Effective Feb. 1, 2013, GA payments will be reduced from $319 to $298 per person per month for an estimated 5,537 Hawaii beneficiaries....

Opening enrollment for the University of Hawai‘i System for the spring 2013 semester stands at 55,373 students, a slight decline of 1,303 students, or 2.3 percent, compared to spring 2012....

The Hawaii Supreme Court has accepted certiorari and agreed to review the Intermediate Court of Appeals' unpublished memorandum opinion in Diamond v. Dobbin....

Beginning this month, schools will mail or ask students to bring the surveys home....

To date, one school has successfully applied for funds. Because the school was not awarded the full amount of the carryover, HIDOE has asked USDOE for approval to use the balance of the carryover for ... Hawaii School for the Deaf and the Blind (HSDB).

Rep Thielen introduced House Bill 9 to repeal the controversial Public Lands Development Corporation....

"VSE was unaware that despite DEI’s military ordnance background, the company had no experience with fireworks disposal.”

...a survey through which we could measure the military-friendly policies enacted at each school....

Many small-business owners haven't yet realized that the way they structure their firm in 2013 could determine their status under the law in a year's time....

Thousands of developed U.S. Forest Service recreation areas have utilized this PPP model successfully for more than 25 years....

“Given the weak track record of federal mental health programs, states should exercise primary responsibility for determining appropriate mental health services, which will entail eliminating restrictions currently imposed by the federal government.”

...the total staff-to-faculty and total staff-to-enrollment ratios for UHM are also consistently and substantially below the averages...

Overall, the $1.40 billion of education-related expenditures attributable to UHM generated $2.45 billion in local business sales, $735 million in employee earnings, $131 million in state tax revenues, and slightly under 20,000 jobs in Hawai‘i in FY2012....

...The Gas Company relies on a single source for its SNG: the Tesoro oil refinery....

“The State informed HSTA that there will be a formal response made at our next bargaining session on January 22."

"If the Legislature cannot achieve this outcome, the possibility of repeal will ensue."

...schools that enter into these contracts and see their electric bills drop will actually get to keep the savings as a result....

Thank God, this body will once again have daily prayer, because if ever there was a time elected officials should call on a higher authority for guidance, it is now.

I hope, first and foremost, that there will be NO new tax burdens thrust upon our citizens … that we will not automatically open the taxpayers’ pocketbooks to every budget request, every new proposal, every capital improvement project....

ER visits spiked when the ban went into effect. Relative to other counties, ER admissions increase by at least one fourth, and deaths exhibit a similar increase....

"Launch a national dialogue led by Secretaries Sebelius and Duncan on mental health." 

“As we observe Religious Freedom Day, let us remember the legacy of faith and independence we have inherited, and let us honor it by forever upholding our right to exercise our beliefs free from prejudice or persecution.” -- President Barack Obama

Should the Legislature require the state Public Utilities Commission to approve energy projects that further the state’s renewable energy goals even if it costs consumers more?  -- NO 75%

NFIB is recruiting members to serve on its Hawaii state Leadership Council....

Toxic chemicals managed, treated or released into the environment from facilities operating in Hawaii slightly increased in 2011 when compared to 2010....

Approximately four years ago, the Hawaii State Legislature commissioned Stroudwater Associates to evaluate our Hawaii Health System Safety Net Hospitals....

The Senate preceded the House in this action in 1981 ....

...reforming the local election process, addressing the PLDC , and encouraging greater public input in the legislative process....

...rising cost of petroleum fuels coupled with strict new international air pollution regulations for ships are causing ship owners and operators to look seriously at the use of LNG ....

The wisdom of John Rosemond is something to ponder before initiating costly pre-kindergarten programs....

"...we must enhance our revenue stream. We must put together a mix of strategies that will generate more state revenues...."

...Obama promised to cut the annual deficit in half in his first term. Instead, his budgets include near-trillion-dollar deficits as far as the eye can see....

Attention Hawaii: Can this 'hybrid model' be trusted with Vote-by-Mail?

The U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) announces that its January 17, 2013, public meeting in Washington, DC, will be available via webcast....

Here are the leadership assignments....

According to the data, there were no decreases in emergency admissions or inpatient charges....

Join me and fellow Republicans tomorrow, Wednesday, January 16th, to kick off the 27th Hawaii State Legislature Session! 

He currently serves as vice present of The Gospel of the Alpha and Omega International and volunteers for the King’s Cathedral Maui Children’s Ministry....

...Maui County Office on Aging, will expand ongoing transitions efforts to reduce Medicare hospital readmissions....

Those wishing to hear Aung San Suu Kyi speak in person can purchase a ticket to the Rotary International's Rotary Global Peace Forum dinner where Aung San Suu Kyi will deliver the keynote speech on Saturday, Jan. 26....

Yesterday, President Obama accused his opposition in Congress of threatening to “default” on America’s loans....

The bag tax revenue could very well be exceeded by the expenses caused by additional hospitalizations.

“This ruling will significantly increase costs for all tour operators, travel agents, OTCs, and other travel intermediaries...."

...commentary not only addresses the primary U.S. cabotage statute – i.e., the Jones Act – but also the pernicious effects of cabotage laws in other countries....

"the PUC rarely denies rate increases.” 

What happens when a government program simply does not do what it is supposed to do?

After 50 years of federal funding, the US Department of Health and Human Services has determined in two separate studies that Head Start is completely ineffectual....

Why? Because transportation infrastructure deployment lags demand by decades....

By some estimates, Jones Act makes goods in Hawaii 33% more expensive than they could be....

L.A. County MTA "spends almost twice as much on rail to carry about one-fourth as many passengers" as its buses do....