April 14, 2026 News Read > Hawaii Free Press

Hawaii Daily News Read

Tuesday, April 14, 2026

April 14, 2026 News Read
By Andrew Walden @ 4:01 PM :: 184 Views

Youth activists try to revive suit over Trump fossil fuel policies

Finalists named for 2026 Hawaiʻi Island appointment to UH Board of Regents

Will Lawyers get 33% of Maui wildfire settlement?

HNN: … More than two and a half years after the Maui wildfires, the global settlement for victims is now resolved, (except for legal fees, LOL!).

The last obstacle in the $4 billion settlement came from insurance companies who fought to recover money (from HECO and KSBE) they paid victims for property losses. Last week, the last of the companies, Allstate, withdrew its appeal….

(TRANSLATION: We will pay higher rates because subrogation is dead in Hawaii.)

Allstate and all other insurers agreed to accept only 10 percent of what they paid out for residential and auto claims and 15 percent for commercial property. Their agreement triggered the first payments to the court from Hawaiian Electric, Kamehameha Schools, the state and other defendants….

The insurers have until May 8 to give the court details of the claims, which is expected to bring about $200 million back to the companies….

(Out of $2B paid out by insurers.)

Judge Peter Cahill, who pushed the insurers to settle, will determine legal fees and limit how much the victims must pay for their attorneys.

(The lawyers’ 33% of $4B = $1.3B. Mostly for filling in the blanks on cookie-cutter briefs stored on Word.)

Sanford Hill, a Lahaina fire survivor who survived the elder housing fire that killed several neighbors, said the insurance settlement is positive news.

“That they obtained a 10% settlement from the insurance company, which is really good. If they can get the lawyer fee down, that would be really good, too,” Hill said.

(The lawyers will maybe get 20% = $800M. How can they put food on their tables? How can they pay for their AI subscriptions??? It’s so heartbreaking.)

After the fees are determined, court-appointed special masters will begin making settlement offers to more than 21,000 plaintiffs, who can accept them or choose limited routes to appeal. It remains unclear how much of their claims victims will receive….

(The lawyers will get theirs first.)

Hill pointed out that the payments will come in four annual installments.

“This was supposed to be fast. And yet it’s going to take till 2029 for us to get a settlement. That’s seven years,” Hill said.

(The lawyers will get theirs first.)

Hill and other victims said the defendants should have been forced to pay into the settlement 20 months ago, when it was reached. That would have meant the money would grow with interest to the betterment of victims rather than those responsible for the damage….

(But that would have cost HECO and KSBE more and the whole purpose of this scam is to protect HECO and KSBE.)

read … Maui wildfire victims face yearslong wait for payouts after $4 billion settlement finalized | Hawaii News Now

SB1166: Screwed out of Subrogation, Let Lahaina Fire Insurers ‘Sue Big Oil’

SA: … SB 1166, which is being considered in the Legislature, would empower property insurers to take Big Oil corporations to court to recover a fair share of the costs of extreme weather disasters. Insurers have (NOT) recovered losses from utilities whose power lines started destructive wildfires (nor KSBE whose overgrown property fed the fire, nor the Maui FD which left the site prematurely, allowing it to re-kindle), so why not (pay Sher-Edling to sue) the large oil and gas corporations (instead) …

Read … Column: Hold Big Oil’s feet to fire over climate | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

Appeals court questions Hawaii’s climate tax on cruises

EE: … A panel of federal judges appeared skeptical Monday that Hawaii can levy a tax on cruise ship passengers to offset the costs of climate change.

During oral arguments, the cruise industry and the Trump administration urged the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to reverse a ruling by a lower bench that gave Hawaii the green light to impose the first-in-the-nation fee.

The 9th Circuit temporarily paused the ruling in December, blocking the tax from going into effect in January. Industry and government lawyers on Monday told a three-judge panel it should be permanently erased….

read … Appeals court questions Hawaii’s climate tax on cruises - E&E News by POLITICO

Hawaii off-site construction bill advances toward final passage

PBN: … House Bill 2606 would appropriate funds for a working group to create certification standards for off-site construction components under 1,200 square feet ….

read … Hawaii off-site construction bill advances toward final passage - Pacific Business News

HECO’s $1 Billion Power Project Is (suddenly) In A Flood Zone

CB: … Last month, it looked like the only thing standing in the way of Hawaiian Electric Co., Inc.’s proposed $1.15 billion upgrade to its Waiau power plant was the amount the utility would be allowed to charge customers to build it.

Then came a highly unusual public comment, filed last week by a shadowy group, with an alarming and seemingly overlooked fact: The Waiau power plant sits in a newly designated flood zone.

That wasn’t the case when HECO announced plans for the Pearl City project in December 2023. But in July 2024, FEMA announced new preliminary maps putting the site in a 100-year flood zone. The new zones go into effect in two months….

EE: Hawaii’s Democratic governor faces blowback for embrace of LNG - E&E News by POLITICO

REALITY: Rate Hike Coming: PUC Approves Dirty Expensive System for Waiau HECO Plant

read … HECO 'May Be Screwed': $1 Billion Power Project Is In A Flood Zone - Honolulu Civil Beat

Still Pretending Thirty Meter Telescope could be built on Mauna Kea

ASD: … Last October, Gov. Josh Green and all four of the state’s Congressional delegates signed a letter urging leaders of the TMT project to consider shifting the construction of the controversial observatory to another site on Mauna Kea’s summit.

(CLUE: TMT has ‘shifted’ to Las Canarias. This Mauna Kea discussion is all an illusion.)

The letter cited “the Hawai‘i community’s request” to instead build TMT on the site of a decommissioned observatory, rather than disturbing a previously untouched piece of summit land, as the plan has been so far. The letter’s signatories assured that they would work with the Mauna Kea Stewardship and Oversight Authority and the University of Hawai‘i to develop a process for securing the permits necessary for such a shift.

(CLUE: Your tax money will pay people to act out the parts in this fake drama.)

At the MKSOA’s board meeting last Thursday, TMT project manager Fengchuan Liu told the board that the project could still work if it was shifted to the former site of the Caltech Submillimeter Observatory, which was fully dismantled in 2024. The CSO, first activated in 1986, was selected for decommissioning as part of the terms for TMT to receive a permit; the University of Hawai‘i needed to commit to close five existing telescopes by 2033.

“We on the project have taken a preliminary look at this issue from the technical side, scientifically, engineering-wise, and we believe it is feasible to build on the CSO site,” Liu said.

Liu said there are size differences between TMT and CSO: TMT’s proposed footprint, including the observatory dome, support buildings and parking area is roughly five acres, while CSO occupied only about 0.75 acres.

Nonetheless, Liu reiterated that moving the site to the former CSO location could conceivably be done. He suggested that the observatory’s support facility — used to recoat the TMT’s primary mirror segments — could be moved off the mountain to a location at sea level. Liu said this would introduce a logistical burden to the telescope’s operation, but would reduce the observatory’s footprint.

(TRANSLATION: Trucks carrying mirror segments back and forth.)

However, the logistics of such a move are still unclear, Liu said. He told the board he does not know whether the process would require new conservation district use permits or new environmental impact studies, and said the TMT’s own board would also need to sign off on the change….

(TRANSLATION: TMTs board isn’t interested in this scheme.)

REALITY: Two Telescopes Stop Paying Rent on Mauna Kea and another cancels $500M upgrade-DeFries Doesn’t Notice

REALITY: TMT Exploring 'Promising Path Forward' in Spain

read … Thirty Meter Telescope could be moved, project leader says

Kauaʻi Voters Mandated A Watchdog. Auditor Seat Has Sat Empty For 11 Years

CB: … For the last 11 years, Kaua‘i County has gone without a charter-mandated independent auditor to examine government operations.

That’s not for lack of trying. The County Council has initiated at least seven recruitments to find a new head auditor to lead the empty office, even going so far as to hire an executive search firm in 2018 for $30,000. The efforts have resulted in few qualified candidates and a rejected offer.

The council posted the head auditor opening again at the end of March. With a salary of nearly $154,000, the auditor would be charged with conducting audits of county funds, programs and operations. But for now, Kaua‘i is the only county in the state without a staffed auditor’s office that instead contracts with an outside firm to conduct audits as directed by the council. …

read … Kauaʻi Voters Mandated A Watchdog. Auditor Seat Has Sat Empty For 11 Years - Honolulu Civil Beat

Lahaina’s Lessons For Kona Low Recovery

CB: … Addressing barriers to recovery after natural disasters such as building permits and zoning rules would be just a start. ….

read … Lahaina’s Lessons For Kona Low Recovery - Honolulu Civil Beat

Hawaii's Kona low storm damage becomes excuse for tax hikes

KHON: … now we have to work with the feds to make sure that we get all the resources we can,” said Green.

Green said the state is already tapping into emergency funds, lifting budget restrictions to free up $175 million for needs like housing, food security and National Guard support. But with global uncertainty and tighter federal funding, he admits resources are limited.

“I trust the House and Senate to give me a great budget. We still do have Rainy Day funds, which I absolutely will use if it’s the desire of the whole state,” said Green.

House Finance Chair Chris Todd said the storms come at a tough time, adding pressure to an already strained budget outlook.

Todd said lawmakers are looking at tens of millions in immediate aid, hundreds of millions in short-term recovery, and long-term investments to prevent future disasters. That includes strengthening infrastructure, as well as using funding streams like the state’s “Green Fee” for climate resilience projects….

read … Hawaii's Kona low storm damage may exceed $1B mark

$111M Boondoggle: Progressives trying to brainwash Little Kids into Thinking there is Such a thing as a Free Lunch

CB: … This year marked the fourth attempt by Hawai‘i lawmakers and advocates — including Tom-Jardine and some of her classmates — to pass legislation that would guarantee free school meals to every student by the end of the decade. The bill, introduced by Rep. Trish La Chica, received over 100 pages of supportive testimony as it passed through the House. However, it died last month when it failed to receive a hearing in the Senate Education Committee, chaired by Sen. Donna Kim….

(CLUE: There’s no such thing as a free lunch.)

Kim said she killed the bill amid concerns the Department of Education wasn’t properly overseeing its meal program and managing its high costs. The department came under fire this spring when an audit found that state leadership didn’t set budgets for cafeteria managers and struggled to track local produce purchases.

(CLUE: There’s no such thing as a free lunch.)

While she supports feeding kids nutritious meals, Kim said, the state needs to be mindful of how much it’s spending on social support programs and whether taxpayers can sustain these initiatives in the long run.

(CLUE: There’s no such thing as a free lunch.)

The estimates of running a universal meal program have also varied wildly, raising more questions among lawmakers about the true price of the initiative. While advocacy groups say the program could cost nearly $33 million, the education department has cited estimates ranging from $50 million to $111 million, or even more….

(CLUE: There’s no such thing as a free lunch.)

HB1779: Text, Status

read … Free School Meals Are Popular. Hawaiʻi Isn’t Sold. - Honolulu Civil Beat

Scofflaws Ignore $15M of Parking Tickets

HNN: … An HNN investigation used data provided by the state Judiciary and found thousands ignore parking citations. The state does not provide the names of registered vehicle owners, just the license plate numbers.

There were more than 1,300 plates with at least two dozen unpaid citations since 2020, when lawmakers passed Act 59 which eliminated registration stoppers.

Here’s the breakdown of tickets and the value per county between 2020 and 2025:

Honolulu:189,258 unpaid, valued at $11,089,726.36

Hawaii Island: 12,692 unpaid, worth $3,046,889.79

Maui County: 8,504 unpaid, at a cost of $609,092.69

Kauai: 4,754 unpaid, worth $553,263.37

read … Lawmaker targets parking ticket loophole after HNN Investigates found millions unpaid

Hawaii's Aviation Fuel Problem: A Fragile Lifeline We Can't Afford to Ignore

IM: … Hawaii's total jet fuel demand runs approximately 600–700 million gallons per year. The PAR Hawaii refinery supplies somewhere in the range of 35–45% of total jet fuel consumed, while direct imports of aviation fuel cover the remaining 55–65%.

South Korea accounted for 74% of all aviation fuel imports from 2016 to 2025 while Japan accounted for 16% during the same period….

read … Hawaii's Aviation Fuel Problem: A Fragile Lifeline We Can't Afford to Ignore | Ililani Media

Six-time loser allegedly pointed laser at FBI aircraft

SA: … A 33-year-old Kihei man who escaped the deadly Lahaina wildfires on his dirt bike is facing federal criminal charges after he allegedly admitted to aiming a laser bought off Temu at an FBI surveillance aircraft in January 2024….

MPD officers responded to the parking lot where the FBI reported the lasers came from.

Kong allegedly told them that a dark pickup truck with the people who tasered the FBI aircraft “departed the area immediately prior to the arrival of law enforcement,” according to an application for a search warrant authored by an FBI agent…

Kong has prior state convictions for (1)car theft, (2)promoting a dangerous drug in the third degree, (3)criminal contempt of court, (4)disorderly conduct, (5)resisting an order to stop a motor vehicle and (6)harassment, according to the FBI and state court records…

read … Kihei man, 33, allegedly pointed laser at FBI aircraft | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

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