Education K-12

Instead of closing the "pay-to-play" loophole that allows donations from grant-in-aid contractors, HB128 allows all but non-bid contractors to make campaign donations.

Instead of further limiting "seeding-the-community" donations to non-profits, HB128 doubles the allowable amount.

HONOLULU – Governor Linda Lingle vetoed three bills today that would have negatively affected Hawai‘i’s low-income and affordable housing supplies.  The Governor issued her vetoes to highlight the importance of housing needs during one of the state's most economically challenging times.

“Affordable housing options are scarce in Hawai‘i,” Governor Lingle stated.  “We should be passing laws that increase affordable housing options for Hawai‘i’s families, not limit them.”

In 2000, Carlisle encouraged then Deputy Prosecutor Randall Lee’s investigation into illegal campaign contributions to Harris, and stood by Lee’s investigation and prosecution of contractors who laundered money to Honolulu Mayor Jeremy Harris.

Bob Watada, then state campaign spending director, estimates that more than 100 companies laundered $1.5 million to Harris, constituting half of Harris' campaign war chest. Carlisle says if he is elected ... he will select people on the basis of talent, skill and experience and on what they know, not who they know.

In response to the state’s financial woes, Djou has advocated curtailing expenditures by shrinking the state budget and scaling back government programs. He has been a vocal critic of Hannemann’s proposal of a 20-mile elevated rail line that would run throughout Honolulu. Hannemann has said the jobs needed to construct the rail system would stimulate the economy, while Djou has charged that the cost would outstrip the job-related benefits.

“Charles is trying to make it understood that you can’t solve all your problems by raising taxes,” said Jim Bryan, a spokesman for the Hawaii Republican Party. “It’s going to hurt people further who have already suffered from this economy.”

Union leaders are playing with their members livelihoods! And they are calling for an increase in GE Taxes! The union bosses are pushing their membership to rally at the Capital June 30th, from 4:30 to 6:00 PM. We need you to call radio shows, write letters to the editor and call/email Senator Hanabusa and Speaker Say to let them know your cost of living is already too high. Want to be part of the solution? This is what YOU can do...

Sometimes you just have to laugh out loud at those who consider themselves to be "conscious, enlightened, and progressive".

According to the US Chamber of Commerce, regulating carbon through the Clean Air Act would expose at least one million mid-sized commercial buildings to draconian environmental regulations. One-fifth of all food service businesses, one-third of all health care businesses, one-half of the entire lodging industry, and even 10% of all buildings used for worship would be under the EPA’s hammer.

Currently, cars exiting the Middle Street tunnel must merge onto the H-1, which creates an extreme bottleneck as cars traveling eastbound on the H-1 slow down to allow the incoming traffic.  This project will increase traffic capacity through the Middle Street merge and Vineyard Boulevard by adding a fourth continuous lane, eliminating the need to merge. The additional lane will also add a second exit lane to the Vineyard Street off-ramp.

HCR 100, the Islamic Holiday Resolution passed by the State Senate (22-3) on Thursday, May 7, is insensitive to patriotic Americans of all religions, outrageous, and an embarrassment (once again) for the State of Hawaii.

This resolution (which does not have the force of law) proclaims September 24 as Islam Day in Hawaii. How insensitive, no matter what the original intent, can anyone get, selecting a holiday just 13 days following the 911 Islamic terrorist attack on America? Is it just me that feels the stunning inappropriateness here?

Hawaii Rep. Kymberly Pine, R-Ewa, is way off base in chastising Sen. Sam Slom, R-Hawaii Kai, for his comments regarding the proposed Islam Day.  To honor a person or generic group of people like kupuna or Tartans is one thing – honoring a religion like Islam, as the House and Senate did in HCR 100, is totally inappropriate.

From email distributed by the Islamic Information Office of Hawaii:

Islam day HCR100 Resolution was on the agenda yesterday (Wednesday). Senator Hemmings (Republican) gave a hate speech in opposition talking about the 10% of Islamic terrorists who want to kill Americans. The gallery was filled with the red shirts that are opposing HB444, the Civil Unions bill who all stood and applauded in support of Senator Hemmings speech against this Resolution. It was disgusting.

The recruitment push is unavoidably part of the GOP quest for identity and leadership. President Obama, an untraditional candidate from an untraditional background, helped Democrats define themselves and win over followers during the end of the Bush years. Now Republicans are looking in out-of-the-ordinary places for candidates who can enthuse Americans and pick up seats in their name.... 

“This is a slap in the face to me, my mother, and the citizens of Hawai'i who expect our government to rise to protect them,” stated Melanie McLellan, foster daughter of Karen Ertell, who was brutally murdered and raped allegedly by her 15 year-old neighbor, Vernon Bartley.

HB819, "Karen's Law," will be heard today at 3:30pm in conference room 229. "Karen's Law" has passed out of both the House and the Senate and is now sitting in conference committee.

Although the bill has been heard three times, an agreement over the final draft has yet to be made. If Karen's Law does not pass out of committee today, tomorrow will be the final deadline for the bill to pass out so that it may be voted on by a joint Legislature.

Please help us by getting signatures on the petition and bring them to the prayer rally on Sunday.  We will also be gathering signatures on Sunday.  If you have not done so already, please click the link below to send an email to your Senator asking him/her to stand firm against pulling the bill from committee.  Those of you who reside in Manoa, please encourage people to contact Senator Taniguchi and encourage him to remain firm in his commitment to leave the bill in committee.

When this subject came up last week in the House Judiciary Committee, an amendment to the hate crimes bill that would have excluded pedophilia from the definition of sexual orientation was defeated by Democrats along party lines, 13-10.

Rep Joe Bertram’s 30-year friend Mark Marcantonio isn’t the only convicted child molester helped out by the Maui Democrat. The Legislative staff directory for 2007 shows that Bertram hired convicted child molester Leon Rouse as a Legislative Aide for the 2007 Legislative session.

Another notable cash-on-hand total was the $150,000 reported by Honolulu City Councilman Charles Djou (R) in Hawaii’s 1st district....

Karen’s Law will be heard in conference committee Wednesday at 3:00pm in room 229. Please send testimonies in support of HB819....

I will be joining hundreds of other hard working Hawaii taxpayers at 4pm on April 15 at our state capitol to display our objection to government taking the easy way out and sending us a bigger tax bill.  Families across the nation are tightening their belts to deal with these difficult economic times and instead of doing the same, all levels of government want to simply make these times harder and raise our taxes.  This is unfair and unacceptable.

...several division presidents and secretary-treasurers, have been convicted since 2001 of felonies ranging from embezzlement, falsifying official reports to government, mail fraud and conspiracy....

The firm’s main office was raided by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) last year.

A newly formed group, the Hawaii Republican Assembly, is sponsoring a tax protesting "tea party" at the state Capitol on April 15. While the group's fliers don't contain a blatantly partisan message, they do claim a "revolution is brewing in Honolulu."

In the report, Mr. Holmes questions Mr. Anderson's claim in a television advertisement that Anderson was former Councilwoman Barbara Marshall's senior aide for six years. Two former senior advisers to Marshall have also claimed this statement to be inaccurate. 

In 1999, Mr. Holmes was unable to explain why he could not produce documentation of graduate and undergraduate degrees from the University of Iowa, despite his claim that he earned both a bachelors and master degree from the university.  The University of Iowa has said that Holmes was a former student for three semesters, but earned no such degrees.

Karen’s Law, HB819 HD2SD2 was heard in the Senate Judiciary and Government Operations Committee today. Chair Brian Taniguchi passed out Karen’s Law. However he amended the law to only include murder in the first degree.

“Ed Case doesn’t seem to understand that running for office is not something you haphazardly choose in order to add another notch to your political belt,” said NRCC Communications Director Ken Spain.

Honolulu City Councilmember Charles K. Djou (Waikiki, East Honolulu), a candidate for Hawaii’s 1^st Congressional District, welcomed Ed Case’s declaration that he would run against Djou.

"I enjoyed serving with Ed in the State legislature and I know that he has had a difficult time deciding which seat to run for...." 

I'm truly excited at the opportunity to represent Hawai’i's great First Congressional District … from Makapu’u to Mililani, Waikele and Ewa Beach. I've lived and worked in the First half of my life. I represented Mānoa and Makiki for eight years in our state legislature, have crisscrossed the First in two statewide campaigns, and have addressed its needs in Congress. I know the First, and I know I can represent its 600,000 citizens well in Congress.

To my friends in Hawai’i's equally great Second Congressional, where I was born and raised and have spent the other half of my life, and whom I was fiercely proud to represent in Congress for over four years, I look forward to continuing to represent you in D.C. as well. I ask for your continued support.

The next step will be to get the Chair of the Senate Judiciary and Government Operations Committee, Brian Taniguchi, to hear the bill.  This will be the toughest committee to get Karen’s Law through as there is opposition to the bill with its committee members.

If the Supreme Court refuses to reconsider its SuperFerry decision, Councilmember Djou’s legal affairs committee will examine voiding all state laws that apply to just the City and County of Honolulu. 

Malia Gray, legislative office manager for Rep Lynn Finnegan, faced former Ron Paul Hawaii campaign leader Dan Douglass in the contest for County Chair.  Both candidates recruited new Republican Party members and mobilized supporters for the event.  Gray reported her team recruiting 300 new Republican Party members and identifying 20 Legislative candidates to run in 2010 during the last few weeks of campaigning.

Thanks to you, Karen’s Law will finally be heard on the House Floor tomorrow...a select few members will be trying to kill the bill.

“I commend the HTA for having the wisdom to reconsider their previous decision and return the Pro Bowl to Hawai‘i where it belongs.
“Let us now move forward and work closely with the NFL to make the Pro Bowl’s homecoming the best possible.
“I am excited to continue working with Commissioner Goodell on what I believe could be an enhanced all-star weekend of festivities.”

An official familiar with Abercrombie's plans says the 10-term congressman will make his announcement through an Internet video to be released Sunday.

Kohala is one of the few Big Island schools not deemed ‘failing’ under “No Child Left Behind” standards.  Under formulas used by the Board of Education under Act 51, successful schools are often punished by budget cuts. Kohala HS will be losing $500,000 in funding for the 2009-10 school year.

...three schools - Hauula Public Charter School, Hawaiian Renaissance Public Charter School of the Arts and the American Heritage Academy - filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education's Office of the Inspector General and Hawaii's Attorney General....