DoTax Suddenly Begins Collecting GE Tax on Tips
Kudos to the counties for considering housing reforms
Hawaii Congressional Delegation How They Voted September 5, 2025
USO Prison Gang Member sentenced to over 29 Years in prison for extortion and drug trafficking
State Law Helps Hanabusa’s Alleged False name donor escape justice
HNN: … The rare straw donors criminal case against a local executive is a lot smaller than it could have been, because of a state law that sets a deadline for prosecuting campaign spending crimes.
HNN Investigates has learned the deadline boiled down the case against Terri Ann Otani to donations to just one campaign out of nearly a dozen that got allegedly illegal contributions.
During the federal conspiracy trial over donations to Keith Kaneshiro, former Mitsunaga and Associates executive Terri Ann Otani’s own relatives testified she engaged in a false name contribution scheme going back years, funneling money to many prominent politicians.
But the charges only involve a campaign by Colleen Hanabusa.
The complaint against 70-year-old Otani lists four donations to Hanabusa’s losing 2020 campaign for mayor. Hanabusa is not charged with any wrongdoing.
Otani left the Mitsunaga firm in 2018.
Even though straw donor cases are extremely rare, former prosecutor and judge Randy Lee says it’s probably common.
“It’s quite obvious that it’s a culture in Hawaii, that if you want favorable jobs or you want favorable treatment by the politicians, you’d have to make contributions to their campaign,” Lee said. “We call it pay to play.” …
BACKGROUND: Mitsunaga Secretary Indicted for False-Name Campaign Contributions
REALITY: www.TheRealHanabusa.com
read … False name donation case hampered by legal deadline
City Hires Kaneshiro’s Lawyer to Fight Laurel Mau
CB: … The Honolulu City Council last week approved paying the law firm McCorriston Miller Mukai MacKinnon up to $50,000 to serve as special counsel in a lawsuit filed by Laurel Mau in June 2024 against the city and Keith Kaneshiro, the former Honolulu prosecutor….
According to the resolution approved by the council, the city’s corporation counsel is disqualified from representing Kaneshiro, a former city employee. The resolution says that McCorriston Miller Mukai MacKinnon “possesses the specialized legal knowledge and expertise” to handle the case instead.
(QUESTION: What kind of ‘specialized knowledge?’)
… Bill McCorriston (a co-founder of the firm) who represented Kaneshiro back in 2019 when he was under scrutiny by federal prosecutors in the Katherine and Louis Kealoha saga….
(ANSWER: That kind.)
Would that not represent its own conflict of interest?
Apparently not, according to the office of Mayor Rick Blangiardi.
“After conducting a conflict analysis, there does not appear to be a conflict that would prevent the firm from representing Mr. Kaneshiro in that matter,” Scott Humber, the mayor’s communications director, wrote in an email Friday. “Having received Council approval, the City is working on the contract.”
(TRANSLATION: C&C’s interests are exactly aligned with Kaneshiro’s.)
read … The Sunshine Blog
Nakamura: Special Session in November?
CB: … A special session might still be needed, depending on what happens with the Trump administration’s negotiations with Congress this month, House Speaker Nadine Nakamura told a Honolulu town hall audience last week….
The Legislature this year set aside a $200 million fund that can be tapped should Washington cut federal dollars to the state (along with a $50 million fund to aid nonprofits that depend on federal money), and Nakamura said legislative leaders are closely monitoring what’s going on in D.C.
It’s possible the Legislature could go into special session in mid-November and wrap by Thanksgiving, Nakamura said Tuesday night. If it waits until January to address budget shortfalls, the 2026 session is set to begin Jan. 21, and the governor would submit his budget requests in late December.
Ultimately, it’ll be the governor’s call….
read … The Sunshine Blog: Hawaiʻi Might Need A Special Session After All - Honolulu Civil Beat
TIF: Make Housing Affordable with new model to fund infrastructure
SA: … a 2016 study by the Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corp. estimated the cost of infrastructure can increase the price of a home by 15-25%, which for a median-priced house means an additional $135,000 to $225,000 that is borne directly by the homebuyer. As the study is now nearly a decade old, this cost is likely even greater in today’s dollars.
Luckily, there is a practical solution that doesn’t force homebuilders to fund the cost of creating infrastructure and then passing that cost onto homebuyers. That creative financing tool is known as tax increment financing, or TIF. This type of financing allows counties to fund infrastructure by capturing future property tax increases from a designated area, thus reducing the upfront cost on homebuilders.
To be clear, TIF is not a new tax, but rather the leveraging of future property taxes in the form of a bond to directly fund new infrastructure for a specific area. The result is lower-priced homes, townhomes and apartments that people can afford.
In California, a form of TIF known as Community Facilities Districts (CFDs) has been used since 1982 to create entire communities of lower-priced homes. For example, the city of Irvine has used this type of funding to pay for more than $2 billion worth of infrastructure…
read … Column: Try new model to fund infrastructure | Honolulu Star-Advertiser
Clear pathways to affordable homes
SA: … State and city administrations are aligned on the issue of affordable housing for Oahu, of course — it’s agreed that adding affordable housing is key to addressing related problems with homelessness, health and community cohesion that plague Honolulu and Hawaii. But turbulence lurks below the surface, as a new state law aiming to streamline affordable development draws growing ire and pushback from the Honolulu City Council.
The matter has come to the fore during recent consideration of the Aloha Aina development of up to 750 apartments at Kapolei West. Both the City Council and its planning committee endorsed the project, but not before expressing strong criticism of the state-mandated process and raising the prospect of denying approval.
Council concerns are legitimate — but the most important aspect of the Aloha Aina project is that it will be 100% affordable to moderate-income households or below, and 30% affordable to households at 60% of median income or less. This is the housing mix that most people expect when “affordable” housing is discussed — meeting local needs, and combining lower- and median-income households….
read … Editorial: Clear pathways to affordable homes | Honolulu Star-Advertiser
Rail’s overbudget, long past keeps residents guessing
SA: … Just don’t think you are solving Honolulu’s traffic mess with a new train….
read … On Politics: Rail’s overbudget, long past keeps residents guessing | Honolulu Star-Advertiser
Suit Challenges How Legislators Turn Blank Bills Into Mid-Session Surprises
CB: … League of Women Voters targets the use of short-form measures that start out as empty shells. …
PDF: oahu-first-circuit-court-1ccv-25-1456.pdf
read … Suit Challenges How Legislators Turn Blank Bills Into Mid-Session Surprises
Major changes, political conflict create confusion over COVID-19 vaccines in Hawaii
SA: … The CVS app, for now, appears to allow appointments for residents under 65 if self-reporting a high-risk condition ….
read … Major changes, political conflict create confusion over COVID-19 vaccines in Hawaii | Honolulu Star-Advertiser
Immigration detainer, ‘substantial real property’ in labor trafficking case
HTH: … There is nothing in either the indictment or the court minutes from Wednesday or Thursday that indicates Pena Miranda’s country of origin or citizenship, or that of the victims and the victims’ family.
The labor trafficking is alleged to have occurred between April 13, 2023, and March 21, 2024. Two victims are listed in the indictment, a minor born in 2009 identified by initials only, and an adult, Oscar Mauricio Portillo Vasquez.
Pena Miranda is accused of “intentionally or knowingly” obtaining the minor’s labor or services “by fraud, by making material false statements, misstatements and omissions,” and by “withholding (the minor’s) government-issued identification documents with intent to impede the movement” of the minor. In addition, Pena Miranda is accused of “intentionally or knowingly us(ing) force … and/or causing bodily injury, to wit, physical pain” to force the minor to work.
The performance of labor or services, according to the indictment, was “to repay or service a real or purported debt, the performance of which was the exclusive method allowed to repay the debt.” The minor, the document states, “was required to repay the debt with direct labor instead of currency.”
Pena Miranda also allegedly obtained labor or services from Portillo Vasquez by convincing him that if he didn’t do as told, than either he or a “friend or family member would suffer serious harm, serious financial loss or physical restraint….
the deputy attorney general prosecuting Pena Miranda, told the grand jury that Pena Miranda “has substantial real property assets.” ….
read … Immigration detainer, ‘substantial real property’ in labor trafficking case - Hawaii Tribune-Herald
Mexican illegal sentenced to 12 months for third illegal reentry and 9th DUI
BIN: … Abraham Moreno Garcia, 51, of Mexico, was sentenced to 12 months’ imprisonment followed by three years of supervised release in federal court on Friday.
Moreno Garcia was sentenced after pleading guilty for illegally reentering and remaining in the United States, according to Acting United States Attorney Ken Sorenson.
According to court documents, Moreno Garcia was arrested in Kailua-Kona in 2024 for operating a vehicle under the influence of an intoxicant when he was stopped for speeding 64 miles per hour in a 35-miles per hour zone. He had open alcohol containers in the car and was driving without a license, insurance, and vehicle registration.
Moreno Garcia had two convictions and six other driving-while-under-the-influence arrests. He also had two prior federal convictions for illegally reentering the United States.
(DO THE MATH: 1+2+6=9 DUIs)
At Friday’s sentencing, U.S. District Judge Jill A. Otake indicated that at his 2019 illegally
reentry sentencing before her, when he was sentenced to approximately five months, Moreno Garcia told her he would not return to the United States. Despite this, he returned and continued to drive drunk….
read … Mexican national sentenced to 12 months for third illegal reentry after two DUI convictions
Honolulu City Council requests audit of homeless response program
SA: … NO ONE from the public testified on the requested audit at the meeting, but in written testimony, ACLU of Hawaii policy advocate Josh Frost stated his organization believes CORE is “an indispensable program for addressing ongoing public health and housing crises impacting our communities.”
“However, we believe the program is vastly under-resourced and misapplied … ,” he wrote. “CORE is currently operated by paramedics who are essential but have not been extensively trained in crisis response. There are no trained social workers in the upper management of the program. CORE’s EMTs lack critical crisis outreach skills and are not accompanied by social workers on calls into the community.”
(TRANSLATION: ACLU demands make-work jobs for homelessness enablers.)
The city administration appeared to question the need for Resolution 109 and its requested audit.
In an Aug. 19 letter to the Council, Honolulu Managing Director Mike Formby stated the city “would benefit from understanding the referenced testimony, community concerns and questions so that HESD can have a clearer and fuller understanding of the context surrounding this resolution.”
“Additionally, if there are concrete real issues that can be addressed sooner, we would do so,” Formby wrote. “We are committed to continuous improvement in providing city services and appreciate the strong working relationship and collaboration we have with the Honolulu City Council.”
The initial drafting of Resolution 109 in April coincided with the lengthy, contentious process to reconfirm Dr. James Ireland as head of HESD.….
read … Honolulu City Council requests audit of homeless response program
Police report progress on shuttering illegal game rooms on Oahu
SA: … The number of arrests at illegal game rooms on Oahu so far this year has surpassed the total for 2024, as Honolulu police work with city planning officials to shut down the operations, which have often been the scene of shootings, robberies and other violent and illicit activities.
Thirty-one people were arrested by police serving search warrants on illegal game rooms through Aug. 20, compared to 25 for all of last year. Additionally, police have seized 367 gambling devices so far this year compared to 579 in 2024.
According to the Honolulu Police Department’s Narcotics/Vice Division, 70 game rooms were operating on Oahu as of last month, nearly half the 150 documented between January and July 2024….
Acting Narcotics/Vice Division Capt. Clinton Corpuz told the panel that properties are chosen for investigation primarily based on community complaints. Covert tactics include attempting to infiltrate the game room to document enough probable cause to obtain a search warrant.
Nuisance abatement and forfeiture proceedings are being prioritized for locations where game rooms are known to reopen after being temporarily shut down.
“In the past it would be a revolving door,” Corpuz said, explaining that police are creating partnerships with the city and state to prevent the operations from rebooting.
He noted that three Honolulu City Council bills signed into law in June make it easier for police, the Department of the Prosecuting Attorney and Department of Planning and Permitting to close illegal gambling dens.
He credited all three measures, introduced in January by Council members Andria Tupola and Tyler Dos Santos-Tam, with streamlining the process of shuttering game rooms and holding property owners accountable.
One of the measures, Bill 11, strengthens the nuisance abatement process, allowing for the faster shutdown of properties used for illegal activity, while Bill 12 increases fines for unpermitted work at the locations, where electrical and fire code violations are often present.
The third measure, Bill 13, makes it easier for property owners to evict tenants engaged in criminal activity, reducing the burden of proof previously required….
read … Police report progress on shuttering illegal game rooms on Oahu | Honolulu Star-Advertiser
Vice K-9 left in car was parked at Kona Police Station, chief confirms
BIN: … A Hawai‘i Island police K-9 died while on duty after being left inside its handler’s vehicle that was parked at the Kona Police Station.
Acting Police Chief Reed Mahuna said the incident, which occurred on Thursday, was a preventable tragedy.
The department has begun a criminal and administrative investigation into the tragedy.
It is unknown how long Archer, a 6-year-old Belgian Malinois/German Shepherd mix from Hungary, was left in the vehicle.
“At this time, it is clear that it was an extended and unacceptable period of time; a dog should not be left unattended in a car for any period of time,” Mahuna said in an email Saturday.
Archer served on the Kona Vice section since 2020 with handler Officer Sidra Brown, according to the department’s website.
The K-9 handler is not on administrative leave but will no longer be working as a K-9 handler or in the Vice section, Mahuna said….
read … Vice K-9 left in car was parked at Kona Police Station, chief confirms : Big Island Now
Maui commercial boating industry struggling while waiting for Lahaina Harbor to reopen, tourism to rebound
MN: … The business done at the once bustling Lahaina Harbor near Front Street was a major contributor to the local economy. But the rebuilding of the harbor will not be complete until “sometime in 2027,” the state Division of Boating and Ocean Recreation wrote in an email to Hawaiʻi Journalism Initiative.
Coon said he is hopeful that Lahaina Harbor can accommodate offloading and unloading to help West Maui boats get back to business before the full completion of Lahaina Harbor.
With work at the harbor being completed in phases, the state said that would occur.
“We are working with the County of Maui to allow some Lahaina commercial vessels to load and unload passengers at the Lahaina (Small Boat Harbor),” the state boating division said. “We will also do a phased opening approach when new docks are built.”
Coon said that once bathrooms are in place and the demolition of the old harbor master’s office is done at Lahaina Harbor, limited off-loading and on-loading of passengers could be done for boats that can access the harbor wall.
“That could happen by the end of the year, but it won’t be many boats at first,” Coon said….
read … Maui commercial boating industry struggling while waiting for Lahaina Harbor to reopen, tourism to rebound
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