Dope in Vending Machines? Complaint Alleges Honolulu Liquor Commission Does Nothing to Shut Down ‘ballsiest drug op in recent memory’

SB2471 Abolishes Right to Form Political Parties

Hawaiʻi County Issues RFP for West Hawaiʻi Cot Sleeping Program

City Managing Director Michael Formby Quits

Gay Divorce Exposes Hidden Insider Payoffs by State Homeless Housing Contractor

CB: … Chris Dotson had a landscaping business with two dozen clients when the nonprofit run by his husband saw an explosion of growth.

HomeAid Hawaiʻi, which has been awarded the bulk of the no-bid state contracts to build tiny houses for the homeless under an emergency proclamation from the governor, went from having $235,338 in revenue in 2022 to nearly $142 million in 2024.

As HomeAid’s work on the kauhale initiative increased, so did Dotson’s work for the nonprofit run by his husband, Kimo Carvalho.

By the time Dotson and Carvalho filed for divorce earlier this year, HomeAid was Dotson’s only client. In a court document, Carvalho said HomeAid was “a major income source” for Dotson — a fact that contradicts previous statements by the nonprofit developer about Dotson’s role, which it said involved merely “volunteering his time and offering discount labor.”…

HomeAid now says it paid Dotson $87,379 for landscaping services between 2023 and 2025. Dotson also received substantial money from HomeAid through MOB TechNet Solutions, a Washington state-based IT company owned by his brother. Those payments totaled $112,000 during those same years.

HomeAid failed to disclose some of the payments in tax returns, as required by the IRS….

Jeffery Ben was a licensed contractor employed as a construction manager on kauhale projects in May 2025 when he wrote to Green about conflicts of interest and other issues he claimed to have seen on the job.

Ben told Civil Beat last year that he thought it was a serious conflict of interest when he saw HomeAid steering gardening contracts to the spouse of the organization’s chief executive for a project called Alana Ola Pono in Iwilei.

HomeAid at the time rebutted Ben’s allegations, saying that Dotson Gardens’ costs were reasonable and that Dotson “volunteering his time and offering discount labor to assist with landscaping at Alana Ola Pono, is consistent with HomeAid Hawaii’s charitable model and internal governance, and therefore required no specific board approval.” …

RELATED: Auditor: Out-of-Control Homeless Program Puts Public Funds at 'Immediate Risk'

Read … State Homeless Housing Contractor Failed To Report Insider Payments - Honolulu Civil Beat

SB2471: How the Clinton White House just bamboozled Hawai‘i

ASD: … The Legislature was jubilant as it passed SB2471 on Friday, seeking to overturn the effects of the Citizens United decision in Hawai‘i and get big money and outside influences out of our elections. The irony is, Mainland power players were pulling our strings the whole time….

Read … Pipikaula Corner: How the Clinton White House just bamboozled Hawai‘i

Crash into Sea: Lawmakers back bill to speed Seaglider plans in Hawaii

HNN: … the company ran into trouble in October, when one of its wings contacted the water and disabled the craft. A Providence television station reported sailors on Narragansett Bay described company crews attending to a partly submerged vessel. No one was injured.

The incident concerned lawmakers who were already worried about the craft’s practicality in Hawaii.

“It’s not like technically really real,” said state Rep. Elle Cochran, R-West Maui. “They are to test it in waters on the East Coast, which I feel is not conducive to our Hawaii oceans, conditions, and environment.” …

“I know there is a push to get these to Hawaii ASAP, but I am more cautious,” Poepoe said. “Prove it somewhere else before you come here and put our most vulnerable residents at risk.”

Senate Bill 2400 to streamline seaglider approval got 11 no votes in the House but passed the Senate unanimously.

If the governor approves, the seaglider would not have rates or routes regulated by the PUC.

The company did not comment for this story. It is seeking certification from the U.S. Coast Guard….

2025: REGENT Seaglider prototype damaged during hydrofoiling testing

HISTORY: All the Soviet Ground Effects Planes Crashed, too

Read … Lawmakers back bill to speed seaglider plans in Hawaii | Hawaii News Now

Hawaiian Electric begins $479M Maui wildfire settlement payments

PBN: … HEI made the first of four annual $479 million payments last month as part of its share of the $4 billion settlement of the lawsuits filed following the Maui wildfires after the last subrogation insurer withdrew its appeal of the settlement on April 10….

READ … Hawaiian Electric begins $479M Maui wildfire settlement payments - Pacific Business News

Five Hawaii Island early childhood education sites to close

HTH: … a network of early childhood education programs across the state run by the nonprofit Partners in Development Foundation — is slated to close at the end of this school year, along with 16 of its other Ka Pa‘alana, Tutu and Me and other early childhood education programs, due to lack of federal funding….

Read … ‘It’s gonna be very devastating’: Five Hawaii Island early childhood education sites to close - Hawaii Tribune-Herald

LEGISLATIVE AGENDA:

1. Beyond The Racial Trap: Native Hawaiian Programs And The Defense Of Vested Rights - Honolulu Civil Beat

2. HPD chief finalist Lazar outlines vision for modernization, transparency and trust | Hawaii News Now

3. Ex-SFPD assistant chief wants to modernize HPD operations | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

4. Kokua Line: Hawaii lawmakers restrict traffic cameras to Oahu | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

5. 5/11/26 – WAHIAWĀ DAM REHABILITATION PROJECT BEGINS WITH A BLESSING | Department of Land and Natural Resources

6. Rep. Tokuda visits North Shore flood zones, considers solutions for future disasters

7. What bills passed in Hawaii's 2026 Legislature

8. Hu Honua Update on Day 6,607 | Ililani Media

9. Hawaii cracks down on cryptocurrency kiosks after $240M in fraud losses | Local | kitv.com

10. DHLM staff member appointed to Hawaiʻi Judicial Selection Commission | Department of Housing and Land Management

11. Hawaii conveyance tax bill dies in conference committee - Pacific Business News

12. Hawaii Passes New Millionaire Tax Bracket to Close Budget Gap

13. New $2M Fund Covers Neighbor Island Medical Flights - Honolulu Civil Beat

14. Beth Fukumoto: Saving Hawaiʻi's Income Tax Cuts Was No Small Feat - Honolulu Civil Beat

15. Maui wildfire survivors study in jeopardy after bill fails | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

16. Column: LNG price volatility too rich for isles | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

17. Editorial: Nonprofits need assistance, quick | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

18. Hawaiian Electric parent boosts profit despite storm costs | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

19. State Rep. Adrian Tam on loss of tourism in Waikiki

20. State Rep. Sean Quinlan on recovery efforts at Otake Camp

21. Hear from the neighbors helping neighbors in North Shore

22. Hawaii Agricultural Foundation Dean Okimoto joins to tell us how farmers are doing

QUICK HITS:

1. Big Q: Have you supported or donated to a nonprofit in the past year? | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

2. Illegal transfer of funds to North Korea and forcible repatriation of defectors:  Will justice ever be served at the highest levels?

3. Kula residents say an undersized culvert contributed to extensive storm damage | Hawai'i Public Radio

4. Hawaii tourism launches $2M campaign after storm losses - Pacific Business News

5. Here’s how Chuuk is faring after Super Typhoon Sinlaku | Hawai'i Public Radio

6. Early Notice and Public Review of a Proposed Activity in a NWI Designated Wetland on O’ahu – Department of Hawaiian Home Lands

7. Hawaii-Japan economic ties deepen; Japanese visitors lag recovery - Pacific Business News

8. Philippine Army Chief visits Fort Shafter in Hawaii

9. News Release – PFAS Detected in Haleakalā national Park Water System | Governor Josh Green, M.D.

10. Honolulu Homeowners Turn To Goats, Sheep To Mow Yard Ahead Of Fire Season - Honolulu Civil Beat

11. North Shore Chamber of Commerce, Carol Philips on Kona Low recovery efforts

12. Interview: Ilocos Norte Governor in the Phiiippines on upcoming Honolulu visit

13. Hawaii Resorts Just Added A $350 Access Charge On Top Of $829 Rooms

14. Here's What Hawaii Bookings Look Like Right Now, According to Tourism Stakeholders | TravelAge West