Entries for 'News Release'

Please contact your state Representative and urge him or her to OPPOSE HB 441 and HB 834.

"Colleen Hanabusa and Mazie Hirono are simply two of the most ineffective members of congress in our nation today.  Not only did the two of them fail to stop an amendment eliminating federal funding of the East West Center, even worse, the two of them didn't even bother to show up for work and defend the center on the House floor during debate."

Lambda Legal and the ACLU filed a lawsuit in July, 2010 after then-Governor Linda Lingle vetoed HB 444, the previous civil unions bill.  The remedy requested in that suit will be provided by this bill, meaning there will be no need for the lawsuit to continue.

“Rep. Paul has strayed to the left of Obama and allied himself with the radical anti-war left by laying the blame on America for the unprovoked attacks of Sept. 11th. Additionally, Rep. Paul has not condemned the 9/11 "Truther" conspiracy theorists that support him, and he has repeatedly insisted, that the United States not bring justice to those who have murdered thousands of our civilians and soldiers at home and abroad...."

The Senate Committee on Health on Monday voted to remove the non-alcoholic beverage tax from legislation that they voted on.  This is an initial victory for families and consumers across Hawaii!  However, the same committee will be debating a similar beverage tax proposal on Wednesday, February 16 at 2:45 p.m.

The arguments surrounding this emotionally charged issue are varied and complex. Cutting through the rhetoric and euphemisms brings clarity to this issue both from an ethical and moral perspective. It is with this in mind that Hawaii Right to Life has partnered with KALO-TV, channel 38 (cable 25) to broadcast Death as a Salesman: what's wrong with assisted suicide ...

"As soon as the governor signs the final bill, Hawaii should move swiftly to finish the job by ending exclusion from marriage itself..." --Evan Wolfson, co-counsel in 1993 gay marriage case, Baehr v. Miike

During 2010 most Kona coffee went to Afghanistan , where it was very highly welcomed and appreciated.  Some also went to the P.I. and now here at the end of the year I am once again sending Kona coffee to the 25th Infantry Division folks who have recently deployed to Camp Liberty, Iraq.

Mayor Alan Arakawa will be attending and will make opening remarks, as well as speaking about his plans for West Maui....

Labor-Trafficking bill is SB960 with its identical House Companion HB577

Sex-Trafficking bill is SB959 with its identical House Companion HB576

"We already knew that bag taxes are an annoying levy that provide no environmental benefit; now we also know that they are an economically destructive job killer thanks to this new report. Unfortunately it is also D.C.'s poorest communities that are hit hardest by the bag tax," said Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform.

Multiple renewable energy projects are in rapid development on every island, and plans include $multi-billion inter-island undersea transmission cables.

But if this is all supposed to feel so good, how come our electricity costs are going up up up and it feels so bad?

• WHAT: Legislative Townhall Meeting 
• WHERE: Haha‘ione Elementary School Cafeteria
• WHEN: Tuesday, February 15, 2011 from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.  

AAP’s Freedom to Read director Judy Platt said: “The approach taken by this legislation would have a profound and unacceptable chilling effect not only on AAP members who publish travel guides, but on the robust free marketplace of ideas that the First Amendment is intended to protect. The courts have simply not allowed this to happen, and the Hawaii legislature needs to be reminded of that.”

The Senate Committee on Health heard testimony this week on a beverage tax and Senators heard loud and clear that beverage taxes are not popular.  This Monday, the Committee will vote on one beverage tax proposal. Then on Wednesday, they will hold a hearing on another proposal that would tax beverages.

HONOLULU – The Regents Candidate Advisory Council (RCAC) has presented a list of candidates to Gov. Neil Abercrombie to fill four seats on the University of Hawai’i Board of Regents, including two City and County of Honolulu seats, a Hawai’i County seat and a Maui County seat.

HB12, a bill introduced by State Representative Cynthia Thielen (R, 50^th District) which establishes monetary restitution to property owners who have been victimized by plant thefts, will be heard by the House Committee on Agriculture this Friday, Feb. 11, at 9 a.m. in Conference Room 312 at the State Capitol. 

The House Republican caucus has led the effort to keep invocations a part of the daily legislative sessions in the Hawai`i State House following the ending of the practice in the State Senate.

In November 2010, Hawai‘i voters approved a Constitutional Amendment that gives the Governor the authority to appoint members of the BOE. Governor Abercrombie is encouraged that the State Legislature has been moving expeditiously to establish the appointment process for BOE members. When that legislative process is complete, Governor Abercrombie intends to name Horner among his first appointments.

Honolulu – Governor Neil Abercrombie today announced appointments for the following positions:  Chief Negotiator, Department of Human Resources Development (DHRD) Deputy Director, and Director of the Office of Environmental Quality Control.

• Bills to Decongest Traffic
• Bills to Cut Taxes & Make Government More Responsive to the People
• Bills to Solve Problems within Homeowner Associations
• Bills to Stop Elder Abuse
• Bills to Solve Problems for Our Schools

House Judiciary Committee Feb 1 acted on over a dozen election-related bills....

Health Care Repeal - Vote Rejected (47-51, 2 Not Voting)

Location: Kalama Heights Retirement Home, Garden Room

Date: Friday, February 18th, 2011, 6:30pm

Cost: Free and open to the public!

Senator Charles Schumer and other congressional leaders have called on government safety agencies to investigate why such elevated levels of lead are coming into contact with our food and leaching into the environment. Perhaps even more alarming, a University of Arizona study found fecal coliform bacteria and E. coli in some of the bags.

EPA standard for lead in packaging materials is 100ppm.  Safeway tests 6.72 times the EPA limit.  Walgreens is 2.98 times, KTA Superstores 2.85 times, and Defense Comissary Agency tests 2.35 times the EPA standard. 

SB602 proposes an amendment to the state constitution to legalize slot machines and video poker machines that are not visible from the street in designated resort areas within Waikiki.

Governor Neil Abercrombie today announced the appointment of State Representative Hermina Morita as the chair of the Public Utilities Commission (PUC).

Hopefully, every member of Congress will recognize by then that earmarks are a wasteful, unnecessary part of the budget process that should never be restored. CAGW will also be monitoring how members of Congress may attempt to circumvent the moratorium, through ‘phonemarking’ or other underhanded techniques.”

Nor have I, or any of the other fishermen here, seen any long term decline in numbers of aquarium fish. We've been diving the same reefs for more than 4 decades, and the fish always return year after year. If this supposed depletion was true, we'd have been out of business long ago. The state has been monitoring the fishery since the early 1970s, and there has never been any declining trend.

This will be Governor Abercrombie’s first appointment to the BOE.  In November 2010, Hawai‘i voters approved a Constitutional Amendment that gives the Governor the authority to appoint members of the BOE. The state Legislature is discussing legislation specifying the appointment process.

“It is my intention to replace Dr. Isa with a member who will continue serving on the Board of Education for the long term,” added Governor Abercrombie.

PRINCETON, NJ -- About 7 in 10 national adults, including 88% of Republicans, say it is important that Republican leaders in Congress take the Tea Party movement's positions and objectives into account as they address the nation's problems. Among Republicans, 53% rate this "very important."

Although the Flag Bill (HB1468) must eventually be heard – the Flag Bill will NOT be heard tomorrow.  This delay however gives all us who are passionate about displaying our flag on our own property more time to contact and urge Representative Cabanilla, Chairman of the House Committee on Housing, to put the flag bill – HB 1468—on the schedule for a hearing.

However, the bill that will be heard tomorrow, HB 1464, also deals with homeowner community associations and the lack of transparency by some homeowner community association boards in their decisions and actions and the lack of fairness by some of these boards in their treatment of their association members. 

It looks as though Sen. McConnell has determined a way to force Sen. Reid to allow a full repeal vote in the Senate today or tomorrow.

When are you just going to leave us alone to live our lives in peace?

Just because Maui and Kauai and San Francisco and other progressive enclaves have done it does not mean we have to be so foolish also.

Recent Congressional Votes

• Senate: Secret Holds Elimination
• House: Non-Security Discretionary Spending Limit
• House: Presidential Campaign Fund Termination

This bill, HB 1468, brings Hawaii into compliance with the federal law as well as ensuring that these home owners may display their American Flag continuously 365 days a year despite any association board's regulation, covenant, or similar binding agreement to the contrary.  It also removes any fee you would have to pay to display our Flag.  HB1468 IS BEING HEARD WED FEB 2, 8:30AM IN CONFERENCE ROOM 325 AT THE CAPITOL.

The most important message is what it doesn't tell us. It doesn't tell us whether the person who died consented when the lethal dose was administered.

Further to that, the physician is rarely present at the time the lethal dose is administered. If the person does not consent, who would know?

The reporting system has a conflict of interest, whereby the physician who wrote the lethal prescription submits the report. The physician will not admit to abuse.

The Senate Committee on Agriculture, chaired by Senator Clarence Nishihara and Vice Chair Gil Kahele, will hear SB 711 relating to genetically engineered fish at a hearing immediately following the joint hearing with the Committee on Energy and Environment which is hearing the other two anti-biotech bills.

Oahu:  Wednesday, Feb. 2nd, 11:30 am to 1 pm

Maui: Wednesday, February 2nd, 5:30 to 8pm

Today, Moody's Investors Service just put a price tag on the failed leadership of the Democratic Party in Hawaii.  According to Moody's, Hawaii has the highest debt burden in the nation.  Because the Democrats keep spending beyond our means, every man, woman and child in Hawaii now owes the State $7,987.00. 

The Hawaii Meth Project today announced its inaugural Teen Advisory Council, formed to promote and facilitate peer outreach.  Members of the Teen Advisory Council are playing a key role in the Hawaii Meth Project’s community action plan by encouraging teen volunteerism and identifying peer outreach opportunities at school and in the community to raise awareness about the dangers and risks of methamphetamine use.

SB 712 would require the Hawaii Dept. of Agriculture to make public the location of field tests of genetically engineered plants.

SB 713 would require a label that says "Genetically Engineered" to be placed on whole foods sold in Hawaii.  Since the transgenic papaya is currently the only produce that would be targeted by this law, its passage would have catastrophic economic consequences on Hawaii's papaya farmers since the label is intended to scare people from purchasing the fruit.