July 15, 2026 News Read > Hawaii Free Press

Hawaii Daily News Read

Wednesday, July 15, 2026

July 15, 2026 News Read
By Andrew Walden @ 10:00 AM :: 221 Views

Hawaii Voters to Receive Primary Election Ballots by July 21

APA Applauds New Prescribing Psychologist Law in Hawaii

Bill Collectors Cheer as Hawaii Enacts Medical Debt Relief Program

HGEA Campaigns Against Senator Mercado Kim

HNN: … The HGEA has endorsed Christy MacPherson, a Democrat running in Senate District 14. MacPherson, a former substance abuse counselor and community organizer, works for Hawaii Appleseed, a nonprofit focused on solutions to poverty….

Hawaii’s largest public workers union has turned against Senate Education Committee Chair Donna Mercado Kim, endorsing a challenger and launching a social media campaign against the 43-year incumbent ahead of the Aug. 8 primary.

The Hawaii Government Employees Association and its director, Randy Perreira, sent a letter to thousands of members calling Kim “Trumpian” and accusing her of “lashing out in a personal vendetta and making a career out of bullying public workers.”

The dispute stems from a February Senate hearing in which Kim and Republican Sen. Samantha DeCorte questioned Deputy Schools Superintendent Heidi Armstrong over a bill to restructure school management.

School officials, including principals, gathered outside the hearing room and audibly booed during the exchange….

BACKGROUND: The Secret History of the Mercado Kim Crime Family

Read … Hawaii’s largest public workers union campaigns against veteran senator

Kaua‘i Mayor's Race: Rapozo Leads Carvalho In Campaign Cash

CB: … Six candidates are vying to replace term-limited Mayor Derek Kawakami, who is running for lieutenant governor. Ballots will be mailed out to Kaua‘i voters starting Thursday, and the top two candidates will advance to the Nov. 3 general election.

Between April 25 and June 30, the most recent reporting period, Rapozo brought in $49,842 while Carvalho, who was Kaua‘i’s longest-serving mayor, raised $10,048, and Cowden raised $9,070….

BACKGROUND: Poll Shows Tight Kauai Mayor’s Race--will Cowden beat Carvalho? > Hawaii Free Press

Read … Kaua‘i Mayor's Race: Rapozo Leads Carvalho In Campaign Cash - Honolulu Civil Beat

Honolulu City Council mulls lowering vehicle weight tax fees

SA: … Honolulu motorists could pay lower annual vehicle weight taxes beginning next year under a new measure that would roll back fee rates previously increased in 2019.

The City Council’s Budget Committee on Tuesday advanced Bill 47, which would reduce rates for passenger vehicles and qualifying noncommercial and commercial vehicles.

Under Bill 47, the vehicle weight tax rate for passenger vehicles — including buses, ambulances and hearses — would decrease from 6 cents per pound of net weight to 5.5 cents per pound….

The same 0.5-cent-per-pound reduction would apply to trucks and noncommercial motor vehicles weighing 6,500 pounds or less that are not operated for compensation or commercial purposes, according to the bill. Those rates would drop from 7 cents per pound to 5.5 cents per pound.

Commercial trucks and other vehicles designed to carry property would see rates drop from 7.5 cents per pound to 7 cents per pound, the bill indicates ….

Read … Honolulu City Council mulls lowering vehicle weight tax fees | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

Lahaina homecoming planned; Front Street to reopen in near future

ASD: … Nearly three years after wildfires destroyed much of Lahaina town, a new three-day celebration will bring more than 100 former residents back.

The inaugural Lahaina Homecoming — set for July 17 to 19 — will welcome 103 former residents home and offer a handful of community events.

It's an initiative of Maui Economic Recovery Commission's Healing Journey Team, coordinated by nonprofit Festivals of Aloha and is sponsored by the Maui County Office of Recovery, Hawaiian Council, Hawai‘i Community Foundation and Hawaiian Airlines, along with other local organizations and private donors, a recent announcement from Maui County noted.

It was created "from deep listening, lived experience and community need," the homecoming website states. "The idea grew from ongoing healing work with Lahaina families and a shared understanding that coming home — together — is an essential part of recovery."…

Read … Lahaina homecoming planned; Front Street to reopen in near future

Judge Shuts Down Turtle Bay Resort Plans After Enviros ‘Find’ New Bees

CB: … the judge said evidence presented by lawyers representing a coalition of environmental groups in a hearing on July 2 showed there had been an increased presence of the endangered Hawaiian yellow-faced bees in the project area since 2013.

Two species of the native bees – Hylaeus anthracinus and Hylaeus longiceps – placed on the federal endangered species list in 2016 have been found in the area surrounding the H-1 parcel including during preliminary surveys by the stateʻs Division of Forest and Wildlife.

The increased presence of Hawaiian native bees constitutes new circumstances or evidence under the stateʻs environmental protection act or HEPA, the judge found, and triggered the requirement for the update.

The plaintiffs had shown that the development was “more likely than not” to have impacts on colonies of nalo meli maoli and that at a minimum, the new environmental review had to address their presence and how those impacts could be mitigated during development.

The court did not reach the same conclusion about the presence of Hawaiian monk seal or Laysan albatross, which the plaintiffs also cited, but the Honolulu Department of Planning and Permitting will be required to account for all the relevant environmental changes that could also include factors like coastal erosion and changes to vegetation and land use in the development parcel. …

SA: Court says further environmental review needed for Turtle Bay expansion | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

REALITY: Enviros win 90% in Hawaii Supreme Court

Read … Turtle Bay Resort Plans Paused After Judge Ruling - Honolulu Civil Beat

Meth Addict was from Multi-Generational Crime Family

CB: ... No charges will be filed against two officers who fatally shot a man in Mākaha last June after he rammed a pickup into their police vehicle, causing the cop car’s engine to burst into flames.

The Honolulu prosecutor’s office, which investigated the shooting, found the officers’ use of deadly force was justified because they feared for their lives and were trying to protect themselves and others, Prosecuting Attorney Steve Alm said Tuesday.

The officers were following Iosua Stevens on the afternoon of June 24, 2025, as he drove through Mākaha in a 1 stolen F-250 truck. Stevens was 2-5 wanted on four bench warrants and had 6 assaulted an officer and 7 fled during a previous arrest attempt earlier that month, Alm said. … (That’s 7.)

… He worked at Wai Kai, a water park in ʻEwa Beach, and Kanaka Solutions, a Native Hawaiian-owned …uh… ‘security’ company.

But he also struggled with addition to meth and narcotics for most of his adult life, Patterson said. His mental health deteriorated after their father died two years ago. Stevens was in jail at the time after having been arrested for stealing lawn equipment from a hardware store. …

Stevens had three older sisters, plus a hānai sister …. He had 17 nieces and nephews….

Read … No Charges For Police In Death Of Man Who Rammed Their Vehicle - Honolulu Civil Beat

Beyond Bounty Hunters: The Bigger Conversation About Pretrial Justice

CB: … The real question is not whether discretion exists, but who exercises it, under what standards and with what consequences….

2024: Reply to ACLU: Fixing Hawaii Bail Problem Requires Return to Core Constitutional Principles

Read … Beyond Bounty Hunters: The Bigger Conversation About Pretrial Justice - Honolulu Civil Beat

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