Crackpot Lawsuit is all it takes--Maui Mayor and SHOPO make Complete Fools of Themselves Trying to get rid of Chief Pelletier
Hawaii Gun Ban Bills Scheduled for Hearing in House Judiciary Committee
Gov. Josh Green on Trump wanting states to run education: “I’ll take it”
Man arrested in Utah nursing home may not be extradited for 1977 McKinley HS murder
SB1043: Eliminate GE Tax on Groceries, Medicine
CB: … According to the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, Hawaiʻi has the 22nd most regressive state and local tax system in the country. ITEP’s research shows that Hawaiʻi families in the lowest 20% of earners pay 14.1% of their income toward general excise taxes, income taxes and property taxes. Meanwhile, the top 1% of earners pay only 10.1%.
Taxing groceries under the general excise tax is one of the biggest reasons for this inequality. Everyone needs to buy food to live, no matter how much they earn. Taxing these necessities forces lower-income families to spend a bigger portion of their income just to meet basic needs. Families in the lowest 20% of income earners are paying 8.8% of their income on sales and excise taxes — while the top 1% pay just 1.5%.
Hawaiʻi is one of only nine states that still taxes groceries. Most other states distinguish between essentials like milk and luxury items like a Louis Vuitton purse. Hawaiʻi taxes them the same way. One bill moving in the Legislature seeks to change that.
Senate Bill 1043 would exempt groceries and nonprescription drugs from the general excise tax. According to the Hawaiʻi Food Industry Association, the general excise tax adds about $773 a year in extra costs for a family of four….
read … Beth Fukumoto: These Bills Would Make Hawaiʻi's Tax System Fairer - Honolulu Civil Beat
HB740: Bill to construct more ohana units passes Senate committee
SA: … The state Senate’s Housing Committee deferred a bill Tuesday that would have paid Hawaii homeowners and homebuyers to restrict occupants to locally employed residents, instead approving a bill to promote the construction of more accessory dwelling units, commonly known as ohana units, for workforce housing.
House Bill 740 would establish the Accessory Dwelling Unit Financing and Deed Restriction Program to provide funding to the counties to distribute grants to eligible homeowners or homebuyers to construct ADUs with the condition that occupants of the property, including those living in primary or secondary units, must be employed, or use to be employed, at least 30 hours per week at a local business.
The amended version of HB 740 defines ADUs as a “second dwelling unit that includes its own kitchen, bedroom and bathroom facilities, and is attached or detached from the primary dwelling unit.”…
read … Bill to construct more ohana units passes Senate committee | Honolulu Star-Advertiser
Just in time for Budget Bill--COR Shrinks Growth to a measly 5%
SA: … The state Council on Revenues on Wednesday unanimously decided to drop its general fund tax revenue growth forecast to 5% from a prior 6.4% in the current fiscal year ending June 30 and expects such revenue to contract 2.25% in the fiscal year beginning July 1.
A 2.25% revenue decline would shave $226 million from what is expected to be $10 billion in general fund tax revenue this fiscal year, (purely coincidentally, LOL!) influencing a state budget bill that the House of Representatives sent Wednesday to the Senate ….
HNN: Hawaii economic council carves millions from projected state revenue for ‘very uncertain year’
read … Hawaii’s tax revenue collection outlook is gloomy | Honolulu Star-Advertiser
$76M COVID-19 hazard pay settlement finalized with 2 city unions
SA: … Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi’s administration and two major city unions have finalized multimillion-dollar settlements involving dangerous COVID-19-era work.
At a special meeting Wednesday, the City Council unanimously voted to authorize and resolve temporary hazard pay, or THP, claims for affected employees and members of the State of Hawaii Organization of Police Officers and United Public Workers of Hawaii, who performed essential government functions during the pandemic.
Both claims — estimated to cost the city roughly $76 million — cover the period March 5, 2020, through March 5, 2022, the city said….
read … COVID-19 hazard pay settlement finalized with 2 city unions | Honolulu Star-Advertiser
Tax Hikes on Honolulu Council Agenda Again
HPR: … Last week, Blangiardi proposed a $5.14 billion budget for the upcoming fiscal year, up more than $400 million over last year’s budget. This week, the council started holding hearings on the matter.
Councilmembers have asked the city to find alternate revenue streams in the past. During Monday’s hearing, they again floated ideas that would avoid or mitigate higher fees for residents, like an empty homes tax or a hotel property tax.
“The first and foremost question that we’ve asked multiple years in a row is, ‘What is the strategy for the administration to generate revenue?’” Councilmember Andria Tupola said….
read … Who’s going to pay for Oʻahu’s higher budget? City Council hopes it’s not residents | Hawai'i Public Radio
City considers selling rail station naming rights to offset costs
HNN: … Currently, laws against outdoor advertising limit how much advertising the rail and bus systems can sell. However, officials note, transportation systems around the world often sell advertising.
At a hearing Wednesday about the rail budget, Honolulu Transportation Services director Roger Morton said the city would like to offer naming rights on some prominent stations, like at the stadium and the airport….
Waters added that a bill to expand transit advertising will be proposed.
The 2026 budget includes nearly half a billion dollars to operate the bus and rail system, however fare revenue only pays a small portion….
read … City considers selling rail station naming rights to offset costs
DoE Eliminating School Libraries—only one left on Big Island
CB: … On a rainy Monday morning in Hilo, the line of students entering Waiākea High School’s library was out the door. As dozens of teens filed into the large room decorated with paper lanterns and colorful flower cutouts, librarian Leslie Fukushima greeted each of them by name, offering fist bumps and words of encouragement….
By the time morning recess ended, more than 30 kids had filled the library, completing their homework with friends and pulling out books from tall wooden shelves that lined the back walls to browse during the short break.
In the coming months, the library’s shelves — filled with 26,662 books, DVDs and other materials — will be empty. And Fukushima, after nearly 25 years as a school librarian, will need to pivot to a new job.
The high school plans to convert its library into a health education center next year, training students for careers like nursing and physical therapy. Principal Kelcy Koga said he’ll likely downsize the library and move it into a spare classroom, donating extra books to teachers, students and community members.
The change will leave the Big Island — and its 22,000 public school students — with only one certified school librarian, currently employed at Kealakehe High School in Kailua-Kona.
The number of school librarians in the state has been shrinking for years, with principals citing budget shortfalls and a growing reliance on digital devices. In 2012 the Hawaiʻi Department of Education employed 192 school librarians. This year, the state was down to 74 librarians, 60 of whom were certified by having both a teaching credential and a master’s degree in library and information science.
A research project from San Jose State University found that Hawaiʻi ranked 41st in the nation when it came to the ratio of students to full-time librarians in schools.
read … Hawaiʻi School Libraries Are Shrinking When Students May Need Them Most - Honolulu Civil Beat
Gabbard Drops Pick for Top Intelligence Post, a Critic of Israel on Gaza
NYT: … Tulsi Gabbard, the director of national intelligence, opted not to name a critic of Israel’s war in Gaza to a top post managing briefings for the president, after the proposed appointment upset some members of President Trump’s coalition, according to officials familiar with the deliberations.
Daniel Davis, a senior fellow at a Washington think tank who is skeptical of American intervention overseas, was undergoing a background check to become the deputy director for mission integration, the officials said. The post is a powerful job that oversees the compiling of the President’s Daily Brief, a compendium of intelligence assessments that goes to the White House and top policymakers.
But news of the proposed appointment generated blowback on the right. A senior administration official said Ms. Gabbard reconsidered her choice given the criticism, and other officials confirmed the decision ….
JI: Anti-Israel commentator tapped as a deputy director of national intelligence
P: Trump administration pulls intel job offer for critic of Israel
read … Gabbard Drops Pick for Top Intelligence Post, a Critic of Israel on Gaza
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