Entries for January 2018

"...OHA is extremely disappointed with the unauthorized release of the draft audit...."

...Apply to your local Neighborhood Board to be appointed to fill a vacant position....

...ACLU wants lots of unconvicted criminals back out on the streets....

...the cost only adds more stress, with the average couple shelling out over $35,000 for their big day....

...On Thursday, February 1st, the Hawaii state Senate Committee on Public Safety, Intergovernmental, and Military Affairs will be considering Senate Bill 2046 and Senate Bill 2436, and the House Committee on Judiciary will be considering House Bill 2024....

...As long as we are proud of who we are and what we are fighting for, there is nothing we cannot achieve. As long as we have confidence in our values, faith in our citizens, and trust in our God, we will never fail....

...Trustee Keli‘i Akina urges LLCs not to obstruct audit....

....more money and less accountability....

...comparing the economic impact of foreign-born populations on the 50 states and the District of Columbia...

...More than 100 Trails in Na Ala Hele Trail & Access Program Featured....

...Hawaii was ranked third in the U.S. based upon total premium, fourth in the U.S. for largest captive domiciles and eleventh in the world based on total number of active captive licenses....

...Federal Communications Commission conducts open meeting to hear investigator's report on false missile alert....

...On Wednesday, January 31st, the Hawaii House Committee on Water and Land will hold a hearing on House Bill 1970....

...it’s not a living wage if you’ve been replaced by a robot....

...Spectrum is channel slamming ‘Ōlelo – displacing channels 49, 53, 54, and 55, including Video On Demand channels 50 and 52....

...$140M for 144 beds....

...To stop the factional fighting and stalemate-causing dysfunction in the Hawaii House of Representatives, Representative Cynthia Thielen has placed her name for consideration as Speaker....

...a two-day planning session to craft a strategy to encourage thousands of former UH students to return to school....

...elected officials raised taxes to pay for Honolulu County’s rail system while indicating their intention to conduct an in-depth, forensic audit of the over-budget, behind-schedule megaproject....

...via his Company DTL, which is a self-described "a Hawaiian strategic multidisciplinary studio that helps business, governments, organizations and communities navigate change."....

...Waimea Valley and all of the LLCs are still 100% owned by the Office of Hawaiian Affairs--but the LLCs' lawyer says otherwise.... 

...“math error authority” brings to mind one of the failings in Hawaii’s tax system....

...the 2017 Economic Freedom of North America report, ranks Hawaii a low 46th in the nation in terms of economic freedom, due to its high taxation, high regulation and high cost of living....

...Suicide Prevention Month Bill Clears First Committee....

...Senate Bill 2265, introduced by Senator Josh Green (D-3), is an omnibus bill that requires re-registration of firearms every five years; bans trigger modifications, trigger adjustments, and after-market triggers; bans certain muzzle devices; and modifications that prevent a firearm from overheating....

...Updates required at Hawai’i Terminals would prevent TOTE from entering Hawai’i trade in 2020/2021....

“This is not about an individual, this is about our national security."

“...The state has a responsibility to ensure its natural resources are managed in a scientifically credible way for the benefit of all its citizens. We look forward to being partners in this important work....”

...Statewide Average Daily Rate Rose to $319 in December -- Highest of Any Month in 2017....

...since the facility closed on October 19, 2017, new physicians have been trained in hyperbaric techniques. HTC reopened on January 15, 2018....

...Calls for ending aid to Pakistan are growing on both sides of the aisle. In the House of Representatives, Republican Rep. Mark Sanford of South Carolina and Democratic Rep. Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii are preparing to introduce a similar bill....

...“it appears that the false alert was a result of two failures: First, simple human error. Second, the state did not have safeguards or process controls in place to prevent the human error from resulting in the transmission of a false alert.”....

...these three health-related taxes would have taken $31.25 billion over the ten-year period from 2018 to 2027....

...Connecticut and New York share the highest tax rate with $4.35 per pack, trailed by Rhode Island ($4.25), Massachusetts ($3.51), and Hawaii ($3.20)....

...It was clear to anyone who has worked any level of civil defense planning, or who has lived through the drills of the 1950s and ’60s, that after the false alarm went out, no one in Hawaii had any idea what to do....

...if the Ethics Comm takes down all the state and county employees who are doing UH school work on the taxpayers dime, we would probably cut UH enrollment 20%.  I suggest starting with every state and county employee at UH Richardson School of Law....

...HIDOE's Thermal Comfort website features data collected from weather stations and indoor monitoring sensors at Hawaii's public schools....

...Hawaii -- 21.3 percent of employees are union members....

...Representative Gene Ward (R–Hawaii Kai, Kalama Valley) wrote a letter to Governor Ige urging him to release the HI-EMA security tapes on the morning of January 13th....

"...Judiciary Announces Hawaiian Language Interpreter Policy...."

...Senate Bill 2003, which is being heard by the Senate Land & Water Committee on Friday, bans the issue of all new aquarium fishing licenses....

...Live at the Legislature with Rep. Gene Ward....

...Nineteen robotics teams from across Hawaii achieved significant scores and demonstrated exceptional skill and performance at the Hawaiian Electric Companies Hawaii State VEX Championships held Jan. 13-14 at Kamehameha Schools....

...Last Friday, Hawaii’s state senate introduced a bill that threatens to make it much harder to open a new vape shop. Now it’s emerged that another bill put forward at the same time could ban all online sales of vapor products....

...Missed Opportunities: Do States Require Screening of Children for Health Conditions that Interfere with Learning....

...jump-start the testing and operation of "driverless" cars in Hawaii....

...Freddy Called Himself Hawaiian & Had Reasons For Suing To Vote In OHA Elections That Were Unlike What You May Have Heard....

"...That's because Tulsi wants Governor Colleen to appoint her to the U.S. Senate ...."

...The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s enforcement actions this year in Hawaii resulted in closures of 19 large capacity cesspools (LCC) and over $500,000 in fines....

... Auto Repair Shops per Capita – 49th ....