COVID-19

... UH spring 2021 commencement ceremonies range from virtual to in-person ....

... fulfills a Congressional mandate to biometrically record the entry and exit of non-U.S. citizens ....

... Alternative ceremony formats will continue for a second year and limit guest access to comply with COVID-19 health and safety guidelines ....

... As part of last Friday’s operation, special agents visited 10 hotels ....

... it will reopen the first working Monday of each month as long as funds are available ....

... The Governor has until June 21, 2021, to provide the Legislature with notification of his intent to veto ....

... At this point, all the information reported in the Daily News Digest (DND) can be viewed on a daily basis via the web links regularly included, and the JIC has produced this final DND today. ...

"...fraudulent applications may be referred to law enforcement....”

...The Fumble or The Phantom Punch....

... This was the first time in a year where visitor arrivals were up, but the year-to-date arrivals were still significantly down (-60.1%) ....

... Kahului, Hawaii, is the most expensive U.S. destination in which to rent a car this spring ....

... This bill was so close to the finish line that the only question seemed to be whether Gov. Ige would agree to limit his power ....

... Earnings, which mostly reflect wages and other employee compensation, fell in Hawaii by 7.7% ....

... The future includes internal travel restrictions ....

... In March 2021, Hawai‘i hotels statewide reported similar revenue per available room (RevPAR), average daily rate (ADR), and occupancy compared to March 2020 ....

... If you’re vaccinated, Covid presents a minuscule risk to you, and you present a minuscule Covid risk to anyone else ....

... Qualifying interisland travelers may begin entering their information into Safe Travels Hawaii https://travel.hawaii.gov/ on May 7 for travel on or after May 11. ...

... “This is a great opportunity for residents 50 and older on O‘ahu to register before vaccine eligibility opens to everyone 16 and older on April 19...”

... As business activity contracted, the state quickly shed more than 150,000 jobs, and the unemployment rate jumped from 2% to 22% ....

... Hawaii Board of Education Thursday approved a plan to spend up to $58 million in federal pandemic aid funds on summer learning loss programs ....

"...to provide workplace flexibility for employees who are having to balance work and family responsibilities...."

... Governor Ige Signs Abortion Expansion Bill ....

... compared to 9.2 percent in February ....

... A potential cause of the recent virus spread is the decline in the share of people staying at home and a rise in gatherings ....

... Many of the reductions are hopefully made up with federal stimulus funding ....

... 40 percent of businesses did not pay rent in full versus 50 percent in the third survey ....

... it is premature to commit funding for major new rail transit projects before we have some idea of the extent of transit ridership in the first several years after nationwide vaccinations ....

... The state where people are most likely to face an expected loss of employment income is Hawaii, at 26.5% ....

... Today, the White House released state-by-state fact sheets (crony dreambooks) that highlight the (allegedly) urgent need in every state across the country for the investments (pork projects) proposed by President Biden in the American Jobs Plan ....

“...Requiring so-called COVID-19 vaccine passports for taking part in everyday life — such as attending a sporting event, patronizing a restaurant, or going to a movie theater— would create two cases of citizens based on vaccination....”

... States With the Most Pandemic-Proof Small Businesses -- Hawaii 50th ....

... the proclamation includes mention of an anticipated new exception for vaccinated travelers that will become effective only upon approval by the director of the Hawai‘i Emergency Management Agency ....

... The Criminal Justice Research institute reported that 58% of inmates had reoffended at least once since their release ....

... Hawaii lags the nation’s economic momentum by an astonishing 5.14% ....

... Honolulu will continue to operate in Tier 3 of the reopening strategy for the next four weeks, meaning O‘ahu businesses and activities will continue operations without reverting back to the Tier 2 framework ....

... Hawaii is now the 11th-most restrictive state ....

... the lower COVID-19 transmission and deaths are in a state, the more that state is able to eliminate restrictions on businesses ....

... Coronavirus isn’t just a danger to Americans’ health. It’s also a menace to our wallets .... 

"...Hawaii increased the cap on its film incentives and decoupled from federal restrictions on research and development tax credits...."

... Native Hawaiians own 3,147 firms in Hawaiʻi, constituting 11.1% of all businesses in the state ....

... DLIR hired a vendor to perform investigations focusing on overpayments. Solid State Operations, Inc. will begin with 25 investigators on April 6 ....

... People who attended events hosted by King’s Cathedral and Chapels in the past 14 days are encouraged to get tested for COVID-19 ....

"... The Aa2 rating on the State of Hawaii's general obligation bonds recognizes the significant fiscal challenges posed by the current health and economic crisis...."

... For our faculty and students, this upcoming fall 2021 semester will be a transition semester, as we reopen our campus and navigate from a primarily online environment towards a primarily in-person semester in/by spring 2022 ....

... Environmental stewardship has never been this popular ....

... Hanalei Aipoalani, 42, of Waianae, Hawaii, pled guilty in federal court today to embezzling more than $500,000 from AmeriCorps and to agreeing to accept a bribe for the administration of grants under the CARES Act ....

... the request to modify Honolulu’s COVID-19 recovery framework to include “weddings” as a category has been approved and is effective immediately ....

... BEA -- Gross Domestic Product by State, 4th Quarter 2020 and Annual 2020 ....

... to allow travelers to confirm compliance with the Safe Travels Program prior to departure and bypass mandatory airport screenings upon arrival ....

... the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for February was 9.2 percent compared to the revised rate of 10.3 percent in January ....