Senate Accountability for Everybody Except Rockne Freitas
Debt is Focus of Djou's Third TV Spot
UK Censors Images of Rusting Hawaii Windfarm
Electric Vehicles Cost the Taxpayer More than $7 per Gallon
Natatorium Emails Show how Contractors Spur Controversy to Score Contracts
CB: News of Abercrombie’s intentions were leaked in a Honolulu Star-Advertiser column by Richard Borecca in April, raising concerns among state officials and Donna Ching, vice president of The Friends of the Natatorium, which has worked for years to have the pool restored.
Ching, who the emails show had easy access to Abercrombie officials, writes that publicity about the state transfer could hurt public opinion of the governor and make it harder for the state to negotiate a "dowry" from the city.
In an email to Abercrombie advisors, Oshiro, Coppa and Marvin Wong, she points out that the city has earmarked millions for the Natatorium….
Ching is also director of development for Leo A Daly, an architecture and planning firm which had a contract to restore the Natatorium a decade ago before plans changed.
Emails show that she consulted heavily with Abercrombie and his staff on the plans. The emails also show communications between other staff of Leo A Daly and Rick Egged, president of the the Waikiki Improvement Association, which represents Waikiki hotels and a host of other local businesses.
In one email to Abercrombie's top advisors, Ching even offers to have Egged draft the governor's executive order to take back the Natatorium.
"If you would like Rick Egged's assistance with a first draft, he is happy to provide," she writes in an April email to Coppa, Oshiro, Ng and Wong.
In the same email she recommends that the state choose a different contractor than Wil Chee Planning Inc. to complete environmental studies. Wil Chee was awarded a $1.3 million contract with the city to do the environmental impact statement and other studies related to plans to tear down the Natatorium.
Based on (recorded) statements made at the Mayor's 2009 Task Force meetings by representatives of Wil Chee planners, the firm contracted by the Hanneman administration for the demolition EIS, that the state would be better served by subsequently choosing a new lead planning firm to guide the rest of the EIS and permitting process.
In an email to Civil Beat this weekend, Ching stressed that there was no "profit motive" involved in her communications with state officials.
SA: Conference will address Waikiki's past, future
read … Natatorium
Greenwood “Running Around Like Headless Chicken”
HNN: Greenwood seems to be unable to understand the level of concern about management issues at the university, according to numerous people who've been in contact with her in the last few weeks.
Greenwood has told people there is nothing she or the UH did that deserves State Senate hearings, one source said.
"She is trying to minimize problems and dismiss criticisms," said another person who was in a private meeting with Greenwood and discussed the senate investigation.
Greenwood has asked business leaders to defend the UH and herself by submitting testimony to the committee, which is only accepting written comments from the public, sources said. A public relations consultant on a UH contract solicited letters from business people asking that the hearings be delayed or canceled, a source said.
Greenwood has been "running around like a chicken with her head cut off," said another source, noting she has had staff members compile examples of positive developments at UH she hopes to highlight.
When Greenwood met with committee member State Sen. Sam Slom (R-Hawaii Kai, Aina Haina, Kahala) in advance of the hearings, he said she asked him for advice and the types of questions he had concerns about but also said she wasn't nervous about appearing before senators because she had testified in front the U.S. Congress before.
Slom asked Greenwood about a national accreditation team's criticism of the academic leadership at UH West Oahu, a story Hawaii News Now first reported Aug. 20. A panel from the Western Association of Schools and Colleges expressed "concern about the institution's inability to recruit and retain experienced senior academic leadership," noting almost all of UH West Oahu's senior staff had been replaced since 2008.
In a Sept. 14 letter to Martinson, who heads the regents, Slom wrote, "I was surprised that her [Greenwood's] response was to question the level of experience of the television reporter who first broke the news, to say the information was not accurate, and that while UH has received a ‘letter of concern,' that that is not an unusual or problematic event. She added that UH was given an extension to deal with issues raised by the rating organization."
"I am curious as to whether or not that response is reflective of the Board of Regents understanding and discussion of West Oahu," Slom wrote to Martinson, asking him for any additional information related to the issue.
On Sept. 19, Martinson wrote Slom a five-sentence letter in response saying the regents discussed the letter of concern at its Aug. 22 meeting. Martinson added that UH West Oahu is scheduled to meet with WASC "shortly" to discuss the panel's concerns.
read … Decapitated
Donovan to testify about 'take-it-or-leave-it' offer from UH
HNN: Former University of Hawaii Athletics Director Jim Donovan plans to testify before state lawmakers Monday that UH offered him a "take it or leave it" deal for his controversial new job, sources said….
Donovan is also expected to tell state senators about meddling by UH Regents in athletics department affairs.
Donovan has confided in others that former UH Regents Chair Howard Karr told him to fire at least one coach in recent years, moves Donovan sometimes rejected. Karr now serves as chair of the search advisory committee that's helping UH search for a new athletics director.
UH President MRC Greenwood turned down two requests to extend Donovan's five-year contract and she has said UH had already decided to bring in a new AD before the Stevie Wonder concert debacle.
An outside consultant hired for an operational review of the UH athletics department in 2009 – one year after Donovan became athletics director – found he was "very skilled" and the right person for the job.
"He is well liked by the external constituency, university personnel and the employees of the Athletics Department," consultant Gary Cunningham wrote in the only report by an outside expert that reviewed Donovan's performance.
"There was a hostile environment when he [Donovan] joined the athletics staff," Cunningham concluded. "He changed the leadership team and created a very positive culture. His leadership style empowers employees to do their job without close scrutiny."
The UH replaced McMackin with Norm Chow, a choice sources said Donovan was not entirely happy with.
An April 2012 report by UH Faculty Athletics Representative Peter Nicholson raised concerns about the regents and Greenwood taking unprecedented roles in major decisions affecting the athletics department. Nicholson, an English professor, turned the report in to the UH Manoa Faculty Senate.
"When the decision was made to leave the Western Athletics Conference and move to the Big West and the Mountain West, the system office took on an unprecedented role in what might normally be considered a campus matter, Nicholson wrote.
Nicholson said "the president [Greenwood] assumed the responsibility of representing the institution at meetings of the Mountain West (our new football conference), though not the Big West (our new conference for most of our other sports)."
related:
read … Keoki Kerr HNN
How to Fire Greenwood, Regents
HNN: It's impossible to fire members of the University of Hawaii Board of Regents who oversee the UH system and it could be difficult and extremely expensive to try to terminate UH President MRC Greenwood or other top UH executives….
Greenwood's contract pays her an annual salary of $475,008 as well as a $5,000-a-month housing allowance and the use of an automobile or a car allowance of $326 a month. Her employment agreement also gives her a free parking space and use of an annual protocol fund of $150,000. Greenwood was also granted tenure as a UH professor, allowing her to land in a faculty job if she's terminated, steps down or if her contract is not renewed.
The regents hired Greenwood in August 2009 and extended her initial three-year contract for another three years in Jan. 2011, without any increase in pay. But her contract allows the regents to "adjust Dr. Greenwood's compensation" for the fourth, fifth and sixth years, "to be determined by mutual agreement of the Board and Greenwood." Theoretically, the board could increase or decrease her pay in those years. But so far, her salary has remained the same. Greenwood's contract expires July 31, 2015.
The agreement allows for termination of Greenwood for cause, including negligence or willful misconduct, conviction of a crime, prolonged absence, failure to comply with board directives or policies or with applicable laws. Apple and Donovan's employment agreements have similar clauses.
Greenwood's contract also says she can be fired for cause for damage to the university's reputation, which is described as "any act or failure to act by or attributable to Dr. Greenwood that in the board's reasonable determination subjects the university to undue criticism and embarrassment, damages the university's credibility and reputation, or otherwise portrays the university in an unfavorable light."
No one from the Board of Regents has publicly called for Greenwood's ouster.
"We want to first emphasize our strong support for the leadership of university President MRC Greenwood and UH Manoa Chancellor Tom Apple," Board of Regents Chair Eric Martinson said in a statement released to the media Aug. 22.
But the UH Manoa Faculty Senate is scheduled to take up a motion for a "no confidence" vote on Greenwood in the months ahead. The legislative body of 86 senators, which represents 2,200 faculty at UH's flagship campus, could vote on the proposal as soon as November.
"Proving cause is always tough. And it costs money," said Honolulu attorney Jim Bickerton (hungrily), who has represented several professors in employment disputes with UH in recent years (and was well-compensated for it).
"It would have to be a serious violation of an established rule or policy," Bickerton said (gears turning). "Mere bad judgment probably would not be considered a serious violation."
read … So just get a judge and convict her of something, this IS Hawaii after all
Tax Review Panel Won't Recommend Gambling
CB: Little noticed, however, was that the PFM Group — the mainland firm that produced The Study of the State Tax System — also advises that Hawaii not approve a lottery or other forms of gambling.
"While the vast majority of states have instituted a lottery, this appears to be an area where there are many with strong cultural and philosophical opposition to State involvement," according to the study. "Given that lotteries raise relatively small amounts of revenue in most states (and can create some belief on the part of taxpayers that these revenues will be sufficient to fund increases in some key program areas), this was viewed as an alternative that would likely create more controversy than benefit."
The study added, "Lotteries and other forms of gaming also tend to be regressive and may create some negative externalities as well."
Randy Iwase, chair of the Tax Review Commission, told Civil Beat that the commission would not recommend lawmakers legalize a lottery or other forms of gaming.
"I don't think so," he said Thursday. "No one has come up to me and said, 'Hey, did you see what the study said on gambling?' In fact, I was the one who pointed it out to others."
Iwase, a former lawmaker, said the idea of a state lottery has been considered since the 1960s. But he does not think the Tax Review Commission should consider the idea now, calling it "a distraction."
"From a realistic standpoint, maybe you look at this down the line," he said. "But let's look at what can be done, not what you hope can be done."
Related: Legalized Gambling at Heart of New Akaka Bill, 1995: Akaka Bill Begins With Clayton Hee and Casino Gambling
read … How to Put Gambling on the Agenda
Student Escapes DoE, Shoots for the Stars
SA: The head of the University of Hawaii's new satellite program dropped out of Roosevelt High School out of boredom and a lack of academic stimulation, then found his calling at UH's Kapiolani Community College and UH-Manoa.
Jeremy Chan, 29, is now in charge of the HiakaSat satellite that will ride into space atop a three-stage rocket next year. It's a program that Chan hopes will inspire a new generation of Hawaii students to stay in school and pursue all forms of science, engineering and math — not just for space technology.
SA: UH satellite program moves toward liftoff
SA: Worker training needed for jobs
read … Escape the DoE
DoE Teachers Told they Can no longer Sell Tutoring Services
SA: As the school year gets rolling, the state Ethics Commission is reminding public school teachers and coaches that they may not give their students private lessons for pay, as the longtime tennis coach at Mililani High School recently learned the hard way.
"We've had a number of inquiries about teachers tutoring some of their own students privately outside of school," Leslie Kondo, commission executive director, said Thursday. "We just issued a memo with the superintendent to remind teachers of the Ethics Code provision that they're not allowed to enter into financial arrangements with their students."
The memo is being distributed to schools by the Department of Education and is highlighted in the commission's current newsletter. It notes that teachers and coaches may offer tutoring or lessons to their students for free….
The issue arose when a group of parents of Mililani High tennis team members submitted a written complaint to the Ethics Commission in August 2011, saying that Beamer gave some of them private lessons for pay. The complaint alleged that she gave preference to those who took her private lessons and that those who declined to do so felt "mistreated and bullied" by her.
The commission investigated and brought an 11-count charge against Beamer on April 18, alleging that she solicited team members to take private lessons and taught them over a period of years. They usually took place as group lessons, and Beamer received $25 or $30 per lesson from each student, according to the charge.
In her response, Beamer denied she had solicited or coerced players. She said school officials knew she gave private lessons and never told her the lessons violated the Ethics Code.
The prohibition against state employees, including teachers and coaches, entering into substantial financial transactions with people they supervise is based on the unequal bargaining relationship between the parties. As tennis coach, Beamer was responsible for selecting members of the girls and boys varsity teams, ranking players, determining playing time, teaching, coaching and disciplining team members.
"In this situation of unequal bargaining power, a team member whose coach offers to provide private lessons for pay may perceive the offer to be one that cannot be refused," the resolution of the charge noted.
The decision in the Beamer case (Resolution of Charge 2012-4) and the memo ("Application of the State Ethics Code to DOE Teachers Regarding Private Instruction for Pay") are posted on the commission's website at www.hawaii.gov/ethics.
read … Conflict of Interest
High-schoolers face end-of-year tests
SA: For the first time, Hawaii high school students in expository writing, biology, U.S. history and Algebra I classes will take standardized end-of-course exams this school year to test their mastery of the subjects.
A new Algebra II exam will also be administered.
The exams will allow schools to see how their students performed compared with those at other Hawaii public schools, and will also offer valuable data about what percentage of students are proficient in the subjects.
Officials say the exams will eventually count as part of students' final grades, but the Department of Education hasn't said when that will kick in.
The exams could replace a final exam in the courses. The difference is, the end-of-course exams will be the same for all students across the state.
Meanwhile, third- through eighth-graders and 10th-graders will also continue to take the math and reading portions of the HSA. The HSA testing window opens Oct. 15, and the online test can be taken up to three times.
More than 90,000 students will take the HSA this year.
The end-of-course exams, in contrast, will be taken once and administered near the end of the school year. Tanimura said thousands of students will sit for the tests, which will be taken online.
In another change to annual testing this year, Hawaiian-language students in third and fourth grade will take a different version of the HSA that was redeveloped in Hawaiian to better measure proficiency.
Hawaiian-immersion schools had been concerned about the HSA Hawaiian-language test last school year because it had been translated into Hawaiian, rather than developed in Hawaiian, a distinction they say put their students at a unique disadvantage. The new paper-and-pencil Hawaiian-language test will be administered once in April.
read … Planning to Cheat Later
Big Island Dairy Farmer Attacked by Anti-GMO Luddites, Occupy Morons
HTH: An Idaho dairyman who bought the largest dairy in the state is growing genetically modified corn on state leasehold land in Hamakua, and a number of residents are upset about it, saying it violates the Hamakua Agriculture Plan.
County Council Chairman Dominic Yagong said Saturday that he has spoken to Big Island Dairy LLC owner Steve Whitesides, and that Whitesides “has been upfront” about growing GMO corn as feedstock on about 700 acres of land near Ookala.
“He said that if they were not to grow GMO corn but instead went to the feed store to buy feed that the corn in that bag would be GMO corn,” Yagong said Saturday morning while talking to about 20 protesters who lined both sides of Highway 19 by the cornfield at the 30-mile marker. Yagong, who represents Hamakua, said he was also told by Whitesides that GMO corn was already being grown on the site by the previous owner when he acquired the lease….
The protest was organized by GMO Free Hawaii as part of the “Occupy Monsanto Global Week of Action,” said farmer (hippie) and anti-GMO activist Eden Peart, who called the cornfield “a genetic crime scene” and said that GMO crops could post health risks.
“Around the world, people are documenting genetic crime scenes, and we’ve got one here in Ookala. Big Island Dairy is growing GMO corn here in defiance of the Hamakua Ag Plan and it has to stop right away,” she said. One stated objective of the county-commissioned plan, which was completed by May 2006 but has not become law, is to “avoid contamination of crops, seed supplies, public lands, and native ecosystems by GMOs.”
Protesters held up signs for passing motorists with slogans such as “no GMO” and “GMO = poison milk (and) poison ‘aina.”
“I agree with everything they say,” said 87-year-old Marva Joy Bennett, who grew up on a small (hasn’t been anywhere near a) dairy farm in (70 years) Utah. She held up a sign that stated: “We fed our cows hay not GMO corn.”
“There are only, like, two major dairies left in the state,” Kokubun continued, referring to Big Island Dairy and Cloverleaf Dairy, which is also a Big Island agribusiness. “One of the real issues for them, and for any protein producer, actually, or livestock producer, is the cost of feed. … It’s the high cost of feed is amongst the major causes of livestock producers giving up. So the idea of us being able to produce our livestock feed is one of the keys to insuring that our livestock industry will be able to continue here.”
read … Attacking Agriculture
Halting Kihei malls could put housing on the line
MN: Halting the controversial Kihei shopping centers that have come under scrutiny by the state Land Use Commission could also jeopardize 250 affordable housing units promised to Maui County five years ago.
The two separate projects share the same 88-acre lot along Piilani Highway that's subject to conditions the commission imposed in 1995 when granting a land reclassification from agricultural to urban.
At the time of the change, former landowner Kaonoulu Ranch had proposed a light industrial subdivision for the site, mauka of the Kaonoulu Street-Piilani Highway intersection.
One of the 1995 conditions states that the developer "shall develop the property in substantial compliance with the representations made to the Land Use Commission. Failure to so develop the property may result in reversion of the property to its former classification or change to a more appropriate classification."
Kaonoulu sold the property in 2005 to Maui Industrial Partners, which in turn sold three-fourths of the property in 2010 to Piilani Promenade North LLC and Piilani Promenade South LLC. (Both Piilani entities are controlled by California developer Eclipse Development Group.) The remaining parcel was retained for 250 off-site affordable housing units for the planned luxury golf community Wailea 670 - now known as Honua'ula.
Since the change in ownership, neither the developers of the planned retail centers nor the affordable housing project have formally petitioned the Land Use Commission to proceed with their new projects.
A challenge from community groups Maui Tomorrow Foundation and South Maui Citizens for Responsible Growth and Kihei resident Daniel Kanahele prompted the Land Use Commission to revisit the site's approvals.
read … Right Next to Kihei High School
No Strike … Yet: Teachers in Hawaii have it worse than those in Chicago
MN: Regarding the teachers' strike in Chicago, Hawaii's teachers are much worse off but have not decided to strike yet.
Our pay cuts have been excessive and our patience is not infinite. Federal mediation has failed. We make about half as much money and have a much higher cost of living than teachers in Chicago.
The governor's contract would have linked our pay to student test scores….
Unless we strike, will our reasonable and humble requests for fair pay and respect be heeded?
read … 2014 Threat
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