really saying that they want change.”
CB: Caldwell’s Inaction On Police Reform Draws Political Attacks
read … Kealoha
Computerization Opened Door to Cash Theft in Parks and Rec Dept
WHT: Several County Council members quizzed the legislative auditor and administration officials Tuesday, seeking assurances the county isn’t leaking cash when people rent facilities.
At issue is an audit of the Department of Parks and Recreation that found sloppy handling of cash payments and a lack of numbered receipts and other controls in renting permits for pavilions and other park facilities.
Three offices maintain the reservation books: the Kona Permit Office, Hilo Main Office Administration and the Recreation Division. The program reported it collected $176,000 for 1,297 permits in the 2014-15 fiscal year.
It’s not known how much money might have been lost in cash transactions.
“We couldn’t tell if anything didn’t make it to deposit,” said Legislative Auditor Bonnie Nims….
Hilo Councilman Dennis “Fresh” Onishi asked if the current system had been in place in prior administrations, and was told the prenumbered permit forms were abandoned when the system was computerized.
Department officials say they’re getting a handle on the problems and are taking the auditor’s recommendations to heart.
“We will look at going back to a prenumbered system,” said Parks and Recreation Director Clayton Honma….
July 24, 2016: Recreation Department Audit: No Way to Know How Much They Stole
read … Council seeks assurances park and rec money leak plugged
Djou: Build Up in Urban Honolulu
SA: …To address the housing crunch, Djou reiterated his call to build taller residential buildings in urban Honolulu in order to preserve more pristine areas. “We of course don’t want to turn Honolulu into the skyline of Chicago or Manhattan here, but can we go a little bit higher? The answer is yes, absolutely,” he said….
read … Crunch Time
TOD Tax to Pay for Rail?
CB: …consider an Optional, Overlay, Improvement and Transit Oriented Zone centered around each stop. In such a zone, the landowner/developer has the option for increased density. In return, a 2 to 3 percent tax is levied on initial sales and future resales of property they build. The exact percentages can be adjusted.
This creates a huge, continuous revenue stream that can pay, subsidize or plan for rail (construction, extensions, operations and debt), nearby related affordable housing, compatible infrastructure, more business and livable spaces, community grants for implementation and tax administration. This revenue source is advantageous because it is related to construction costs, and thus provides the rail system some inflation protection.
Furthermore, long after rail is paid for, sales of property within the zone continue to generate revenue to support needed TOD improvements and rail operations. While this zone does have a new tax, it is one the landowner/developer wants and chooses because of density incentives. Those who don’t want the tax do not have to pay it, but they will not get increased density if they rebuild….
read … TOD Pays
Rap Back: Even Former Gun Owners Will be Included in Database
SA: …the rifles were not stored properly and were in terrible condition. I eventually gave them to a friend who was transferring to the mainland, but I am still registered with the state as the owner. With the new law in Hawaii linking gun ownership with the FBI database, I need to nullify the obsolete registration. However, there are no instructions on the registration or anything I could find on the state website concerning canceling the registration. Can you please find any information concerning nullifying a firearms registration?
Answer: There is no process to de-register a firearm in Hawaii, according to Honolulu Police Department spokeswoman Michelle Yu. A gun owner may sell or transfer ownership to a licensed firearms dealer or to a private citizen who has a valid permit to acquire the firearm, she said. Or a gun owner may turn in the weapon for destruction at the HPD firearms counter.
But there is no way to “nullify an obsolete registration,”
read … Locked in For Life
Education: ESSA Forums Hit Big Island
WHT: Tonight, state education leaders will be in Waimea to collect feedback about the state Department of Education and Board of Education’s Joint Strategic Plan.
The meeting is from 5-6:30 p.m. in the ‘Olu‘olu Room of the Halau Ho‘olako Building, 65-1043 Hiiaka St. The event is free and open to the public. Hawaii County-based board members Brian De Lima and Patricia Bergin will be in attendance, along with Superintendent of Education Kathryn Matayoshi.
read … State wants input from Big Island residents at education forums
New charter schools’ authorizers sought
SA: The state Board of Education is moving ahead with proposed rules that would allow for groups such as nonprofits and universities to approve and oversee public charter schools — a move that charter advocates say will help foster growth and improvement.
Hawaii currently has a single charter-authorizing agency, the Public Charter School Commission, a state entity that some critics contend has stifled the growth of charter schools. Since its establishment in 2012, the commission has approved three charter schools. The Board of Education and the commission’s predecessor, the Charter School Review Panel, approved the majority of the state’s 34 charter schools.
Nationally, at least 26 states have multiple types of chartering authorities available to start schools. These authorities include public and private universities, local school boards, city councils and nonprofit organizations, according to the National Association of Charter School Authorizers….
The proposed rules lay out the process for interested parties to apply to become a charter school authorizer with statewide, regional or local jurisdiction. Eligible entities would include college or university governing boards; state or county agencies; and nonprofits, excluding religious organizations.
(A motley crew consisting of) Hawaii County Mayor Billy Kenoi, the former chancellor of the University of Hawaii at West Oahu and the director of UH Hilo’s College of Hawaiian Language have previously expressed interest in having their organizations become charter school authorizers….
The rules also include language to discourage so-called “shopping” between authorizing entities by prohibiting the transfer of charter contracts between authorizers “in an attempt to reduce the level of oversight or accountability to which the charter school is currently subject or to avoid possible revocation or nonrenewal of its charter contract.”
read ... Increase in charter schools’ authorizers sought
Kapiolani Park Homeless threaten Journalist
MW: A 60-year- old no-permanent-residence man argues with a fellow 55-year-old no-permanent-residence man. The older man then stabs to death the slightly younger man. Other no-permanent-residence occupiers of a park table see it all unfold and one calls police. It's on TV that night and in the newspaper the next morning . I'm not surprised….
One group has been there more than eight months and recently has been joined by a second seemingly homeless group . They have all their "living-room" gear, cooking gear, and two vehicles – an old SUV and a smoked-windows van.
One week ago, I decided to photograph the group while I stood on Paki Avenue. A shirtless man (seated left in my photograph) spotted me, jumped up and shouted: "Why are you taking our picture'''
I say I'm a local journalist.
He says, "You didn’t ask to take our picture, and I'm coming over there and taking your camera." I say, " It's public property, and I wouldn't do that if I were you." But he struts toward me and looks very aggressive …
KHON: Medical examiner says dogs behind Kalihi homeless man’s death
read … Midweek Pg 8
Stabbing suspect linked to previous incidents of road rage, pepper spray
KHON: …Neighbor Michael Pacheco told KHON2 that he was walking home in January when Char clipped him with his van.
“I told him, ‘Watch where you’re going.’ He stopped the truck, came out, and started shooting me with mace and then I went to the ground and he started kicking me and continued to shoot me with mace,” Pacheco said.
Elizabeth Domingo says her family was having a party a few houses away from where Char lives when he came over and pepper-sprayed her son.
“So were they arguing first or did he just come and spray him right away?” KHON2 asked.
“No, they were not arguing,” she said.
In 2013, police and SWAT teams arrested Char during a standoff at his house.
We’ve also learned that in 2002, he was charged with negligent injury for allegedly hitting a guy on a motorcycle while driving.
According to Char’s attorney, that case was dismissed because a judge ruled that Char did not get a speedy trial. He was retried and convicted, but an appeals court reversed the ruling, so when the trial was scheduled again, the judge again dismissed the case, ruling that Char did not get a speedy trial.
Prosecutors appealed, so the trial is scheduled for November.
Neighbors say they can’t understand why Char is not locked up.
“This is very serious,” Pacheco said. “He goes on the road aggravating people and when they retaliate back to him, he makes it like he’s the one getting attacked.”
Pacheco says no charges were filed against Char for that incident in January, even though Pacheco filed a police report.
We contacted the Honolulu Police Department to find out why and have not heard back.
We also asked the prosecutor’s office what held up the 2002 negligent injury case forcing the dismissal. A spokesman said, “Prosecutors appealed and the dismissals were overturned, meaning the appeals court found the judge’s time calculations to be inaccurate.”
read … Failed System
Big Island Windfarm Will Kill Endangered Bats and Birds
BIVN: …The hearing will be held at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 4, 2016, at the Hawai‘i Gateway Energy Center, Natural Energy Laboratory of Hawai‘i, 73-4485 Kahilihili St., Kailua-Kona.
Tawhiri Power LLC, the Pakini Nui project proponent, operates an existing 21 MW wind energy facility at South Point with 14 turbines and associated power lines. The facility has not previously operated under an HCP and associated incidental take license. Tawhiri has now prepared an HCP and is requesting a 20-year ITL ( incidental take is a legal term including, but not limited to, any type of harm or harassment).
As of March 2016, two endangered Hawaiian hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus semotus) fatalities have been observed at the facility. Tawhiri has determined that the incidental take of four endangered species could occur from continued facility operation: Hawaiian hoary bat, Hawaiian petrel (Pterodroma sandwichensis), band-rumped storm petrel (Oceanodroma castro) and Hawaiian goose (nēnē; Branta sandvicensis).
Low wind speed curtailment will be employed as a minimization measure. Mitigation for the Hawaiian hoary bat will consist of habitat improvement at the Kahuku Unit of Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park and associated bat monitoring to evaluate the improvement.
Mitigation for the Hawaiian petrel and band-rumped storm petrel will consist of a monetary contribution….
read … Windfarm
Transportation Bill Decision
CB: The Honolulu City Council is expected to make a final decision on a bill establishing new regulations for public transportation companies, including Uber and Lyft, at its meeting Wednesday….
read … Uber Lyft
Lawsuit: Kauai Marijuana Dispensary Funded With Stolen Money
KGI: …The case, which alleges that Justin Britt — the founder of Green Aloha — illegally drew funds from a separate business account, is still alive in court due to a motion to amend the complaint filed by Winston Welborn and Wasabi Design, Inc. That motion was granted.
Katherine Caswell, attorney for Welborn, said in court Tuesday her client had been trying to adjust the pleadings with new evidence to show bank records that prove Britt — the sole managing officer of the marijuana dispensary — defrauded him and acted on behalf of Green Aloha.
“In fact, we have majorly papered this file with bank records showing that the money was transferred in and out of various accounts immediately prior to a cash withdrawal right at the exact time that Green Aloha was required to show proof of funds for its application to the state of Hawaii,” Caswell said Tuesday. “Now, you have an entity that has been granted the sole license to distribute a controlled substance on the island of Kauai and that entity was formed with stolen money.” ….
read … Dopers doing Dopey Stuff
Believe in Sea Level Rise? Sell Now and Flee!
SA: Close to 40,000 homes in Hawaii could be underwater by the year 2100, according to an analysis by real estate website Zillow Inc.
The analysis was based on a study published in the scientific journal Nature that predicted sea levels could rise 6 feet by the end of this century, mainly due to melting Antarctic ice.
If that happens, 9 percent of Hawaii homes could be underwater, wiping out $25.3 billion in home value statewide….
AP: Global Warmers to Sell off Oceanfront Real Estate Cheap
read … Bye Bye Believers
Gabbard Slams Religious Bigotry in Clinton Camp
SA: …Gabbard had been silent throughout the convention about whether she would throw her support to Clinton, even as Sanders was effusive in praising her.
As late as June, when Clinton was already the presumptive party nominee, Gabbard remained reluctant to give her endorsement.
“I am not prepared to do that,” she told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer. “There are a lot of things that I’m looking at, in particular this issue that she has not moved on at all in this campaign, which is this commitment to continue this interventionist regime change policy in Syria that is proving to be so disastrous.”
As for the resignations of leaders of the Democratic National Committee, Gabbard maintains it’s a good thing. She said she was particularly bothered by an email from chief finance officer Brad Marshall questioning Sanders’ Jewish faith and whether the candidate could lose support in the South if he were to be portrayed as an atheist.
“Religious bigotry like this has no place in the Democratic Party,” Gabbard said….
KITV: Another Muslim Caught Buying Grenades
read … Endorse the Bigot
Candidate Profiles:
QUICK HITS: