... On Wednesday, January 18, 2023, the Hawaiʻi State Legislature will convene ....

... Hawaii is one of the slowest states in the nation when it comes to approving building permits ....

... high gas prices, rush-hour traffic congestion and poor road quality ....

... Sim Nimby is an online game in which winning means giving up any hope of building any sort of structure for any reason ....

... Hawaii’s population has been declining for six straight years, and if policymakers don’t do something quickly to avert the looming increase in county property taxes, that is likely to continue ....

... two dozen community and media organizations suggest changes that could be implemented by executive order ....

... 6th highest in USA ....

... According to recent data, searches for side jobs have seen an increase of 49.89%, with Hawaii ranking sixth among the states ....

... We need fixes.  Not the temporary kind ....

... The list is directly from the HGEA’s email to members earlier this week, January 9, 2023 ....

... Votes in Congress and Bills Signed into Law ....

... DoE only had 10 years notice of the need to build a grade-separated pedestrian crossing ....

...The lie that tourists pay 30% of the GE Tax is front and center as Gov Green and legislators quickly walk back Green’s fake 2022 campaign promise to eliminate the GE Tax from food and medical care....

... the report will not be made public ....

... He is also required to promptly notify all of his clients, and any attorneys for any adverse party in any pending litigation, of his suspension and consequent inability to act as an attorney ....

... HOU is responsible for coordinating and directing the development, preparation, and implementation of plans and programs relating to affordable housing and homelessness ....

... $1,534,259.15 was collected in criminal actions and $554,363.58 was collected in civil actions ....

... to fill the unexpired term of William Dean (County of Hawaiʻi) that will expire on June 30, 2024 ....

... Hawaii residents paid on average $210.26 a month up by $38.08 ....

... this would cost the state $25 million per year ....

... because HSTA didn't get two paid days vacation from their vacation .... 

... Grassroot Institute of Hawaii’s “wins” over the past year ....

... new members and (eventually) a new Speaker ....

... the New Year is off and running and we are quaking in our boots waiting for our Legislature to reconvene, here are some of the ideas that we have been following ....

... The Florida Parental Rights in Education Act, commonly known as the Don't Say Gay act prohibits public schools from giving "classroom instruction" on sexual orientation or gender identity from kindergarten through to third grade ....

... Because of persistent funding inadequacies and inequities, many schools, especially those serving low-income communities, were not equipped to educate students ....

... and that doesn’t account for state tax rates, which are among the highest in the nation ....

“...A year ago I would have been pessimistic….”  …but … Recent developments make John O’Meara “optimistic about astronomy on Mauna Kea whether or not TMT is part of it....”

... The Chief Justice has the discretion to assign a district judge/district family judge to either the District Court or Family Court ....

... January 7, 8, 10, 2023 online ....

... The Price of Pizza Hut and Domino’s in Every Country and State ....

... sailing from Oahu on his boat, fully fueled, and stocked with cash and enough provisions to sustain himself at sea ....

... the challenge brought by Ahia and 30 Maui County voters argues Maui County Clerk Kathy Kaohu made an error by failing to determine the validity of hundreds of mail-in ballot envelopes deemed ‘deficient’ ....

... Ensure the integrity of the election process ....

... allowing longer-term special use permits, adjusting parking fees for non-residents, managing commercial usage similar to the Nā Ala Hele Trails and Access program, extending the closure of areas, and restricting access to off-trail areas ....

... Akina and Iwasa discuss the history of property taxes in Hawaii, how assessments are conducted and what reforms the counties should consider ....

... "7.2% of the individuals were furloughed, or reduced their working hours while 6.6% of them reported having someone in their family furloughed or reducing working hours" ....

... Gov. Josh Green made eliminating the general excise tax for food and medicine one of his major talking points. And on the county level, faced with concerns about skyrocketing real estate assessments, Mayor Rick Blangiardi promised to “aggressively” pursue ways to reduce that tax burden. ....

... 16% of Hawaiʻi’s rural roads and 26% of urban roads rated with poor pavement roughness ....

... whenever a grand jury is impaneled an independent counsel shall be appointed, as provided by law, to advise the members of the grand jury regarding matters brought before it ....

... more than 15,000 left the state between July 2021 and July 2022 ....

... According to 2021 data from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, 78.9% of traced guns in Hawaii were sold by an out-of-state retailer - the third largest share in the country. Firearms traced by the ATF typically have been used, or are suspected to have been used, to commit a crime ....

... Tasha Kama was unanimously selected as the new interim council chair pending the outcome of the legal challenge to Alice Lee's election now before the Hawaii Supreme Court ....

... bold proposals for legislative reform ....

... money is green ....

... effective January 3, 2023 ....

... the important thing isn’t money for the sake of money, but whether it’s being used wisely to make our lives better ....

... Hawaii-sponsored bills on the move as Congressional session nears end ....

... a lawsuit filed in 2nd Circuit Court November 4 by former MPD Officer Manuel Sorcy shows CIU investigators intensely focused on Chief Faaumu’s internal rivals both real and imagined ....

... Case Secures Passage Of Hawai‘i National Forest Study Bill ....