HECO Paying Blue Planet to 'Shape Opinion'
Hawaii State Senate Confirms Three DHHL Commissioners
Oahu Vax for Age 50+ Begins Monday
COVID Justice: 430 Inmates Released, 58% Have Already Reoffended
2021 Legislature almost pau, and thank goodness for that
HB1348 Quietly Shifts $350M Aloha Stadium cost to Taxpayers
CB: … Officials hope that development surrounding a new facility could make up for the state’s $350 million investment. But national experts warn that similar projects have failed elsewhere….
Sources of funding for the $350 million worth of public investment in the new stadium would put more burden on the state’s general fund, and therefore tax dollars, under a proposal moving through the Legislature, House Bill 1348.
It’s the latest attempt by lawmakers to transfer development powers over the 90-acre stadium site to the Stadium Authority, a nine-member board that oversees the stadium’s operations.
But the bill comes with an important change.
Financing for the state’s portion of the new stadium costs would be handled entirely through general obligations bonds backed by taxpayer dollars. As it stands now, more than half of the state’s investment would be paid back directly by stadium revenues….
read … Aloha Stadium Plan Will Burden Taxpayers. Is It Worth The Risk?
Gut-and-replace bill threatens Tourism Authority funding
SA: … Some Hawaii senators have introduced a version of HB 862 (808ne.ws/HB862) that guts the third section of a mostly aerospace bill and replaces it with a proposal to amend Section 201B-2 of the Hawaii Revised Statutes, which would make sweeping budgetary and other changes to HTA.
The Senate Ways and Means and the Senate Commerce and Consumer Protection committees are slated to hold a public hearing on the measure today at 10:30 a.m. (808ne.ws/hearingnotice)….
At the same time, the Senate has proposed cutting HTA’s current appropriation in HB 200, the budget bill, to $48 million from $79 million.
If these actions move forward, they would cut HTA’s current budget by more than 60%. They would eliminate HTA’s annual transient accommodations tax disbursement and force the agency to seek annual funding from state legislators….
HTH: Measure that would limit HTA’s resources passes final committee
HNN: ‘Stop the theft of Hawaiian culture’: Opposition rises as state plans to cut tourism funds
HTH: ‘HTA is no different’; Bill would limit state tourism agency’s responsibilities, funds
read … Gut-and-replace bill threatens Tourism Authority funding
‘Mismanaged and dysfunctional’: Longtime DOH official calls out alleged corruption in department
HNN: … A longtime Department of Health manager is blowing the whistle on his own department, alleging corruption and mismanagement that is fleecing taxpayers and jeopardizing sanitation and health inspections.
“They are totally mismanaged and dysfunctional at this point, ” said Peter Oshiro, who heads the department’s Food Safety Branch and has worked at the DOH for 33 years.
In a report sent to state lawmakers and the media, he accuses some of his fellow DOH managers of “lining their pockets,” of “incompetence” and of “shocking fiscal improprieties” that went ignored by top leadership.
He said his division’s boss, DOH Deputy Director Keith Kawaoka, hasn’t hired a division administrator for about five years. So each month, Oshiro said he and other managers have been given temporary promotions at higher pay to be acting administrators.
“It becomes lining their pockets because the managers know that every time you do this, you get a pay raise,” he said.
He said the department wastes hundreds of thousands of dollars with these and other cases of mismanagement.
In another instance, he said the department bought a theft alarm system five years ago, paying $277 a month in service fees, or a total of about $20,000. But he said the department never turned it on.
“Oh my god this system has never been set since the day it was installed. Not once was it ever activated,” Oshiro said.
He thinks the department should be audited by an independent agency. The head of the House Health Committee agrees.
“We are open to looking at audits -- managerial and fiscal -- as we move forward, especially for next year,” said State Rep. Ryan Yamane.
Health Director Libby Char declined to address Oshiro’s specific allegation but issued this statement:
“It is unfortunate this employee felt sharing his personal perspectives with legislators was the best way to resolve his concerns,” she said.
Oshiro said he tried to set up meetings with Char seven times in recent months but was rebuffed.
Along with the fiscal irregularities, Oshiro also accused the department of not fulfilling it’s core mission of protecting the public.
For instance, the Department Food and Drug branch is supposed to conduct inspections of local drug and food manufactures and the fast growing medical cannabis industry.
“In two years, none of these people have been inspected,” he said….
read … ‘Mismanaged and dysfunctional’: Longtime DOH official calls out alleged corruption in department
State investigators raid Honolulu airport baseyard—One Arrested
HNN: … State investigators executed a search warrant Thursday at a baseyard at the Honolulu airport.
The state Attorney General’s office raided the airport’s Maintenance Section Airfield and Grounds Maintenance Unit Facility, which is located off Aolele Street.
Information on whether any arrests were made is unknown at this time….
Sources said landscaping crews store equipment at the baseyard….
KHON: According to the sheriff’s office, one person was arrested for second-degree theft.
read … State investigators raid Honolulu airport baseyard, investigation ongoing
Honolulu prosecutor promises to take corruption seriously or something
ILind: … Alm said his department is prepared to pursue and investigate allegations of corruption involving city employees or officials. Without referring to his predecessor, he expressed regret that prior inaction had created an assumption that the city could not or would not tackle such cases, making federal intervention seem necessary in order to make inroads against corruption.
Alm, who was elected in November and sworn in on January 2, 2021, said the prosecutor’s office should be the first layer of protection against corruption, and said his office intends to take these cases seriously. …
Alm knows a thing or two about prosecuting public corruption cases, having served as U.S. Attorney for the District of Hawaii from November 1994 to April 2001.
During his term as U.S. Attorney, his office successfully prosecuted former House Speaker Danny Kihano and former Senate Vice-President Milton Holt, both on charges of misusing campaign funds for personal benefit, while then-Honolulu City Council member Andy Mirikitani was convicted of theft, extortion, bribery, witness tampering and wire fraud….
The latest federal charges brought stinging rebukes from two popular columnists. Dave Shapiro, writing in his “Volcanic Ash” column in Sunday’s Star-Advertiser, put it bluntly: “It’s infuriating to see federal prosecutors once again having to expose local public corruption that city and state authorities should have been on long ago.”
He criticized Blangiardi for choosing to defend the planning department’s “dedicated” employees rather than speaking out clearly against corruption.
“Why not a pledge to root out corruption wherever it occurs?” he asked of the mayor.
Civil Beat columnist Lee Cataluna also called out Blangiardi, who had responded to the indictments by expressing “disappointment” while issuing a general defense of the planning department.
Cataluna’s column, also published on Sunday, scored Blangiardi for failing to “even pretend to be a little outraged” by the charges….
read … Honolulu prosecutor stakes out high ground against corruption
HB515 Would Make Superintendent Hiring Process More Local
KITV: … House Bill 515 HD1 SD2 would make a "working understanding" of Hawaii's education system a "desired qualification" for the Superintendent position….
The updated bill, with the language regarding the Superintendent job included, is scheduled to be heard and voted on by the Senate Ways and Means Committee Friday morning….
The Hawaii Board of Education is opposed to the bill according to testimony from their Chairperson Catherine Payne….
KITV: Senate committee wants BOE to prioritize local candidates in hiring process for next Superintendent
read … Hawaii Bill Would Make Superintendent Hiring Process More Local
Honolulu Needs Transparency
CB: … it could be relatively easy for the mayor, City Council and other county government officials to boost resident perceptions about life in Honolulu. It would simply require a commitment to transparency and economic freedom.
Regarding transparency, the over-budget, behind-schedule Honolulu rail project is perhaps Exhibit A. People might differ on what they want to have happen to rail, but it doesn’t look good to anyone that the Honolulu Authority For Rapid Transportation, which is in charge of the project, has tried to escape accountability in numerous ways, including thwarting state audits, holding closed-door meetings and declining to discuss employee layoffs. Nor is it a good sign that the project is being investigated by the FBI.
Another example is the Honolulu Police Department, which, among other things, has declined to share why it refuses to issue concealed carry weapons permits to qualified applicants or provide the Legislature with information about police misconduct.
Even the City Council is loose with the state’s sunshine laws. In 2019 council watchdog Natalie Iwase cataloged 13 meeting agenda items during the previous two years she says violated the state’s sunshine law for not providing adequate public notice. The topics included the Kealoha corruption case, appointees to the Hawaii Community Development Authority, zoo sponsorships and bike rentals….
SA Honolulu Police Department chief Susan Ballard receives needed evaluation
read … Survey Shows That Honolulu Residents Are In A Negative Mood
HART holds meeting to discuss progress of rail
KITV: … Kahikina expressed that although there have been constructional setbacks, they are advancing in building plans.
"In order to calculate the percentages is based on the changes of the percentage of the award. On the table side, the total DPP, the total change orders divided by the original contract that the percent you're gonna get if you're in the green, excellent that's less than ten percent. Good ten to 14% and poor is greater than 14%," Kahikina said….According to HART the cost of rail could end up being more than $12 billion and possibly take another 12 years to complete….
L360: Rail: NLRB Won't Touch Union Win Despite Flawed Mail-Vote Ruling
read … HART holds meeting to discuss progress of rail
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