Trump Admin Sues to Block Hawaii from Taking Fossil Fuel Companies To Court Over Climate Change
Trump Admin: Native Hawaiian History NOT Considered 'DEI'
Hawaii legislature approves $20 billion state budget
Health Measures up for Final Passage
Senate Confirms Eight Judges
SB401: Hawaii senators kill firearms bill 13-12
HNN: … State senators from country and neighbor island districts rose up to kill an effort to ban assault rifles Wednesday at the Capitol.
It was the only major debate as lawmakers approved hundreds of bills with little discussion.
… supported by a gallery full of gun-rights supporters, rural senators said the bill would disarm people who need weapons to take on feral pigs or other invasive species and harm hunters who have had larger magazines for years.
Sen. Joy Buenaventura from Puna said she was a longtime supporter of gun control, but many people she knew own guns or magazine that would be banned.
“But we are actually making them criminals by possession of magazines that we had legalized before they bought it. Now, by their mere possession, because we decide to pass this bill, we decide to label them as criminals and that to me, it’s unethical and should not be tolerated by this body,” she said.
“The bill in its original condition will not only restrict law-abiding citizens who legally carry, but this also restricts our law enforcement officers,” Waianae Sen. Samantha DeCorte said.
Molokai Sen. Lynn DeCoite proposed an amendment that would exempt many people, including law enforcement officers, military and some hunters, from elements of the ban.
Only Rhoads defended the bill…
Rhoads said. “This amendment creates a huge carve out for the sale of assault weapons. If we pass it, it basically eviscerates the underlying bill.”
Rhoads slightly understated the threat from the amendment, because if it passed, it would mean the Senate version of SB 401 would be different from the House version, and they need to be identical in order to survive the legislature.
The Senate president, Kauai’s Ron Kouchi, called for a show of hands, and declared the amendment dead.
But amendment supporters demanded a roll call, and with the vote tied at 12-12, the clerk called for his vote.
“Mister President?”
Kouchi paused and then said “aye.”
And the clerk announced “13-ayes, 12 nos. Amendment passes.”
The chamber was filled with loud cheers from the gallery.
To avoid unnecessary further drama, the bill was sent back to committee with no time to be revived this year.
There were no other high-profile measures rejected. Even the controversial, last-minute plan to possibly give HECO a disaster liability shield passed pretty easily….
SB401: Text, Status
HIFICO: VICTORY: SB401 IS OFFICIALLY... - Hawaii Firearms Coalition | Facebook
CB: In Last-Minute Drama, Legislature Shelves Bill To Ban Assault Weapons - Honolulu Civil Beat
read … Hawaii senators narrowly kill firearms bill
City’s planned 115% sewer fee hike under Council scrutiny
SA: … In October, ENV initially proposed to increase sewer fees annually for the next 10 years — by 9% over the first six years, followed by smaller annual increases of 8%, 7%, 6%, and 5% over the subsequent four years.
But since that time, other versions to Bill 60 have materialized — including a revision by ENV itself that supposedly lessens the initial blow of higher fees to its rate-paying customers.
ENV Director Roger Babcock on Tuesday presented to the Council’s Budget Committee the so-called “6% option” — which sees sewer rates rise by 6% on July 1. Those rates would increase by 7.5% in 2027; 8.5% in 2028; 9% in the following four years; then rise by 8%, 7.5% and 7% in the final three years, ending at year 2035.
Under this 6% option, the city said the same average single-family residential sewer bill in the first year would go to $119.18 a month instead of $122.04…
read … City’s planned 115% sewer fee hike under Council scrutiny | Honolulu Star-Advertiser
Bill to quicken rebuilding in Lahaina heads to governor's office
KITV: … State lawmakers passed a bill aimed at expediting the rebuilding process for hundreds of homes destroyed in the Lahaina fire.
Nearly two years after the blaze, latest data shows nine homes have been rebuilt, of the 1,390 residential lots cleared of debris.
To speed up reconstruction, Senate Bill 1296 proposes to offer hundreds of residential lots in Lahaina exemptions for certain permits. …
"It's just frustrating, literally frustrating," fire survivor Kai Keahi said.
Kai and his wife Kelli were displeased with the permitting process because they say they were told to change their plans twice to conform to rules that were not enforced before the fire.
"If they put it out there, this is the laws and regulations, then all the people, the engineers, know when they draw the blueprint, be one time. Not change all the time, and every time it changes it costs a few thousand dollars to change the blueprints," Kai Keahi said. …
If passed into law, Bill 1296 would bear on any area in Hawai'i struck by a natural disaster through 2028….
read … Bill to quicken rebuilding in Lahaina heads to governor's office | News | kitv.com
PUC to Set HECO Disaster Liability Limits
CB: … Hawaiʻi lawmakers on Wednesday passed a bill intended to help shore up Hawaiian Electric Co.’s credit rating despite strong opposition from House and Senate committee chairs who helped vet the measure.
The bill would impose a new fee on HECO customers to help pay for investments needed to protect the public from wildfires. But that’s not what drew criticism from Sen. Jarrett Keohokalole, chair of the Senate Commerce and Consumer Protection Committee, and Rep. Scott Matayoshi, chair of the House Consumer Protection and Commerce Committee.
They focused on an 11th-hour amendment capping HECO’s liability for property damage in the event of future wildfires. The liability cap has always been a key part of the measure, but a change made on Friday gives the Public Utilities Commission, not the Legislature, the power to set the cap amount and how it will apply.
House Energy and Environmental Protection Committee chair Nicole Lowen said it made sense to have the PUC set the liability cap through a deliberative public rulemaking process.
“It’s not perfect,” Lowen said. But she added, “It’s my firm belief that we’re doing something positive for consumers.”
But Keohokalole said the part of the bill putting the commission in charge was “inserted in the shadows at the very end of the session.” Previous drafts set the cap according to formulas determined by the Legislature.
In addition, Keohokalole said, the PUC would get to decide if the cap applies to a single wildfire or multiple fires taking place over a number of years. That would mean a series of fires at the beginning of the time period could exhaust HECO’s capped amount, leaving victims uncompensated or having to turn to other alleged wrongdoers who don’t have the benefit of a liability cap.
“It’s a blatant corporate handout,” said Keohokalole, who was one of five senators who voted against the bill, joining Sens. Brenton Awa, Brandon Elefante, Mike Gabbard and Les Ihara….
read … Lawmakers Pass HECO Bill Over Objections Of Committee Chairs
Schatz moves quickly to lock up whip race
PB: … Senate Democratic leadership elections for the next Congress are at least 19 months away. But these contests are few and far between. So it’s imperative to be ready and strike fast.
That’s Sen. Brian Schatz’s (D-Hawaii) strategy as he hopes to succeed Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) as Senate Democratic whip — and ultimately become his party’s leader in the chamber.
“I wouldn’t be a good whip if I didn’t get started as soon as the opening occurred,” Schatz told us when asked why he jumped in so soon after Durbin announced he wouldn’t seek reelection.
So far, Sens. Cory Booker (N.J.) and Martin Heinrich (N.M.) are the only Democratic senators publicly backing Schatz. But that will change in the coming days and weeks.
Schatz said that he’s simply “initiating conversations.” But in reality, the Hawaii Democrat has been laying the groundwork for this effort for years. Schatz’s leadership aspirations were far from a secret. And several Democrats told us last night that they believe Schatz would be great for the job, even if they’re not ready to formally endorse him.
Yet while Schatz’s aggressive play is cementing his status as the frontrunner, at least one potential rival is irked by the strategy.
Keeping the powder dry: Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) said Democrats need to be laser-focused on President Donald Trump, not an internal matter that’s way down the line.
“I truly believe that talking about something a year and a half from now — and we have no idea who’s gonna win the Senate, who’s going to get this — it’s a mistake,” Klobuchar told reporters….
read … Schatz moves quickly to lock up whip race
UH says a majority of its international students are safe amid visa policy changes
HPR: … The Trump administration has reversed its policies on international student visas. Initially, 4,700 students across the country had their permission to study in the U.S. revoked, including several individuals enrolled at the University of Hawaiʻi.
But Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, has paused those actions and reinstated visas as of Friday. Whether the about-face is permanent or temporary remains unclear.
read … UH says a majority of its international students are safe amid visa policy changes
Hawaiʻi is poised to set a new 2045 energy usage reduction goal
HPR: … Hawaiʻi already has relatively low energy usage compared to other states. But in 2008, it started an initiative to significantly lower that usage through energy efficiency standards.
The state is required to reduce its energy consumption by more than 4,000 gigawatt hours by 2030, compared to its baseline energy usage in 2008.
Just one of those gigawatt hours is enough to power more than 1 million homes for an hour.
The state is on track to meet its 2030 goal, according to the most recent report from the Public Utilities Commission.
House Bill 1051 will set a new target of reducing the state’s total energy usage by 6,000 gigawatt hours by 2045.
Previous measures to extend the state’s energy efficiency goals almost crossed the finish line in 2023 and 2024. Both stumbled during conference committee hearings….
read … Hawaiʻi is poised to set a new 2045 energy usage reduction goal | Hawai'i Public Radio
Can’t Afford A Lawyer? Good Luck Getting Help On Neighbor Islands
CB: … After Makaalohi Liftee was pulled over for speeding and arrested for driving under the influence because an officer smelled marijuana in his car, the 27-year-old Hawaiʻi island resident thought his case would be thrown out quickly.
Liftee had taken a drug test for the police, and he said that he hadn’t been driving while high. But he couldn’t afford a lawyer to present his case to a judge. Instead, he had to rely on the court system to provide an attorney for him.
It was a process that took nearly five months. Every few weeks, Liftee would take time off work to report to the Kona District Court at 8:30 a.m., sitting on a hard, wooden bench for hours — only to have the judge call his name and tell him there was no attorney available.
“You can’t go to work, you can’t make money,” he said. “It feels like it’s holding you back a little bit, like somebody’s holding you back.”
When public defenders aren’t available or have a conflict of interest, the court system turns to private attorneys willing to represent people who can’t pay for a lawyer. Lately, such attorneys are few and far between….
read … Can’t Afford A Lawyer? Good Luck Getting Help On Neighbor Islands - Honolulu Civil Beat
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