SB894 Held as Turtle Bay Opens New Negotiations with State
As Solar Backout Spreads HECO Unveils More Detailed Grid Map
Former Rep Roland Sagum Charged With Stealing Stones from Heiau Site
House Moves Hundreds of Bills Over to Senate
A Good Day For Good Government, Mostly
CB: House Bill 1481, which passed the House now heads to the Senate. HB 1481 would offer public financing of legislative races beginning in 2016. Supporters say the measure could help break the cycle of money and politics. The vote was not unanimous; Democrats Marcus Oshiro and Sharon Har and Republican Richard Fale voted no, while four other Democrats — Faye Hanohano, Angus McKelvey, Jimmy Tokioka and Jo Jordan — voted "aye" with reservations.
Senate Bill 381, which passed unanimously, would limit the number of candidates who can apply for the public funding to 25 each election cycle. It would also change the funding formula for the project to the average amount of money spent by winning candidates in the previous two election cycles for all county district races.
Another campaign spending-related bill would increase the transparency of independent expenditures. Senate Bill 31 passed unanimously.
House Bill 1027 also passed. It aims to protect the integrity of absentee voting by making sure no one — i.e., employers, unions, candidates — interferes with voters as they complete their ballots. Some have dubbed the measure "the Romy Cachola bill"
A similar bill passed on the Senate side Tuesday. Senate Bill 827 would make it a misdemeanor for a candidate to physically handle or possess the voter registration form or ballot of another person.
House Bill 1132 passed the House unanimously. It moves the deadline for legislators' financial disclosures from May 31 to January, allowing citizens (including the media) to look for conflicts of interest while bills are being considered, not after they are passed.
And House Bill 321 also had smooth sailing through the House. It provides a process for voter registration on election day at polling places.
Kondo has said Senate Bill 893 is an attempt to shield one member of the now-defunct Mortgage Foreclosure Task Force. SB 893 passed with Sens. Les Ihara Jr. and Sam Slom voting no, and Sen. Laura Thielen voting yes with reservations.
Senate Bill 66 would require members of the Public Utilities Commission, University of Hawaii Board of Regents, Board of Land and Natural Resources and several other boards to file financial disclosure statements annually that are publicly available.
Senate Bill 848, which passed unanimously, would require state employees and legislators to disclose every source of annual income that totals more than their annual salary if that source is a lobbyist.
Senate Bill 225, introduced by Ihara, tries to define "residence" in a way that makes it impossible for candidates to maintain a home in one district so they can run for office there despite actually living elsewhere.
Senate Bill 478 proposed a constitutional amendment to require candidates for state House or Senate to be a state resident for at least five years and a resident of the district they want to represent for at least 12 consecutive months prior to the next general election.
read … A Good Day For Good Government, Mostly
CB: Senate Approves Series of Bills Cracking Down on UH
read … Crack Down
Bills On The Move
Revenue: HTA raises 2013 projections for visitor arrivals, spending
SA: Hawaii Tourism Authority announced today that it has bolstered its industry projections for this year and now expects a record 8.5 million visitors will come and spend $15.8 billion.
The revisions, which were revealed during a spring marketing update, are more than 4 percent higher than the earlier arrivals projection of 8.17 million visitors and 6.18 percent higher than the previous $14.88 billion spending forecast.
Just under 8 million visitors came to the state in 2012….
read … Revenue
PACOM: Military furloughs will be worse in Hawaii
HNN: The commander of U.S. military forces in the Pacific thinks the fiscal cliff spending cuts will hit harder in Hawaii because of local costs and the regional mission.
Admiral Samuel Locklear testified Tuesday before the House Armed Services Committee in Washington before flying back to Honolulu for a Wednesday joint hearing in the Hawaii Legislature.
Locklear told members of Congress the cuts, especially the one-day-a-week furloughs planned for civilian employees of the Defense Department, will have a major impact in Hawaii.
He cited the high cost of living in Hawaii will make 20 percent pay reductions bite harder for the 38,000 civilian DOD employees in the Pacific, many of them resident in Hawaii.
SA: Navy's Pacific region already feels effects of sequestration
read … PACOM: Military furloughs will be worse in Hawaii
Oh, he'll fix the roads … but it's going to cost you
Shapiro: It was encouraging to see Mayor Kirk Caldwell take ownership of Oahu's rutted roads by promising to fix them and setting a deadline.
With more than 40 percent of city-owned roads in disrepair, Caldwell set a goal of bringing them all to acceptable standards in five years.
He proposed spending $153 million in fiscal 2014, twice the amount budgeted this year and many times the paltry $6 million spent as recently as 2002.
The mayor was generally applauded for the initiative — until the other shoe dropped.
In announcing his 2014 budget, Caldwell said we'll have to pay for better roads in the form of a nickel-a-gallon increase in the city's gasoline tax, to 21.5 cents from 16.5 cents.
This rankled residents who believe the problem hasn't been a lack of money to maintain roads, but a diversion of those funds to other purposes by city leaders.
Even Caldwell's proposed 5-cent increase appears headed for the general fund, where there's no guarantee it would be spent on the promised road repairs
One example of citizen frustration is a Facebook page created by public relations executive Kitty Lagareta called WAPNFFS ("We Already Paid Now Friggin' Fix Stuff").
read … Two Step
Bag Tax Killed for Session
PR: The following were ‘recommitted’ -- effectively killing them for this session:
SB223 would have made it easier for political parties to ensure that candidates are eligible to run under party banners, a response to situations last year involving Laura Thielen, who won a state Senate seat, and Chris Manabat, who lost a state House seat. The Democratic Party of Hawaii had questioned whether they were eligible to run as Democrats.
SB478 called for a constitutional amendment that would have asked voters whether candidates should be residents of Hawaii for five years and residents of the legislative districts they want to represent for one year before running for House or Senate.
The state House, meanwhile, recommitted HB357 that would have imposed a fee on single-use plastic bags to help finance watershed protection.
read … Bye Bye Bag Tax
Money Spinner: Senate Votes to ‘Decriminalize’ Small Marijuana Possession, Increase Fine
KHON: "Smoking marijuana is still illegal," said Sen. Clayton Hee, (D) Kaneohe, Laie, Waialua.
On the senate floor today, unanimous approval of the bill that would make it a civil violation if you're caught with an ounce or less of marijuana.
"What it does is save the court backlog system, according to a study done, of $9 million," Sen. Hee said.
Those caught would be hit with a $1,000 fine.
"So why not send a measure to the house with the highest, hoping the house would now have something to work with," said Sen. J. Kalani English, (D) Hana, Upcountry Maui.
But the Honolulu Police Department wants marijuana possession to remain a petty misdemeanor. They say turning it into a civil violation could create problems.
"For example, an officer trying to issue a citation for marijuana, if the person doesn't have identification, it becomes difficult to enforce because a person could give a false name," said Major Jerry Inouye with the Honolulu Police Dept.
HPD also says of the 30,000 arrests they made last year, only 19 were for petty misdemeanor marijuana use. So they don't believe it will help any kind of backlog in the court system, like some supporters believe.
CC: Advocates Announce New Coalitions as Hawaii Marijuana Decriminalization Bill Passes Senate Floor Vote
read … Money Spinner
HB535 Homeless Tent City Passes House
CB: After lengthy and impassioned testimony, the Hawaii House voted to pass House Bill 535, which would designate temporary nighttime parking lots in each county forhomeless people who live and sleep in their vehicles.
HB 535 also appropriates funds.
The measure is the idea of Rep. Rida Cabanilla, who has been addressing homeless issues for years. She said she knows her bill is controversial, but says it will save money and help people in need.
But Rep. Jo Jordan, whose Waianae district is home to many homeless, correctly warned it would not work and may make counties liable for problems like substance abuse.
The Future: Homeless tent cities: Seattle’s decade-long nightmare coming to Honolulu?
read … Homeless Tent City
City tags items on sidewalk placed by (de)Occupy hui
SA: The city ramped up pressure on supporters of the (de)Occupy Honolulu movement Tuesday afternoon, tagging 15 of their tents, chairs, tables, pallets, signs and other items placed on the sidewalk on the makai side of Thomas Square.
Under the existing stored-property ordinance, the campers have 24 hours from the time the items were tagged to remove them or risk having them seized by the city.
Members of (de)Occupy said they fully expect city officials to return this afternoon to try to seize any tagged items that might still be there because Mayor Kirk Caldwell last week told reporters he wants city officers to increase enforcement of the ordinance….
On Feb. 22, Councilman Stanley Chang introduced Resolution 13-41, urging the administration to explore "alternative solutions" to homelessness including the possibility of setting up "safe zones" for campers and "wet" housing facilities that would allow consumption of alcohol.
The Future: Homeless tent cities: Seattle’s decade-long nightmare coming to Honolulu?
read … Homeless Tent City
Farmers Harassed by Copper Thieves
SA: Last week, thieves stole the batteries from one of my tractors for the fourth time in three years. In another incident, vandals did about $14,000 worth of damage to a tractor, stealing the radiators. They probably got $250 from a scrap yard. Add in the lost work, the cost of the batteries — about $450 this time — and the general disgust that goes with having one's property stolen and it gets hard to want to stay in business in Hawaii.
Calling the police is pointless; all it does is provide a case number to file an insurance claim, which in this case wouldn't have mattered because my deductible is more than the loss.
I'm certainly not the only one. Every farmer I know has lost equipment and crops. Batteries, copper, machines, fruit, tools — the list goes on and on. We may fantasize about catching one of the thieves in the act, but the chances aren't good — and we also know we would probably get in trouble for protecting our own property.
There isn't any shortage of suspects. Most parts of Oahu have a roster of drug addicts, vagrants and generally worthless types….
Hawaii needs to change its attitude toward crime. We need to stop viewing theft as a symptom of our failure to provide help to criminals. Thieves do not need counseling, education grants, or more social workers boosting their self-esteem. Thieves do not need organized activities, sports leagues or whatever else the feel-good, flavor-of-the-month solution is.
Thieves need to be punished in such a way as to make the cost of crime greater than the rewards. How many times have we heard of someone arrested for a serious crime with dozens of prior convictions? How many career criminals laugh at being arrested, knowing that whatever sentence they receive will be short, or reduced to probation? More importantly, how many police know how futile it is to expend much effort on property crimes, as few convictions result in jail time?
Many things, including the crime rate, determine our quality of life. Tolerating theft and vandalism only leads to more criminal activity and a general coarsening of our society. When we fail to react to crime, it should come as no surprise that it increases. Lawlessness feeds on itself.
We need mandatory sentences that judges can't ignore. We need lengthy sentences for repeat offenders. Maybe incarceration is more expensive than probation, but it's worth it for two reasons. One is to send a message. The other is simply this: A thief can't steal while he is locked up.
read … Tough penalties only way to fight brazen thieves
DoE Hustles to Burn RTTT Money Before HSTA Blows Rest of Deal
SA: As of Feb. 1, school officials say, the state has spent about $27 million — or 36 percent of the award — on sweeping reforms it pledged to achieve by next year.
DOE Chief Financial Officer Amy Kunz acknowledged the state is behind schedule, but said there's a "heightened awareness" to spend the grant.
"It's not an option not to expend these funds," Kunz said at a Feb. 19 state Board of Education meeting. "So we're going to make it happen."
She said the department would take a line-by-line look at its grant budget to see whether any changes on how it will spend the money need to be cleared with the U.S. Department of Education.
Kunz said that the remaining 20 months to spend the award isn't much time, especially if any contracts or projects need to go through the state's procurement process.
Hawaii's initial slow spending pace was one area flagged by federal education officials in December 2011 when it placed the state's grant on high-risk status.
The DOE reports that more than $17 million was spent in the second year of the grant program, and about $6.5 million so far this year.
"The department continues to monitor its utilization of funds since it is a priority to expend them," said DOE spokeswoman Donalyn Dela Cruz. "Spending accelerated significantly in the second year of the grant."
federal officials cited concern over "ongoing delays in securing a collective bargaining agreement with the Hawaii State Teachers Association … which have impacted the state's ability to move forward with its educator evaluation system."
The promise to implement performance-based teacher and principal evaluation systems falls under the grant's "Great Teachers, Great Leaders" goal, which represents the biggest chunk of funds spent by the state so far: $11.9 million.
While a pilot evaluation system has been implemented at some schools, the effort has been stymied in part by the state's ongoing labor dispute with the HSTA over Race to the Top initiatives that affect teacher labor agreements.
read … DOE redoubling its effort to spend federal grant cash
Trade Windfarm for Cookies?
CB: But what I really want to talk to you about is your Wind Farm. We (and the Press) have tried really, really hard to find out just exactly what it is you kept when you sold us off to Larry, but we keep getting rejected.
We’ve tried asking the Public Utilities Commission (PUC), we’ve tried asking the monopoly utility (HECO), we’ve tried asking the Office of Information Practices (OIP), we’ve tried asking the Governor (Neil), and we’ve tried asking your successor-in-interest (Larry), but no one will talk with us. They keep telling us the corporations’ secrets are far more important than the public’s interest.
This makes all of us over here on Lanai feel really badly, since we know that you thought the “rights” to take a quarter of our island to build hundreds of giant concrete-based turbines to feed O`ahu were really worth something. But I guess Larry just didn’t see it that way, so he traded you ... whatever.
Now, I know you understand that “trading” is a way of life on Lanai. After all, you traded the value of the assets here for a mortgage that I suspect in the end, sadly, came due, forcing you to sell your beloved island. I am sorry this happened, and I want to make it right.
So here’s the deal: in exchange for giving me the “rights” to your Wind Farm, I am offering to keep you - for life - in a continuous supply of my famous Chocolate Chip cookies!
read … Lanai
Kawamoto Denied Bail, 4 Weeks in Jail
HNN: Nippon Television Network in Japan reports Kawamoto has been denied bail and could spend the next four weeks in custody for failing to pay nearly $9 million in taxes.
Genshiro Kawamoto often has a smile on his face, but the real estate investor who was listed as one of the richest people in the world, has been arrested. Japanese media report he hid $30 million in rent money in Tokyo and failed to pay $9 million in taxes.
The allegation is he used some of that money to buy statues and other items for his Kahala properties. Kawamoto owns $150 million worth of mostly ocean front land on Kahala Avenue. Some of them have dozens of statues in front. Others have been trashed, which is why some neighbors would like nothing more than to see him busted.
According to attorneys if Kawamoto were convicted the Japanese government could try to seize some of the Hawaii property.
KHON: Kahala billionaire arrested in Japan for tax evasion; does he pay in Hawaii?
read … Billionaires arrest could affect Hawaii property
Lawsuit: Alleged Homosexual Priest Allegedly Molested Boys 45 Years Ago
News Release (Honolulu, Hawaii) Working with the Oahu-based law firm of Mark Gallagher, nationally prominent clergy abuse law firm Jeff Anderson& Associates, announced today the filing of a civil lawsuit on behalf of two Honolulu men who say they were sexually abused in the 1960’s by Christian Brother priest Father George DeCosta at Damien Memorial High School in Honolulu.
Complaint
Press Release
HTH: Men allege Big Island priest abused them
LINK: BILAC (Linked to leftist surrender group Pax Christi)
Green Police: Collective Punishment for Fishermen after False Killer Hooked
CB: The National Marine Fisheries Service has closed more than 100,000 square miles of ocean south of the Hawaiian islands to longline tuna fishing after a false killer whale was hooked by fishermen. (Meanwhile whale watching boats run unmolested after slashing and murdering numerous whales with their propellers.) A map of the closed-off area can be found here.
read … No Double Standard here, eh?
Walter Ritte Brings Anti-GMO Dog n Pony Show to Kauai, 300 Idiots Show up
KGI: More than 300 people gathered at Waimea Canyon Middle School Sunday afternoon for a presentation about the effects of Atrazine, a herbicide used in agricultural fields near Waimea — a town described by Hawaiian activist Walter Ritte as the “central battle ground” in a fight against biotech companies and genetically modified organisms….
The event on Kaua‘i’s Westside featured keynote speaker Tyrone Hayes, an expert on Atrazine and a biology professor at the University of California at Berkeley. Other presenters included Ritte and Dr. Lorrin Pang, Maui District Health Officer for the state Department of Health. (Pang is implicated in anti-Depleted Uranium scams on the Big Island)
Same Huckster, new Hustle: Council denounces depleted uranium
Same Huckster New Hustle: Molokai activists seek control of ranch
Same Huckster, New Hustle: Molokai Ranch: Protesters to Cash in with Takeover Plan?
read … Walter Ritte still hasn’t got his payoff
Anti-GMO Hypesters to Use Atrazine as Weapon
CB: a Civil Beat review of state records and interviews with local regulators shows Hawaii’s rivers, streams and coastal waters are not being tested for the chemical even though the EPA established water safety levels a decade ago and last year required states to regulate pesticides under the Clean Water Act.
The state doesn't track where the chemical is being sprayed and in what quantities.
And atrazine users are largely left to police themselves when it comes to complying with strict EPA guidelines that limit spraying and require setbacks from water resources.
“We don’t test,” said Thomas Matsuda, manager of the pesticides program at the Hawaii Department of Agriculture, the state agency responsible for carrying out EPA regulations. “Basically, the label is the law. So basically whoever is the applicator is supposed to comply with whatever the label states.”
Matsuda said he is worried about pesticide levels in Hawaii, but that monitoring how and where atrazine is sprayed is difficult because the state only has six inspectors statewide. And the only way that the state agriculture department can obtain specific information from atrazine users is to open a formal investigation, he said.
Civil Beat reviewed sales records of atrazine in Hawaii kept by the agriculture department. The documents are kept for the most part in paper form and total hundreds of pages.
It’s impossible to gain precise information about atrazine use from the records. But they do indicate that some of the largest buyers of atrazine include Hawaii seed corn companies, Monsanto and Mycogen, and some of the state’s biggest farming operations, such as Aloun Farms and Larry Jefts Farms on the Leeward side of Oahu.
read … More Hype
Local digital media group wants to keep creatives in Honolulu, Put them on Welfare
HM: Hawaii Association of Media Arts wants to unite local creative talent with Hawaii's digital media and interactive entertainment industry professionals … so … HAMA is supporting legislation to help grow local businesses within the industry. State lawmakers are considering legislation called the HI Growth Initiative, appropriating $20 million to fund the development of entrepreneurial businesses in Hawaii.
(Guaranteed to destroy creativity just as Act221 destroyed Hawaii’s chances for a tech industry.)
MN: Hawaii’s ‘largest film studio’ in the works in C. Maui (What? Without legislation???)
read … $20M Welfare
State Harasses Small Businesses at Dillingham Airfield
HNN: Agents has confiscated surplus aircraft and boats and even large fuel tanks. They also cited tenants for storing guns and ammunition and for having a pair of goats.
But companies believe it's part of the state's plan to shut down the airport as it prepares for a possible land transfer to the federal government.
"Yeah I think they're trying to run us off the airport," said Frank Hinshaw, president of Skydive Hawaii.
"We've gotten $75,000 ... $80,000 confiscated by the state."
Scott Blackley, owner of fuel supplier North Shore Aviation Services Inc. Said the state is applying its rules unevenly.
He said sheriffs told him to remove his goats, even though other tenants weren't ordered to remove their pets from the premises.
read … Harassment
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