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Tuesday, December 30, 2025

December 30, 2025 News Read
By Andrew Walden @ 3:27 PM :: 245 Views

Class Action Suit Filed Against Maui Bill 9

New State Laws for 2026

HDoT App to Record Your Movements

$50 to Take Your Kid to the Doctor

Change at the Top of DLNR

Judge allows immigrants to challenge ICE courthouse arrests

Pension Spiking Scams Cost Taxpayers $434M

CB: … Pension spiking by public employees has cost Hawaiʻi taxpayers more than $434 million over the last seven years, money that could otherwise be spent on public services, such as expanding emergency services or public works projects.

That tab has gone up dramatically in recent years, according to public records obtained by Civil Beat. As the number of public workers stepping into retirement increases, the annual cost of inflated pensions more than doubled, skyrocketing to more than $78.3 million in the fiscal year that ended in June, up from about $29.5 million in 2019.

More than a decade ago, lawmakers took a drastic step to prevent the amount of money owed to retired public workers from eclipsing the funds available to pay out their pensions. The 2012 law put government agencies on the hook when an employee’s pension cost more than expected over the course of their retirement.

But the law did nothing to stop employees hired before 2012 — nearly half of public workers not counting police and fire — from finding ways to inflate their pensions. Now, state and county employers and Hawaiʻi taxpayers are paying the price.….

For employees hired after 2012, overtime no longer counts, upending one of the most common pension-spiking methods.

The change only went so far, though. Without a constitutional amendment, lawmakers couldn’t adjust pension benefits for people already working for government agencies. So retirement benefits for workers hired before 2012 are still based on their three highest years’ salaries — and overtime earnings are included in the calculations.

(TRANSLATION: This problem will get worse and worse for the next 16 years.)

Many of those employees are retiring today, leaving taxpayers to foot the bill for millions more in unexpectedly high pensions. That unfunded liability currently totals around $14 billion….

When Cpl. Thayne Costa left the Honolulu Police Department in 2020 after 28 years on the force, he had collected enough overtime to drive up the cost of his retirement by more than $1.5 million…

Costa is at the top of the list, but he’s just one of at least a dozen people — all police officers in Honolulu and Maui counties — who have surpassed the million-dollar mark in recent years. Honolulu has had to fork up more than $11 million in unexpected pension costs for just nine retired police officers. In Maui County, two police lieutenants and a sergeant are projected to cost taxpayers more than $3.3 million, on top of their expected pensions….

Since July 2018, about 130 people have cost taxpayers more than $500,000 apiece in unexpected pension costs. …

The individuals with the highest excess pension costs overwhelmingly come from the Honolulu Police Department, which is severely understaffed and does not impose caps on overtime. HPD made up more than a quarter of excess pension costs statewide last fiscal year and nearly two-thirds of Honolulu’s total bill….

read … Hawaiʻi Cracked Down On Pension Spiking. It's Still Costing Taxpayers Millions - Honolulu Civil Beat

State competition lowers condo insurance prices

HNN: … Insurance premiums have dropped 30% to 70%, depending on the coverage, according to Paul Eaton, a consultant for the Hawaii Hurricane Relief Fund.

The Hale Kulanui condominium in Moiliili saw its hurricane insurance premium drop from $103,633 per year to $37,475, reflecting the impact of new competition from the state Hurricane Relief Fund.

“The private market wants that building, and it’s basically beating the HHRF’s price in order to keep that policy in their book of business instead of coming over the HHRF,” Eaton said ….

read … State competition lowers condo insurance prices

Future unclear on exempting many Maui short-term rentals from new law

SA: … A proposal to exempt 4,519 Maui short-term rentals from having to convert to long-term housing for Maui residents faces an uncertain future after it failed to generate the necessary six votes before the Maui County Council.

“I don’t see six votes over here,” Council Chair Alice Lee said at the final Council meeting of 2025 on Dec. 19. “No majority vote one way or another.”

Lee, instead, scheduled another vote before the Council on Jan. 8, after the incoming ninth Council member — Kelson Kauanoe Batangan — takes office to fill the vacancy created by the death of Council member Tasha Kama, who died Oct. 26 at age 73….

read … Future unclear on exempting many Maui short-term rentals from new law | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

KSBE Tuition-Free Probate Petition Hints at Admissions Suit Strategy

CB: … Inside a court petition to make Kamehameha Schools tuition-free, officials hint at how they may be gearing up to fight a pending lawsuit challenging the school’s admission policies as discriminatory.

Woven throughout the 14-page petition is trustees’ argument that eliminating tuition makes attendance at one of Kamehameha’s three main campuses — for those who get in — a gift, not a contract….

(REALITY: Even without tuition, there is still a contract.)

Kamehameha has not yet filed a response to the latest lawsuit. But in its petition to a state court asking for approval to make tuition free, the school’s Board of Trustees hints at a legal strategy to fight back, which they call a “Complete Gift Approach.”…

In a message on the school’s website regarding the free tuition proposal, which will require approval from state probate court, the trustees write that “external parties” have tried to frame the 138-year-old school’s relationship with students through a “Western contractual lens.”…

(CLUE: Somebody spent too much time in college learning useless woke slogans.)

The schools’ lawyers are asking for an expedited review of the free tuition petition to let parents know for certain whether tuition will be free in the upcoming school year and beyond. The trustees have asked for a hearing on the petition Jan. 15.

The date of that requested hearing generally aligns with a timeline in the admissions lawsuit laid out by the federal court.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Rom Trader put a brief halt on the proceedings to give the U.S. Department of Justice time to decide if it will intervene in the case because it calls into question a federal statute.

The case could resume anytime from Jan. 14 to Jan. 30, at which time Kamehameha will be required to respond to the lawsuit. …

read … Can Kamehameha Fend Off Admissions Lawsuit With Free Tuition? - Honolulu Civil Beat

Six court cases to watch in 2026

ASD: … Hitachi Rail Honolulu v. Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation, et al — HART and a contractor on HART’s Skyline project are duking it out over who is responsible for that project’s chronic delays and cost overruns….

read … Six court cases to watch in 2026

Hawaii solar companies brace for 30% drop after tax credit ends

PBN: … With the elimination of the federal solar tax credit for residential systems just days away, the Hawaii Solar Energy Association and RevoluSun, one of the largest solar photovoltaic installers in Hawaii, expect to see a shift in the Hawaii solar market.

The applications for residential rooftop solar and battery storage systems in Hawaii nearly doubled this year from 683 applications in June to 1,151 in July after the deadline for claiming federal solar tax credits moved up to the end of this year, according to numbers from Hawaiian Electric Co. The total number of applications for the first half of the year was 4,378 while the second half of the year, not counting December numbers, was 5,049.

As part of the Trump administration's One Big Beautiful Bill Act of 2025, signed into law on July 4, the federal Residential Clean Energy Tax Credit program that allows residents to claim 30% of the costs of new, qualified clean energy property moved up the expiration date to Dec. 31, instead of the end of 2032….

read … Hawaii solar companies brace for 30% drop after tax credit ends - Pacific Business News

Hawaii fluorescent light bulb ban takes effect Jan. 1

PBN: … The ban on the sale of fluorescent light bulbs in Hawaii will go into full effect on Jan. 1. The Hawaii Clean Lighting Standards Act, signed into law in July 2023, implemented this change to phase out by 2026 the sale of linear fluorescent lamps commonly used in commercial buildings.

The suggested replacement is energy-efficient light-Emitting diodes, commonly known as LEDs.

Although the sale ban takes effect in January, businesses still have until Feb. 28 to claim rebates on LED lights as they make the switch, Caroline Carl, Executive Director at Hawaii Energy, told Pacific Business News….

read … Hawaii fluorescent light bulb ban takes effect Jan. 1 - Pacific Business News

When Bail Fails To Lead To Release: Hawaiʻi’s Quiet Pretrial Paradox

CB: … One current proposal — the Fair Bail Act — attempts to address this gap not by mandating release or detention, but by restoring clarity and judicial discretion so that release decisions judges already intend can actually occur….

read … When Bail Fails To Lead To Release: Hawaiʻi’s Quiet Pretrial Paradox - Honolulu Civil Beat

More Hawaiʻi Students Are First-Time English Learners

CB: … The number of English learners in Hawaiʻi schools has grown by 46% over the last decade, leading the Department of Education to double down on teacher training and family outreach to meet students’ needs.

Hawaiʻi schools currently enroll over 16,200 students who aren’t proficient in English. Chuukese was the most commonly spoken language in Hawaiʻi schools this year, followed by Ilocano and then Marshallese — a significant shift from five years ago when Ilocano topped the list by a wide margin.

Spanish recently surpassed Tagalog as the fourth most common language in schools. This year, roughly 8% of English learners spoke Tagalog, down from 10% in the 2016-17 academic year.

A decade ago, roughly 6% of students were English learners, compared to 10% this year.

But the distribution of English learners varies widely across the state. In the McKinley complex in Honolulu, nearly a third of students don’t speak English fluently. By comparison, eight complexes – including Castle, Kahuku and Mililani – have fewer than 5% of students who qualify as English learners. …

read … More Hawaiʻi Students Are First-Time English Learners - Honolulu Civil Beat

Hu Honua Files Another Request to Delay Legal Proceedings Against HECO

IM: … Hu Honua asked for a delay in the trials pending negotiations with HECO for another power purchase contract with the HECO. The first delay was until January 2026. They have now asked for a second delay until July 2026….

read … Hu Honua Files Request to Delay Legal Proceedings Against HECO | Ililani Media

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