February 11, 2026 News Read > Hawaii Free Press

Hawaii Daily News Read

Wednesday, February 11, 2026

February 11, 2026 News Read
By Andrew Walden @ 1:23 PM :: 172 Views

$35K Bribe: Luke Confessions Spark Call for Special Prosecutor

DAGS’ Hawaiʻi State Archives Digitizing KSSK Perry & Price Shows

Queens Launches Campaign Against HMSA-HPH 'Merger'

COVID Money Scams Behind Sylvia Luke Bribery Payments

SA: … The Hawaii Campaign Spending Commission will investigate whether Lt. Gov. Sylvia Luke violated state law when she failed to report $16,000 in campaign contributions, including $10,000 tied to a businessman involved in a high-profile bankruptcy….

Choy’s company and Solidum worked on “contract services” for the National Kidney Foundation during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to federal tax forms from 2021 and 2022.

Solidum and Choy were friends and business associates seen together at political fundraisers and social functions in Hawaii and Washington, D.C., between 2014 and 2021.

Luke amended her 2022 campaign spending records on Saturday to report the $10,000 she returned to Solidum and Pae in March 2022 but never recorded as a contribution….

Solidum, Pae and several of their holding companies are listed as creditors in the 2025 bankruptcy proceedings of the Capture Collective, a Columbus, Ohio, company awarded tens of millions of contracts to do COVID-19 testing at the Daniel K. Inouye International Airport and elsewhere in Hawaii….

The campaign spending commission investigated the company in 2021, Hawaii News Now reported.

Solidum’s Geopolicy Development Group performed “contractual work” in Hawaii for the company between 2021 and 2023, according to federal court records.

In September 2021, a Hawaii company started submitting invoices for IT work to Solidum’s Geopolicy for “work completed as part of the State contract, but rather than name Geopolicy on the invoice, it named the Debtors,” according to a filing from Collective’s attorneys.

Collective alleges in federal bankruptcy proceedings that that Solidum’s company owes it $7 million.

Cullen was working for the FBI in 2022 after he and English were caught in 2021 taking bribes from Choy for seven years….

Choy and Solidum donated $31,450 to the same state and county candidates between 2014 and 2021. Choy donated $160,150 and Solidum gave $108,626 to state and county lawmakers between 2014 and 2022.

Choy’s company and the Capture Collective worked on “contract services” for the National Kidney Foundation, according to federal tax forms from 2021 and 2022.

In late 2020, the Capture Collective began working with SynergyMed Global Design Solutions and the National Kidney Foundation of Hawaii to provide COVID PCR molecular testing kits and to do testing during the pandemic, according to federal court records.

The companies grew, and at times “required as many as 80 employees and ultimately generated several million dollars in revenues over a two-year period,” according to federal court records.

The “myriad parties involved” created contracting disputes that could not be overcome along with a decline in demand.

In 2022 Capture Diagnostic got $65,978,340 and $28,825,576 in 2023 from the Kidney Foundation of Hawaii for the COVID-19 testing work, according to federal tax records. Choy’s H20 Process Systems received $727,349 in 2021….

read … Hawaii Gov. Lt. Gov. Sylvia Luke comes under more scrutiny | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

Another Big Island man sentenced for affordable housing scam

HTH: … A 65-year-old Big Island businessman who prosecutors said “played a central role in the conspiracy and scheme” to earn millions of dollars illegally using Hawaii County affordable housing credits was sentenced Friday in Honolulu to 7 1/2 years in federal prison.

Rajesh Budhabhatti, who remains free, was ordered by U.S. District Judge Jill Otake to report to a yet-to-be-determined federal prison by March 20.

Budhabhatti also will have to serve three years of supervised release — the federal equivalent of probation — once he is freed from custody. Otake also fined Budhabhatti $1,000 and ordered him to forfeit $549,773 in proceeds traceable to the affordable housing credits scam….

read … Another Big Island man sentenced for affordable housing scam - Hawaii Tribune-Herald

Bought and paid for: Schatz, Murkowski Defend 8a Fraudsters

CB: … Last year, Christopher Dawson, a Native Hawaiian defense contractor, was accused of abusing the program and stealing millions of dollars meant to help his people, spending it to instead on private jets, luxury cars and polo.

Since then, Dawson’s case (AND OTHERS) has been used to attack the program. Republican U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst, who’s chair of the Small Business Committee, cited Civil Beat’s reporting on Dawson’s alleged transgressions in a letter to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth calling on him to pause all 8(a) sole source contracts. …

Hegseth followed up by saying he planned to take a sledgehammer to the program, which he has described as a race-based handout that’s a “breeding ground for fraud.”

Both Ernst and Hegseth’s criticisms build upon SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler’s own assault on the program, including a full-scale audit and the suspension of more than 1,000 companies. Like Hegseth, she has described it as a DEI program that’s “rife with grift and fraud.” …

At an Indian Affairs Committee oversight hearing Tuesday, Schatz teamed up with Alaska Republican Lisa Murkowski to offer a full-throated rebuttal to those attacks, specifically as it relates to Native entities. … At least two other GOP senators, Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma and Steve Daines of Montana, expressed support of the 8(a) program during Tuesday’s hearing …

LINK: Oversight Hearing entitled “Economic Self-Determination in Action: Examining the Small Business Administration Native 8(a) Program” - Indian Affairs Committee

read … 'It Is Not A Fraud': Schatz, Murkowski Blast Attack On Native Contracting - Honolulu Civil Beat

Queens launches Campaign Against Hawai’i Pacific Health, HMSA partnership

SA: … Ray Vara, president and CEO of Hawai‘i Pacific Health, and Dr. Mark Mugiishi, president and CEO of Hawaii Medical Service Association, expect to soon file paperwork for the deal with state and federal agencies….

The network’s model of care, however, will be a “value-based” one that ties provider payments to patient health outcomes. Rather than a “fee-for-service” model, the “value-based” plan is a per-member-per-month, fixed amount for a set time.

HPH in 2022 adopted the “value-based” model, which it calls a “healthier community” strategy, and successfully lowered the rate of premium increases, according to Vara.

Value-based plans, however, have not been popular with Hawaii’s primary care providers or private practice physicians. Some private practice physicians have expressed concerns about the HPH-HMSA partnership, pointing to studies that show vertical integration is frequently associated with higher costs, reduced competition and risks to access, especially in small, highly concentrated markets such as Hawaii. Studies have also shown integration shifts care from physician offices to hospital outpatient departments, they say, where prices are significantly higher.

HMSA insures more than 750,000 people statewide, while HPH operates major hospitals including Kapi‘olani Medical Center for Women &Children, Pali Momi Medical Center, Straub Medical Center and Wilcox Medical Center on Kauai.

The proposed partnership requires regulatory approval by state and federal agencies including the U.S. Department of Justice, and a possible certificate of need from the Hawaii State Health Planning and Development Agency.

Vara said the partnership is expected to take between six to 18 months or more to finalize.….

read … Hawai’i Pacific Health, HMSA partnership plans proceeding | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

Hawai‘i Doctor Shortage Has Patients Paying Fees For Fast Care

CB: … Direct primary care is a burgeoning business model that bypasses insurance. If widely adopted, it could lessen the state’s dire shortage of primary care doctors…

Doctors who’ve embraced the model say the dependable income they earn from membership fees, coupled with the savings from no longer having to deal with insurance billing and costly overhead, allows them to deliver more comprehensive care to their patients. Some health concerns can be handled by phone or text message, allowing them to spend more time with complicated patients.

This translates to faster care for patients. A 2024 study by the American Academy of Family Physicians found that 99% of direct primary care practices provide same-day appointments….

read … Hawai‘i Doctor Shortage Has Patients Paying Fees For Fast Care - Honolulu Civil Beat

Pay to Play Make Believe: Pay-To-Play Bill Passes Judiciary Committee

CB: … the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday approve the main pay-to-play bill that has been so hard to get across the finish line. This is the one that bans officers of companies that have state or county contracts and their immediate family members from contributing to political campaigns. Same thing for organizations that get grants from the state or county.

The bill, which has been requested by the Hawaiʻi Campaign Spending Commission for a couple years now, is one of those that is popular with the public but keeps getting gutted or tabled by legislative leaders, as happened last session at the last minute. In fact Senate Bill 2530 had 30 supporters on Tuesday and zero in opposition….

SB 2530 is competing against House Bill 1519, which cleared the House Judiciary Committee last week. That measure is pretty different than the one sought by the Campaign Spending Commission, including taking county contractors out of the bill. The Blog reported on that bill in Sunday’s edition….

read … The Sunshine Blog: Pay-To-Play Bill Passes Judiciary Committee - Honolulu Civil Beat

Lawmakers reschedule bill hearings after storm closure

HPR: … Lawmakers were supposed to hear over 80 bills on Monday in various committees.

The measures ranged from policies that would allow the state to charge people who need to be rescued if they are hiking on a closed trail — to giving $15,000 retention bonuses to Department of Law Enforcement officers.

Both the House and Senate say they plan to reschedule hearings over the next week or two.

The House has already rescheduled one of the two committees that were canceled for Wednesday.

The notification for the rescheduled joint Health and Consumer Protection and Commerce Committee hearing says that those who submitted testimony will need to resubmit for consideration. One of the measures being heard would expand protections for gender-affirming care in the state.

A Senate spokesperson says the bills will be added to the already-scheduled hearing this week and next week.

Find the full list of upcoming hearings here....

read … Lawmakers reschedule bill hearings after storm closure | Hawai'i Public Radio

Hawaiʻi charter school officials say enrollment is trending up

HPR: … Schools across the state recently took part in “School Choice Week.” It's meant to provide an opportunity to learn more about different models offered both in private and public schools.

Ed Noh, the executive director of the Hawaiʻi State Public Charter School Commission, said enrollment in the 40 charter schools across the state is trending up, while enrollment in traditional public schools is trending down. Noh has worked in both settings, as a school director and complex superintendent….

read … Hawaiʻi charter school officials say enrollment is trending up | Hawai'i Public Radio

SB2061: Nobody Wants to buy ‘Singapore-Model’ affordable-housing condos

SA: … The endeavor to develop one leasehold condo tower on state land in Kakaako as a pilot project for envisioned replication ran into trouble several months ago over concerns that unit prices and use restrictions would deter buyers, who would receive 99-year leases instead of fee-simple ownership.

To address the issue, a bill has been introduced at the Legislature this year to relax rules for the “99-year leasehold program” authorized under a 2023 state law.

Craig Nakamoto, executive director of the Hawaii Community Development Authority, a state agency spearheading the project, said there is hope that the sought-after rule changes will make the $279 million test project viable.

“It’s not dead,” he said. “It’s definitely not dead.”

The concept was initially proposed as legislation in 2019 by state Sen. Stanley Chang (D, Hawaii Kai-Kahala-Diamond Head) based on a model used by the government in Singapore to provide lifetime housing for residents at affordable prices….

Nakamoto said restrictions on buyers under the leasehold condo program, including a perpetual ban on renting or subleasing, put the project at a disadvantage to fee-simple condo towers being developed in Kakaako with units reserved for moderate-income households.

“We didn’t think we could complete with those restrictions,” he said. “Some of the restrictions, I think we felt that it was going to hamper sales.”

Ricky Cassiday, a local housing market analyst, agreed that a perpetual owner-occupancy requirement makes units a hard sell. He said even a 10-year owner-occupancy requirement is too long in his view.

Cassiday also said the whole notion of leasehold housing, which was a model employed by large private Hawaii landowners decades ago, can be a turnoff….

Senate Bill 2061, introduced by Chang with support from four other senators, proposes to reduce the owner-occupancy requirement from perpetuity to 10 years. The bill also would allow buyers to own other real estate….

read …State affordable-housing project fails to gain traction | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

Reso 24: Megabux for EMS Management

SA: … Esther Kia‘aina, disclosed that Resolution 24 came about in part due to an apparent lobbying effort by the city’s outside ambulance billing vendor, North Carolina-based EMS Management &Consultants, to pursue the federal program with the state.

Kia‘aina and city officials also assert that if the GEMT federal program is implemented, it will allow city’s consultant, EMS Management, to make a substantial profit.

During the Council’s Public Safety Committee meeting Feb. 5, Kia‘aina said she believed EMS Management’s actions could be a potential conflict of interest….

read … Council urges city to secure lower cost ambulance services | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

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