Entries for April 2015

The number of homeless individuals on Oahu is 4,903, a 4% (191) increase over 2014. The percentage of those who are unsheltered is 40% (1,939), the highest percentage since these data were collected in 2009....

...the ōpe‘ape‘a, or Hawaiian hoary bat, flew through the Senate, glided through the House of Representatives, and will land on Governor Ige's desk in the attic of the Capitol Building....

The aquarium fishermen even at loss of income have willingly agreed to the new laws and plan to have continuing dialogue with DAR....

The humpback whale is currently listed as endangered throughout its range. The proposed rule finds that ten of those 14 populations do not warrant ESA listing....

Modest Innovators need improvements in several policy and other foundational criteria to better create an environment for innovative companies to thrive....

Fifteen states are betting they can convince more doctors to accept the growing number of patients covered by Medicaid with a simple incentive: more money....

This looks more like Mark's excellent adventure....

Whether it's activists on Mauna Kea, the Akaka Bill or the Native Hawaiian roll, questions of law abound....

Hawaii levies the second highest tax burden in the country on its low-income families. A major reason for this is the General Excise tax....

A new 50-state study, Undocumented Immigrants’ State and Local Tax Contributions, by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy....

HB145 has quite a history. It started as a bill to limit the tobacco tax on large cigars to 50 cents per cigar....

...grants and appropriations had lapsed or were subject to de-obligation because project managers lacked accurate, complete and reliable information....

‘Ōlelo to provide live television coverage of next week’s Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation’s (HART) Board of Directors meeting....

The prevalence of cigarette smoking among adults in Hawaii decreased by more than 20% from 2011 to 2013....However, use of e-cigarettes continues to grow at an alarming rate....

Wellness Guidelines look at nutritional guidelines, health and nutrition education, physical education and activity....

The number of commuters driving alone increased 74.2 percent from 253,680 in 1980 to 441,988 in the 2009-2013 period....

This year’s edition of the Index pulls together 23 different tax measures....

Built with your tax dollars, via crony capitalist Act 221 High Tech Tax Credits, Hawaii....

King Kalākaua was an early and ardent supporter of astronomical observation in Hawaii....

...we had a busy 2014—releasing 18 audits, analyses, and studies on everything from alternate uses of recycled glass to the regulation of medical marijuana dispensaries....

Here's the latest from the Hawaii Supreme Court....

The appointment of Medeiros fills the vacancy created by the appointment of Judge Christine E. Kuriyama to the Circuit Court of the First Circuit....

Since 2000, Maunakea has been under stewardship of the Office of Maunakea Management....

Feedback collected by the online survey through April 22 will be used to help guide calendar development for the 2016-17 school year and beyond....

Kauai is the only county in Hawaii that has taken a stand against this onrush of legislation....

Many states have a graduated system — the most complicated one is Hawaii....

...three states have ten or more tax brackets, led by Hawaii with twelve....

A&B has been diverting water from East Maui streams for more than 100 years via "complex system of ditches, tunnels and flumes" to irrigate the HC&S sugar plantation in Central Maui....

House Republican floor speeches ....

Senators Russell Ruderman, Glenn Wakai, Lee Ihara, Mike Gabbard and Gilbert Keith-Agaran voted in the affirmative but with reservations.  A no vote at this stage serves to exclude the person voting no from participating in the Conference Committee....

...one campus (Honolulu) classified a 2011 graduate of an Accounting program as employed in the field based upon a food service job she started at Taco Bell in June 2006....

A majority of the bills will go into conference committees where the House and Senate conferees will convene to settle differences....

...the DBC Program paid $2.6 million in deposit refunds for approximately 3.5 million pounds of recycled materials that cannot be accounted for....

The state House of Representatives passed today nearly 150 Senate measures....

Facts learned during the course of the investigation will determine whether the attorney general’s office pursues or recommends criminal charges....

When I hear the slogans used by protests calling to “rise up,” I have a different concept in my mind....

HB134 will be voted on this Tuesday - 4/14 - in the State Senate....

Smoke produced by burning incense and candles can be worse than the pollution found next to a busy road....

...legislators from Hawaii, Guam and Puerto Rico came together for a videoconference forum to discuss legislative developments on the Jones Act for their respective jurisdictions....

HB1075 concerns the creation of a public-private partnership for the Maui Hospital System....

Having farms in Hawaii helps speed up the process....

With Suzanne Case being the Chairperson of DLNR there will be no animals to harvest because of fences and eradication....

In 1991, my father died of AIDS. None of my father’s partners/ex-partners are still alive....

Former Attorney General Michael Lilly has requested DCCA and DAGS review the expenditure of over $800,000 on two vendors by the Native Hawaiian Roll Commission without public bid....

...Hawaii State Capitol Auditorium on Thursday, April 16th @ 7 PM....

...we are getting closer to a resolution on the two bills that are seeking to extend the life of the 0.5% Oahu county surcharge on our general excise tax....

NewsHour special correspondent Mike Taibbi reports....