JSC Seeking Nominees for Chief Justice of State Supreme Court
FEMA adjusting Lahaina rental assistance to wind down inflated rental prices
Light tunnel and brand-new displays to commemorate 40th anniversary of Honolulu City Lights
Blangiardi Makes Honolulu Perfect for LGBTQ
Schatz Joins Tiny Anti-Israel Faction in Senate
ILind: … The U.S. Senate yesterday voted down three resolutions that would have blocked additional arms transfers to Israel. Hawaii Senator Brian Schatz was among 17 Democrats who voted for at least one of the resolutions….
read … Sen. Schatz explains his support for restricting military aid to Israel | i L i n d
Hawaii Legislators and Judges Ask For Raises
CB: … Recktenwald made a pitch to the state Salary Commission on Friday for higher pay for judges, saying their salaries lag too far behind the big money lawyers can make in private practice.
House Speaker Nadine Nakamura made a similar argument in her request to the commission for higher pay for members of the Hawaii Legislature. She said only about 125 people file every two years to run for the 51 state House seats.
“It tells you that this is not something people are dying to run for, and I think a big reason why is because of the pay, the low pay,” she told the salary commission….
read … Hawaii's Chief Justice And Lawmakers Ask For Raises
Maui PD Complains to FCC about HNN Coverage of Lahaina Human Remains Recovery
HNN: The Maui Police Department says it has lodged a complaint with the Federal Communications Commission over reports by HNN Investigates about the mishandling of human remains after the Lahaina wildfire.
Hawaii News Now is standing by the stories reported by Allyson Blair; stories that MPD is disputing and calling unsubstantiated.
HNN statement, sent to the Maui Police Department: Letter to Alana K. Pico, Maui Police Department
Maui police detective explains remains recovery procedure
“Bodies were not in postmortem pouches.”
read … Hawaii News Now responds to Maui Police Department accusations
Mission Accomplished: No need investigation of ‘retiring’ Kauai police chief
TGI: … The Kauai Police Commission released a statement after its monthly meeting indicating that it won’t be taking further action on two complaints against Kauai Police Chief Todd Raybuck. Raybuck announced to KPD employees on Nov. 13 that he would be retiring.
Two complaints alleging retaliation were filed by KPD officers in April against Raybuck. The commission concluded that the investigation revealed insufficient evidence (SHOPO had rid itself of the outsider Chief) and determined not to pursue further action ….
TGI: Kauai Police Chief Todd Raybuck statement - The Garden Island
HNN: Kauai police chief receives suspension for leaving gun in restroom
CB: Kauai Police Chief Gets 3-Day Suspension For Leaving Gun In Bathroom
read ... No investigation of retiring police chief - The Garden Island
Honolulu city building permit backlog drops below 10,000
SA: … Excluding instant online reviews, DPP said its residential code review — deemed an important part of the city’s overall building permit process — as recently as May took six months or longer to complete.
As of Nov. 1 that review time fell to an average of nine days, DPP said.
And when DPP factors in the time it takes to pre-screen and approve issuance of a residential building permit, on average it takes 11 days.
“And people are probably asking, Does that mean if I put in my residential permit today, I’m going to get it in 11 days?” DPP Director Dawn Takeuchi Apuna told the City Council’s Committee on Planning and the Economy on Thursday. “No, you will not.”
“But this was a major part of our backlog, and people were complaining, ‘Why was my application sitting in there for six months just for the residential code review?’ But we’ve been able to manage that,” she added.
DPP claims other wait times fell as well.
That includes a drop in the time a permit application spends under commercial code review — going from an average of at least nine months, according to city data from May, to an average of about two months, or a total average time of 63 days, as of Nov. 21.
“And again, does that mean you’re going to get your commercial permit in 63 days? No, but this is a major reduction in just the commercial code review,” she said.
At the meeting, Takeuchi Apuna pointed to a line graph showing DPP’s historical building permit backlogs from 2010 to this year.
“The last time we shared this, it was maybe a few months ago, the backlog was still coming down,” she said of the graph’s information. “But the end of the line … was above 10,000 (permit applications), and now we’re below 10,000.”…
SA: Off the news: Efficiency improvements made at DPP | Honolulu Star-Advertiser
read … Honolulu city officials trim building permit review times | Honolulu Star-Advertiser
Proposal regarding hospitals advances
HTH: … In order to improve health care access across the Big Island, the Hawaii County Planning Department hopes to expand where hospitals and other medical facilities are allowed to be built.
Currently, the County Code excludes hospitals and certain other health care buildings from all of the island’s industrial-zoned land, although they are permitted in commercial, residential, resort and agricultural zoning districts.
A measure developed by the Planning Department, which was discussed at Thursday’s meeting of the Leeward Planning Commission, would open up the county’s Industrial-Commercial Mixed zoning district to “hospitals, sanitariums, old age, convalescent, nursing and rest homes.”…
read … Proposal regarding hospitals advances - Hawaii Tribune-Herald
Lahaina DoE Employees Win $2500 each
HNN: … On hand for the check signing and award ceremony at the Lahainaluna campus were Gov. Josh Green and Superintendent Keith Hayashi. With comedic flair, Gov. Green politely borrowed Superintendent Hayashi’s back to sign the check for more than $723,000.
That money is going to more than 300 Hawaii DOE employees based in Lahaina who were eligible for the award….
(DoE is becoming more and more like a TV game show.)
Eligible salaried employees could receive up to two payments of $2,500, while casual employees could get up to $1,000, pending the award periods. To be eligible for the cash awards, DOE employees had to directly support Lahaina schools in some way….
The money for this one-time initiative is all in thanks to a generous donation from Hawaii philanthropists Marc Benioff, Chair and CEO of Salesforce, and his wife, Lynne….
SA: Below-market rentals, awards program support Lahaina educators | Honolulu Star-Advertiser
DoE: Hawaii DOE | $20M workforce housing project and HERO Awards celebrate and support Lahaina educators
read … Hundreds of Lahaina educators guided students after the wildfire. They’re now being honored
Rising credit card debt may be connected to length of Maui wildfire recovery
HNN: … “We’ve seen about a 20 percent increase in the number of folks from Hawaii reaching out for assistance this year over last year. And they’re coming to us with higher levels of debt,” said Money Management International Vice President Thomas Nitzsche.
He said much of that increase is now coming to light more than a year after the wildfires.
“It can be a long process and in that process, you can find yourself experiencing expenses along the way. And most people turn to credit cards when they’re experiencing those sorts of expenses,” he said….
The nonprofit said its new clients in Hawaii now have unsecured debts -- like those from credit cards and personal loans -- average $30,000.
“I do know a lot of families that are still dealing with less income, and so they’re putting more things on credit. They’re putting more things on their card, and maybe those cards already have high interest to them,” said Maui resident Liana Aulii.
Aulii runs an outdoor education program for homeschooled or alternative school students on the Valley Isle. She’s seen the number of students drop since the fires.
“So there was many, many, many families that I knew of that maybe then could no longer afford to come to the program because of a direct impact,” said Aulii. “And maybe three times more as an indirect impact.” ….
read … Rising credit card debt may be connected to length of Maui wildfire recovery
'Unreal': family grateful to move into first Lahaina home rebuilt after last year's fire
KITV: … The couple helped build the original home back in 2019 and did the same this time around ….
As of Monday, nearly 300 building permits were submitted for properties in Lahaina and 134 have been issued so far. …
SA: Lahaina ohana completes first home rebuild in fire zone | Honolulu Star-Advertiser
HNN: Family ready to move into first home rebuilt in Lahaina after wildfire
read … 'Unreal': family grateful to move into first Lahaina home rebuilt after last year's fire
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