Pro-North Korea Activists Rally with Malama Makua within Makua Valley Military Reservation

Ozawa gaming takes advantage of timeline

SA: … From the time Tommy Waters filed for his candidacy to the filing deadline, Trevor Ozawa had 77 days to object. Instead, he chose to file a lawsuit 15 days after the filing deadline. He requested an expedited hearing and 41 days later Waters was bounced off the ballot. This put Ozawa in the pole position with only 13 days before the primary against two unknown and underfunded opponents, a significant tactical and strategic advantage.

Ozawa’s delay could suggest he was gaming the filing, judicial and voting processes to his advantage. Had he filed his suit 30 days after Waters filed, the process would have been completed before the ballots were printed….

Read … Letter: Ozawa challenge takes advantage of timeline | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

PAC Spending Backs 73% of Winners in Primary

CB: … review of last week’s primary results and campaign finance reports through July 24 shows that 73% of candidates who received financial support from PACs and super PACs either won their seat outright or defeated an opponent and will move on to the Nov. 3 general election ….

For A Better Tomorrow accounted for $5.2 million — nearly half — of the total spent by noncandidate committees so far this election cycle. The super PAC put its money toward broadcast and internet advertising, social media campaigns, direct mailers and other campaign necessities to help at least 24 candidates.

So how did it do?

Eighteen of the carpenters’ candidates either won their seat in the primary or are moving on to the general election. Not surprisingly, the carpenters’ big play — more than $2 million on Derek Kawakami’s run for lieutenant governor —paid off. …

Only six PRP candidates lost, including Honolulu City Council chair Tommy Waters who was disqualified just days before the Aug. 8 primary. The carpenters had backed two legislative candidates that failed to advance as well as two Big Island County Council candidates and one running for the Maui County Council.

Records show that the Operating Engineers PAC did even better. Every one of the 29 candidates that got support from its PAC won or will move on to the general. The Operating Engineers still have $10 million in the PAC’s bank account to spend in this election….

The ILWU Hawaii Political Action Committee supported the most candidates who either won their primary race or will be moving on to the general – a total of 73 successful candidates.

The Hawaii REALTORS Political Action Committee followed close behind with 70 candidates who either won or will go on to the general….

unopposed candidates raked in more than $642,000 of the nearly $11 million spent so far in the election cycle…

Read … PAC Spending In Primary Shows That Money Talks - Honolulu Civil Beat

Lala tests Hawaii's fragmented insurance market as flood and mudslide claims mount

IB: … Hawaii's insurance structure is unlike any other state in the US, and the reason traces directly to Hurricane Iniki in September 1992. Iniki was a category four storm that killed six people, injured around 100 more, and caused roughly $3 billion in damage after making landfall on Kauai - at the time the costliest hurricane to hit Hawaii in the modern era. The losses were severe enough that insurers pulled back from the state in significant numbers, prompting Hawaii to establish the Hawaii Hurricane Relief Fund to stabilise what remained of the residential property market.

The practical legacy of that exit is a market where hurricane wind coverage, flood coverage and standard property coverage function as effectively separate products with different carriers, different triggers, different deductibles and different claims processes. A homeowner hit by Lala this weekend may need to navigate all three simultaneously - and may find that the gaps between them are precisely where the most significant damage falls.

Zephyr Insurance, one of Hawaii's specialist carriers, activated hurricane coverage for Big Island policyholders ahead of Lala's approach and issued a direct reminder to customers: standard homeowners policies exclude both hurricane wind and flood damage; flood losses fall to NFIP or private flood policies; and vehicle damage requires separate comprehensive auto coverage. That the carrier felt the need to send that reminder at all is itself a measure of how frequently Hawaii policyholders misunderstand what they actually have.

Lala's flooding lands on a Hawaii property insurance market that was already stretched before the storm. The 2023 Maui wildfires destroyed more than 2,200 structures, drove insured losses past $3.2 billion, and accelerated a conversation about whether the state's insurance market was structurally capable of absorbing repeated climate-driven disasters. A report from the Insurance Fairness Project earlier this year warned that hundreds of thousands of properties across Hawaii do not currently qualify for flood insurance at all - in a state where rainfall-driven damage, rather than direct hurricane landfall, has historically been the more consistent claims driver….

rainfall-driven landslide and mudflow damage typically falls outside standard homeowners coverage and depends instead on National Flood Insurance Program policies or surplus lines placements - meaning a storm that never makes landfall can still generate a meaningful, fragmented claims picture….

Read … Lala tests Hawaii's fragmented insurance market as flood and mudslide claims mount | Insurance Business

Nawahine climate change plaintiff flew in from Australia

YCC: … I was born in Sydney, Australia, and I lived there until I was eight years old. And while I lived there, my family and I would often experience really large heat waves that would make us essentially have to evacuate our home and go to the nearest air-conditioned place because my mother was concerned that my sister and I would be sick or have health concerns due to this heat.

The entire time I’ve lived in Hawaii, about eight years now, I’ve noticed the beautiful ocean and the biodiversity of the coral reefs just slowly becoming less and less healthy, which is really challenging to see, especially since both my parents are marine biologists. So seeing that happen in real time in front of me was really scary. And then, in 2021, I was on the Big Island when there was a really large fire. There was ash raining from the sky. My grandmother had a concussion and couldn’t get to the hospital because the fire was blocking a route.…

This is the first youth-led climate change case to have reached a settlement agreement, and HDOT came to an agreement that will have a tremendous impact on the youth’s future and the future of Hawaii. This is an example of what can be accomplished when government works with the youth, rather than against them, by sitting down at the table and truly listening to why the youth brought the case and what they were hoping to accomplish….

(Like making energy even more expensive so more people will leave for the Mainland.)

Read … What happened after 13 young Hawaiians sued over climate change » Yale Climate Connections

Hurricane Lala cuts off communities, closes schools

SA: … At least six bridges were destroyed or heavily damaged, Alameda said, and floodwaters unearthed a casket in either Naalehu or Pahala. The county is working to identify the cemetery and return the casket while assessing whether other burial sites were affected.

The county was working to restore access to Pahala, Alameda said, which was cut off from the rest of the island. The situation was even more critical because it’s the location of Kau Hospital and Rural Health Clinic, he added. The county is hoping to restore vehicle access to the area by this morning.

Naalehu Elementary School is expected to remain closed through Thursday because of storm damage and road closures affecting safe access to campus, according to the Hawaii Department of Education. Kau High and Pahala Elementary School could face extended closures as officials continue assessing campus conditions and roadway access. Public schools statewide are also scheduled to be closed Friday in observance of Statehood Day.

Hawaii County Fire Chief Daniel Volpe said two homes in Naalehu were swept from their foundations Saturday night. One resident was rescued Sunday morning about 100 yards from her home after storm surge pinned her against her vehicle and swept both away. She was taken to a hospital with moderate injuries and was alert and conscious, Volpe said….

KHON: Two Paramedics Trapped by High Water Rescued by Hawaii National Guard | Firehouse

SA: City transitions emergency shelters from schools to 3 parks | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

HNN: KEMA reports major power outages and flooding across Kauai

Read … Hurricane Lala cuts off communities, closes schools | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

TN woman files federal lawsuit to swim with dolphins in Hawaii

WKRN: … She is seeking for her ability to resume dolphin-assisted therapy to improve her mental health….

Read … TN woman files federal lawsuit to swim with dolphins in Hawaii

Hawaii facing a critical shortage of primary care physicians

SA: … To assess the availability of new patients, I conducted a survey of 17 Honolulu physicians. Only three physicians were accepting new patients, and this was contingent upon the patient’s insurance coverage and familiarity with the referring physician. I encountered extended telephone hold times of up to 20 minutes, unanswered calls, and answering machines indicating that the phone does not accept messages. Some receptionists abruptly terminated calls by responding with “no.” Additionally, some physician groups quoted wait times of six to 12 months for new patient appointments….

SA: Column: Sustaining independent doctors is vital to healthcare landscape | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

Read … Column: Hawaii facing a critical shortage of primary care physicians | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

Election News:

1. As Federal Government Stirs Illegal Voting Fears, Two Cases Arise In Hawaiʻi - Honolulu Civil Beat

2. Will Caron: A Definition Of Insanity - Honolulu Civil Beat

3. Off the news: Waters eligibility case heads to high court | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

QUICK HITS:

1. Opinion: I teach calculus at Berkeley. Some of my students can’t do middle school math | The San Francisco Standard

2. Scoop: Inside Trump's secret backchannel to Iran's Revolutionary Guard

3. Editorial: Hawaiian Council makes a splash | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

4. Neal Milner: New Police Drones May Run Afoul Of Hawaiʻi Culture - Honolulu Civil Beat

5. DLNR’s proposed rules stir debate over cat management | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

6. Off the news: State agrees to take over military land | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

7. RIMPAC tests drones made from volcanic-rock fiber by Hawaiian company | Stars and Stripes

8. T-Mobile Deploys Satellite and AI to Keep Hawaii Connected | Technology Magazine