January 26, 2026 News Read > Hawaii Free Press

Hawaii Daily News Read

Monday, January 26, 2026

January 26, 2026 News Read
By Andrew Walden @ 1:58 PM :: 120 Views

Two-and-a-half years later, Maui County has Some House Rebuild Designs, but no actual rebuild project

Hawaii families take part in School Choice Week events

Hawaii Congressional Delegation How They Voted January 24, 2026

Profitable: Non-Profits Demand Payment Before Doing Anything

SA: … According to the Hawai‘i Community Foundation (HCF), an umbrella entity that exists to assist local nonprofits, Hawaii entities have operated on a reimbursement model, which translates to financial outlays that are paid back through state funds that can arrive up to 18 months later. This process sometimes necessitated searching for loans or tapping into reserves to pay employees. Some organizations were forced to delay services as they regained firm financial footing, HCF said. The state’s up-front grant distribution, even at 50%, enables nonprofits to retain staff and make more effective program planning decisions.

Looking ahead, and with an eye on how Act 310 plays out, state and county leaders should strongly consider moving permanently to an advance payment model. (Former CNHA chief) Michelle Ka‘uhane, HCF chief operating officer and executive vice president, said no legislation is needed for counties or state agencies to make the change. The strategy has been effective on Kauai, where most nonprofits receive 80% of their allotted grant money up front, with the remainder paid out subject to job completion. …

New rules and enforcement policies would need to be hashed out and attached to any up-front funding. …

(IQ TEST: How hard are you laughing?)

read … Editorial: Up-front payments benefit nonprofits | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

HMSA-HPH: “Reimbursement pressure, referral steering”

CB: … When a dominant insurer and a dominant provider align — even without a formal merger — the balance of power inevitably shifts.

Independent physicians and hospitals worry, with good reason, that they could be marginalized over time through reimbursement pressure, referral steering, or contracting practices that subtly favor one system.

Patients may find that choice narrows in practice, even if networks remain technically open. History shows that consolidation often promises efficiency but delivers higher costs unless strong safeguards are in place. Hawaiʻi cannot afford to rely on good intentions alone.

If this affiliation moves forward, it must be accompanied by clear, enforceable conditions.

First, competition protections must be explicit and binding. Regulators should prohibit patient steering, discriminatory reimbursement, and retaliation against independent providers ….

read … How Hawaiʻi Can Get The HMSA-HPH Affiliation Right - Honolulu Civil Beat

DoE Math Failure is just another excuse to ‘create positions’

SA: … From the superintendent’s office to legislative leadership, education officials say improving math outcomes will require sustained investment in classroom support (create positions), stable funding and attention to students’ basic needs — particularly as schools navigate inflation, staffing shortages (LOL!) and uncertainty at the federal level….

(TRANSLATION: This is just another excuse to ‘create positions’ even though we can’t fill the ‘positions’ we’ve already created.)

… The state Department of Education’s Strive HI report showed that eighth grade math proficiency was at 35% last school year.

(Math problem: How many new ‘positions’ can be created for every percentage point below 100%?)

One proposal lawmakers expect to revisit is funding for math coaches housed within each complex area — a request made by the DOE but not included in the governor’s budget. The coaches would work directly with teachers to strengthen instruction and increase student proficiency….

(See? Told you.)

read … Math at the center of Hawaii’s education priorities as leaders look ahead | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

DoE Cellfone Ban?

SA: … “Younger teachers see phones as a resource,” …. Others let students listen to music to calm anxiety or let them use their devices for a few minutes as an incentive to finish their schoolwork early….

“Cell phones are the root cause of so many ‘he said, she said’ incidents that lead to fighting,” said Rep. Darius Kila (D, Nanakuli-Maili). “They’re more of a distraction than an assistance and the negatives outweigh the positives. … These devices are playing into the haves and have notes where some students don’t have these high-end devices. But it’s no longer that the focus is on learning.”

Rep. Luke Evslin (D, Wailua-Lihue) said that cellphones lead to more social isolation and less student focus, social interaction and emphasis on learning.

His oldest of two children is in the third grade and continues to ask Santa for a cellphone for Christmas to be like some of her classmates who already have them, along with fifth-graders who chat with classmates while others cannot.

“I think it’s simple and the data is really clear,” Evslin said. “I really, really feel strongly about this.”

Milianta-Laffin sees how cellphone access plays out among seventh- and eighth-grade students and their parents at Ilima.

“The kids are more focused off the phone,” she said. “But if they can’t have a phone, they spend a lot of time trying to sneak the device or ask for a bathroom pass to use their phone. Even if kids are more focused without them, they are constantly thinking about them.” …

… “I can’t be more engaging than TikTok because TikTok has written its algorithm to that particular kid and I can’t be more engaging than a device that’s catering to them.”

A student whose teachers allowed her to use her cellphone to talk to her parents in class abused the privilege by programming it to call her periodically.

“Turns out it was her boyfriend she wanted to talk to throughout the day,” Milianta-Laffin said. “These kids are smart, I will give them that.” …

read … Teachers, parents divided over proposed school cellphone ban | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

Court trial date set for Honolulu rail, Hitachi litigation

SA: …The ongoing legal battle between the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation and its main contractor will move to a court trial next year, according to rail officials.

HART announced Friday that the 1st Circuit Court had set a trial date for Aug. 9, 2027, for Hitachi Rail Honolulu JV’s multimillion-dollar lawsuit against the rail agency, as well as HART’s counterclaims against Hitachi.

The parties anticipate the jury trial will last approximately four to six weeks, HART said….

(CLUE: HART chose a jury because they know the jurors would have to pay taxes for the judgment.)

read … Court trial date set for Honolulu rail, Hitachi litigation | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

State renews Maui windfarm lease another 25 years

HNN: … The board is also requiring Kaheawa to post a $33 million bond so the state isn’t stuck with the bill for removing the turbines when the time comes to decommission the project.

“The case in point I see is the Apollo project at South Point that for probably 15 to 20 years had the towers that were continuing to rust,” board member Riley Smith said….

Hawaii now has eight commercial wind farms with more than 130 turbines….

read … State renews Maui windfarm lease another 25 years

Kauaʻi: DCR Rings up $12M in Maintenance Contracts while Moving To Replace Its Jail

CB: … The state Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation in 2024 received $20 million from the Legislature to acquire land and do planning and design. This year, the department plans to ask for an additional $15 million in capital improvement project funds for further planning and design work. …

In addition to as many as 180 beds to accommodate Kaua‘i’s growing population, the project’s conceptual site plan includes a multi-use chapel, a room for attorneys to meet with clients, more recreational space, and courtyards and gardening areas. A farm would teach inmates skills and grow produce for the facility. …

(IDEA: Get rid of the weight-training equipment. Who needs buff criminals?)

Another problem at the Wailua facility is that its proximity to the highway leads some people to park nearby and walk up to the fence to get a glimpse of incarcerated loved ones. Some have threatened to fight guards. And in 2024, an inmate escaped by scaling the perimeter fence and then died from injuries from an alleged hit-and-run on the highway. …

Over the last five years, KCCC has spent $12 million on construction and maintenance. The projects have replaced electronics and hardware, renovated restrooms and showers in Modules A and B, built a new kitchen, paved over a grassy parking prone to flooding, repaired and purchased new air conditioning units and added some new security fencing. …

The new kitchen opened last week….

PDF: 2026-01-08-KA-Republished-EISPN-Kauai-Community-Correctional-Center-Relocation | DocumentCloud

read … Tsunamis, Floods And Not Enough Space: Kauaʻi Is Moving To Replace Its Jail - Honolulu Civil Beat

Honolulu Fireworks Citations Offer Glimpse Into Use Of New Laws

CB: … Newly released data show 47 citations were issued for fireworks-related violations from July 4, 2025 through Jan. 1. Twenty-nine of those citations were issued on New Year’s Eve.

The uptick can be largely attributed to laws that took effect in June, which provide additional tools to clamp down on the widespread use of illegal fireworks, including a more streamlined process for issuing fines and the ability to use aerial surveillance.

Mike Lambert — director of the state Department of Law Enforcement — said last week that while the department has made good progress on stemming the flow of illegal imports to the island, there needs to be more focus on the consumer side, including “issuing more citations in the coming year.” ….

read … Honolulu Fireworks Citations Offer Glimpse Into Use Of New Laws - Honolulu Civil Beat

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