Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals Rules Hawaii Schools Can’t Pass-the-Buck
Call for Audit: 51,000 Water Dep't Customers May Have Been Overcharged
Hawaii Congressional Delegation How They Voted June 17, 2013
So Far All the Major Unions Have Backed Schatz
TH: The Hawaii Government Employees Association (HGEA), AFSCME's state affiliate, backed Schatz over Hanabusa over the weekend. Its decision could prove a major boon to his campaign, as many expected Hanabusa would have the edge with union support in a state where labor plays a powerful role in Democratic politics. Hanabusa is a former labor attorney, but so far all of the major unions that have endorsed in the race have backed Schatz.
read ... Schatz
Hanabusa Reacts to HGEA Endorsement of Schatz
'Ohhh - you cursed brat! Look what you've done! I'm melting! Melting! Oh - what a world - what a world! Who would have thought a good little girl like you could destroy my beautiful wickedness!? Ohhh! Look out! Look out! I'm going. Ohhhh! Ohhhhhh...'.
Background: www.TheRealHanabusa.com
read ... WWotW
$12M Tax Cut: Deduction cap may be lifted for charitable donations
SA: Searching for money to corral a projected budget deficit, Gov. Neil Abercrombie and state lawmakers in 2011 placed temporary caps on itemized deductions by higher-income taxpayers.
The rationale was that the wealthy could afford to lose some tax relief to help the state out of a fiscal crisis. But as is often the case with changes to tax policy, there have been unintended consequences.
Many wealthy donors say they have reduced their charitable donations — which count toward the caps on itemized deductions — bleeding nonprofits that are already hurting from cuts in state and federal support.
A bill pending before Abercrombie would remove charitable donations from the caps, which are scheduled to remain in place until January 2016. The exception for charitable donations would cost the state about $12 million a year, but Abercrombie, who is expected to sign the bill into law, has said the state is in a better financial position than it was two years ago. The governor and lawmakers have also recognized the impact the caps have had on nonprofit and charitable organizations.
"It primarily benefits nonprofits," said House Majority Leader Scott Saiki (D, Downtown-Kakaako-McCully), who sponsored House Bill 430.
(Yep, you heard that right. A tax hike ended up costing more than the tax revenue. Amazing!)
read ... Tax Cut?
Grants and contracts awarded nonprofit agencies can raise red flags
ILind: Given the ongoing questions raised by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development regarding the city’s administration of grants to a central Oahu nonprofit agency, a recent report by the Center for Public Integrity should be required reading (“State legislators’ ties to nonprofit groups prove fertile ground for corruption“).
More complete disclosure is one fix being advocated. Hawaii’s state ethics law already requires lawmakers and other officials who serve on nonprofit boards to disclose those publicly, but other kinds of less formal ties go unreported.
read ... Grants and contracts awarded nonprofit agencies can raise red flags
Hawaii lobbyist reports say little about influence of money on Hawaii politics; most report $0
AP: Hardly any individual lobbyists reported spending even $1 schmoozing Hawaii lawmakers early in the recent legislative session, making it all but impossible for state residents to tell from the filings how special interest groups are affecting state legislators.
Lobbyists haven't stopped wining and dining elected officials in the Aloha State, but a combination of outdated state laws, wide loopholes and lax oversight has created an environment where disclosure reports say little about how much is money spent, who is spending it and which lawmakers are being courted most often.
An Associated Press analysis found that more than 90 percent of nearly 200 registered individual lobbyists reported zero expenses for the first two months of the 2013 legislative session, the latest period for which comprehensive records are available. Filings from about 200 lobbying organizations showed a cumulative spending of about $1 million over the same period, but the vast majority of reports do not indicate specifics about the expenses.
"I presume lobbyists are following the law," said state Sen. Les Ihara. "It's just that the law is vague, and there are loopholes."
Max Sword is one of the few lobbyists who reported spending any money during the first half of the session on his individual report, listing more than $1,300 spent on meals.
As a lobbyist for the Outrigger Enterprise Group, Sword says he takes lawmakers out for lunch almost every day during session to talk to them about business and tourism, while staying under the $25 threshold.
"It's very valuable," he said. "The legislators deal with about 2,000 bills about 100 different issues."
Even when the reports appear to be filled out properly, they leave unanswered questions.
The Hawaii Chamber of Commerce recently reported spending more than $1,400 on meals, nearly $400 on gifts and more than $700 on "other" expenses. But the statement doesn't say which lawmakers benefited from the spending, and the organization didn't respond to a request for more details.
read ... Zeroes
Souki, Kim Given Veto Power Over Hawaii Auditor Contracts
CB: The state agency tasked with making sure other agencies follow the law when it comes to spending taxpayer money also violated state procurement practices for years, the state's chief procurement officer wrote in a letter to legislative leaders earlier this year.
From 2004 through 2012, the Office of the State Auditor spent $23.6 million on auditing services from 13 certified public accounting companies without vetting the contracts through the Hawaii Legislature first, as required by law, according to procurement officer Aaron Fujioka.
Former state auditor Marion Higa caught the problem in 2012 when she was still in charge. Higa retired in December after more than 40 years with the office.
The issue was detailed in correspondence this spring between the auditor's office, the procurement office and state Senate President Donna Mercado Kim and House Speaker Joe Souki.
In February, acting State Auditor Jan Yamane asked Kim and Souki to review contracts Higa had noted were not properly approved.
In March, Kim and Souki sought guidance on the matter from Aaron Fujioka, the state's chief procurement officer. Because the auditor's office falls under the Legislature, the Senate president and House speaker have procurement authority.
Each of the 30 contracts awarded by the auditor to the CPA firms exceeds $100,000, which requires approval of the Senate president and House speaker.
LINK: Correspondence Between State Auditor, State Procurement Office and Hawaii Legislature, 2013
read ... Hawaii Auditor Violated Procurement Laws, Too
Asbestos charges need investigation
SA: Nishida Nakao has worked for the organization for 20 years, including as its deputy executive director since 2010 — but was demoted in April after urging that asbestos work be properly done. She plans legal recourse to pursue the asbestos removal but is hoping to resolve the job "retaliatory action" without legal action.
Nishida Nakao has filed a "safety or health hazard" complaint with the state Occupational Safety and Health Division (OSHD), alleging that untrained employees were handling and disposing of harmful material at Lahaina Surf and two other Hale Mahaolu properties. She maintains that employees were not provided with protective equipment.
She told the Star-Advertiser's Nanea Kalani that some ceilings were covered up and partial replacements were made but said most of the 112 units still have asbestos, and 22 of the units are provided with housing assistance by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development for low-income families, the elderly and disabled.
Roy Katsuda, Hale Mahaolu's 32-year executive director, denied Nishida Nakao's accusation that he had resisted her efforts to deal with asbestos cleanup, pointing to a 1981 letter from HUD that the exposure was not harmful; she replied that the tolerance levels had changed.
read ... Asbestos
Ron Menor: City Website to Give Money to Bums
CB: Have you ever wanted to give spare change to a homeless person, but were worried that the money would end up in a liquor store or in the hands of a local drug dealer?
Honolulu Councilman Ron 'Gas Cap' Menor knows the feeling. That’s why he is proposing a new website where the homeless can post personalized donation requests for food, shelter or clothing.
Anyone seeing the plea can then send money to a local homeless support group that will make sure that the funds are used properly.
Think of it as a Kickstarter for the homeless. No liquor stores or drug dealers. “This is really going to facilitate donations to the homeless,” Menor said.
Menor laid out the basics of his plan in a resolution that will ask Honolulu’s Information Technology Department to develop the new website.
read ... Don't worry, they'll find a way to buy drugs with it
Embarrassing mayor seems to be the goal of sand ‘sale’
KL: There’s a big sign, about 5 by 3 feet, on a pile of dredged sand by Kaelepulu Stream in Kailua saying sand is for sale and to call somebody at such and such number. ....
The sign you saw is not authorized, and whoever’s behind it has been playing a cat-and-mouse game with city officials.
The Department of Parks and Recreation has been taking the signs down whenever they see them, “but someone keeps putting new signs up,” said Jesse Broder Van Dyke, spokesman for the city administration.
It appears to be the work of someone trying to embarrass Mayor Kirk Caldwell.
A caller to the mayor’s office saw a recently placed sign that said to “Call Kirk” and displaying the phone number of Caldwell’s campaign committee, Broder Van Dyke said.
read ... Embarrassing
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