Hawaii State Government

... millions of dollars lying around ....

... rather than walk back the tax cuts, the Legislature could simply identify and reallocate about $350 million a year in current state funding ....

... opening floor sessions begin at 10am ....

... one big difference between House an Senate legislative priorities announced in advance of the Hawai’i State Legislature’s Opening Day on Wednesday, January 21, 2026 ....

... Itomura will succeed Leo Asuncion as chair and has resigned from the Campaign Spending Commission to comply with state law ....

... Normally Choy and Cullen wouldn't bribe a Republican because the Republican has only his own vote to sell.  It's not worth $35K.  But, in this case they were not operating 'normally.' ....

... Her previous roles include Child Protective Services investigator ....

... two clues ....

... 30 commentaries during 2025 that were first featured by local and national media ....

... Hawaiʻi SNAP now shares monthly referrals with WIC to help identify families who may qualify, but are not yet enrolled ....

... the public nature of the existence of this federal investigation is unique because of the disclosure of a previously sealed document ....

... the twenty-three currently serving House members who held office in 2022 publicly affirm that they are not the lawmaker referenced in the United States Attorney's pleading ....

... #1) Go on a diet ....

... The state budget department confirms that the increase would come from a ‘pause’ of the remaining historic 2024 income tax reductions ....

... while Chair Dawn Chang is out on medical leave. Effective immediately, Deputy Director Ryan Kanaka‘ole will serve as acting chair and director of DLNR ....

...The Safe Roads Challenge is a free gamified safe driving app available on iOS and Android that was created to reward users for driving responsibly....

... a list of laws taking effect on January 1, 2026 ....

... identify harmful old ideas that have done nothing to help and should be sent to the scrapyard ....

... keep pressure on state lawmakers to avoid increasing taxes ....

... Applications due by January 23, 2026 ....

... water resource management, ethics, agriculture and community development ....

... a proposed total general fund appropriation of $10.58 billion in general funds for FY27, an increase from $10.48 billion proposed for FY26 ....

...The Hawaiʻi Office of Consumer Protection was assisted in this action by L. Richard Fried, Jr. and Patrick McTernan of Cronin, Fried, Sekiya, Kekina & Fairbanks and Emmy Levens, Molly Bowen, and Diane Kee of Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC....

... The purpose of the briefings is to ensure public dollars are being spent on priorities that meet the needs of Dela Cruz campaign contributors and anybody with $35,000 in a brown paper bag ....

... “Due to Senator Aquino’s retirement, the Senate has realigned chairs and committee assignments" ....

... information to purge allegedly fraudulent recipients ....

... Every year, DBEDT and the Council of Revenues invent these numbers for the purpose of manipulating the legislative session.  In March or April, there will be a 'dramatic' shift in the numbers designed to pressure legislators into hiking taxes.  They do this EVERY year ...

... the new guidance says that immigrants in certain categories, namely Refugees, Individuals Granted Asylum, Parolees, and Deportation Withheld are “Not Eligible” for SNAP ....

... What is it about CNHA’s $27M HTA contract that the Governor’s Office, CNHA, and HTA are trying to hide from auditors? ....

... Although the Big Beautiful Bill Act eliminated SNAP eligibility for individuals who entered the U.S. as refugees or were granted asylum or humanitarian parole, it did not end the eligibility for noncitizens who became legal permanent residents, Bonta said....

... Seth Colby currently serves as the Chief State Economist at the state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism ....

... Legislative Session will convene on Wednesday, January 21, 2026 ....

... the USDA guidance, which would exclude noncitizens who are permanent residents from eligibility for the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. The USDA manages SNAP ....

... 95 organizations have been awarded funding ....

... The Governor is currently accepting applications to the Public Utilities Commission .... 

... HDOT will invest approximately $360 million in multimodal projects over the next 10 years ....

... keeping up with myriad government actions is challenging ....

...attempt by Trump to curtail the agency’s programs and shift the burden of emergency management back to individual states, as it was before Katrina....

... to revolutionize how Hawaii residents communicate with legislators ....

... Hawaii public pension debt is $9,784 per person ....

... Applications for the $250 Hawaiʻi Relief Program will be accepted beginning today, Wednesday, October 29, 2025 ....

... A Hawaii lawmaker who allegedly pocketed $35,000 in exchange for political favors remains unnamed and uncharged, despite federal court records confirming the transaction ....

... Coalition Urges Court to Immediately Restore SNAP Funding Relied Upon by 42 Million Americans ....

... Out of 94,000 votes cast during the 2025 session of the Legislature, 92,000 were “Yes.” ....

... federal TANF money that we haven’t spent: $452 million ....

... Grassroot’s “Open Hearings” project can monitor and summarize government hearings and produce transcripts and summaries of those hearings almost immediately ....

... Rep Daniel Holt, House Finance Committee Vice Chair Jenna Takenouchi, Senate Ways and Means Chair Donovan Dela Cruz and Senate Majority Leader Dru Kanuha ...

... with a very public step being taken, it will be impossible to simply sweep the matter under the rug ....

... One key change that will go into effect November 1, 2025, relates to work-requirements for Able-Bodied Adults ....

... the state that relies the least is Hawaii at 26.3% ....