Tourism

...Released today, a State Auditor’s report shows the Convention Center ‘s operating loss has jumped up from an anemic $4.3M in 2017 to a much more robust $8.3M in calendar year 2018....

...there is a bill before Gov. David Ige, SB 1292, which he has until June 24 to veto or sign....

...lawmakers' plans to crack down on the vacation rental industry may hurt Hawaii's struggling economy....

...“15-seconds of terror,” is how a trespassing Honolulu hiker describes his near miss with a rock-fall incident at the closed Sacred Falls State Park on King Kamehameha Day....

...average daily visitor spending was down -9.2%, total visitor arrivals rose 6.6 percent to 856,250 visitors in April....

...“It’s not surprising to see a decrease in visitor spending during 2018 since most of Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park was closed for 134 days due to unsafe and unpredictable volcanic activity”....

...the law’s discrimination against nonresidents was prohibited by a part of the U.S. Constitution that the deputy attorney general didn’t consider.  “Oops,” the deputy said....

...each has seen a falloff in tourism activity and a slowing of employment growth in a number of sectors....

...The Hawaii Constitution also has a clause that protects citizens from excessive fines, making it even more likely that someone will challenge the enormous fines associated with this proposal....

...Hawaii’s contradictory approach to short-term vacation rentals hasn’t been doing much to make anybody happy, and could, in fact, just be making things worse....

...three helicopter crashes since October....

... prompted by community concerns brought to HDOT by Senate President Ronald Kouchi, Representative Nadine Nakamura, and Mayor Kawakami ....

...Hawaii Visitor Statistics Released for First Quarter 2019....

...our legislature has a dogged focus on new taxes....

...The redevelopment should take into consideration input received in the DTL, LLC Final Report....

...Before the ink was dry on those judgments, the Department of Taxation produced additional assessments against the taxpayers, this time on car rental commissions....

...Hawaii Visitor Statistics Released for February 2019....

...We already have a good stadium.  And this consultant now admits Aloha Stadium is located in the best possible place.  So why tear it down for yet another unnecessary boondoggle?....

...a byzantine structure of taxes and fees, with effective tax rates on consumers often exceeding 30 percent....

...tax increases would affect commercial, up by 14 cents per $1,000 of valuation; industrial, up by 3 cents per thousand; hotel and resort, up by 23 cents per thousand; and short-term rental, up by 27 cents per thousand....

...the House Labor Committee unanimously approved a draft resolution calling on Hawaiian Airlines to return the 200 plus call center jobs it has outsourced to the Philippines....

...Introduction of the aquarium fishery closure bill is the tourist groups’ attempt to preempt the HEPA environmental review completion....

...Out-of-state minors can also apply if they (claim to) meet specific eligibility criteria....

...Just kidding! It turns out Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-HI) is a fan of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez....

...Visitors to the Hawaiian Islands spent a total of $1.62 billion in January 2019, a decrease of 3.8 percent compared to January 2018....

...the program’s requirement that investments must “substantially improve” zone property in order to qualify for tax breaks is quite loose....

...Sunscreen has been in the news a lot lately. Both Hawaii and Key West, Florida, are trying to ban sunscreens containing certain ingredients....

...People who use any of Hawai‘i’s small boat harbors, offshore moorings, landings or wharfs will have a chance to comment on new proposed fees and rules....

...Diminishing economic contribution, eroding resident sentiment, and increasing congestion and stress on sites and attractions provide evidence that the current governance model is inadequate....

“That would be pretty hard for Hawaii” -- Sen Mazie Hirono

...the few studies that have addressed the environmental impacts of sunscreens experimentally “are not representative of real world conditions”....

...Hitting someone with a notice of violation and then telling them to disprove it (all the while laboring under ever-increasing daily fines) just won't cut it....

...For every dollar that the San Francisco minimum wage went up, there was a 4 to 10 percent increase in the likelihood of restaurant closings....

...Beginning April 1, homeowners won’t be allowed to offer their homes as short-term rentals unless their properties fall within designated “resort zones”—and they can face tens of thousands of dollars in fines for violating that law....

...Visitors to the Hawaiian Islands spent $17.82 billion in 2018, an increase of 6.8 percent compared to 2017....

...In addition to the 66 unprovoked attacks worldwide, there were also 34 provoked attacks. Those include instances where divers are bitten after harassing or trying to touch sharks, as well as attacks on spearfishers or people trying to feed sharks....

...In addition to spawning anti-dairy activism, Omidyar’s Kauai dairy proposal created a political and perhaps legal precedent requiring previously exempt farmers to obtain an environmental impact statement before commencing operations....

...Pelosi was spotted on Thursday vacationing at a four-diamond resort in Hawaii despite an ongoing battle in Washington, D.C., that led to a government shutdown....

...Total visitor arrivals rose to 781,990 (+4.3%) in November compared to a year ago....

...drunks, bums, and feral animals....

...Gov. David Ige approved the new regulation Dec 21, 2018....

...We continue with our series about a timeshare association suing Maui County seeking to invalidate its “Time Share” property classification, with the county then striking back.... 

...According to the Grassroot Institute, high taxes, high government spending and burdensome regulation were major reasons economic freedom in the state continued to decline; they also contributed heavily to the state’s high cost of living....

...We continue with our series about a timeshare association suing the county, with the county then back assessing the association for $10 million.... 

...Timeshare association sues county; county then back assesses association for $10 million.... 

...The average daily census (i.e. number of visitors on any given day) in October was 210,960, up 1.8 percent compared to a year ago....

...$3.56 Million to Support 130 Hawaiian Culture, Natural Resources and Community Programs....

...Keli'i Akina and Joe Kent discuss the latest research by the Grassroot Institute on rail, vacation rentals and the unfunded liabilty of Hawaii's public pension system....

... The Public Works, Infrastructure & Sustainability Committee will publicly discuss its Draft 1 of Resolution 18-221 [1] in the City Council Committee Meeting Room, on the 2nd floor of Honolulu Hale, at 1:00 pm Weds ....

...a long and hotly litigated property tax case from Maui....