Ethics

... A total of 15 Hawaiʻi nonprofit organizations on five islands will receive a total of $1.77 million ....

“...the coronavirus pandemic has challenged the County to make many unprecedented decisions. One such decision was to reduce the Assessed Values of Hotel and Resort properties due to the catastrophic drops in occupancy experienced by that industry....”

... Cayetano and Kealoha have a lengthy professional relationship that includes serving together on the Board of Directors for the Hawaii Law Enforcement Memorial Foundation ....

"...the Governing Board failed to manage the financial performance of the school...."

... In order to steer a consulting contract to its former Board Chair, Colleen Hanabusa, Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation (HART), a federally-funded rail transit project, imposed the following narrowly tailored requirements on bidders ....

... the trial court sanctioned 'Judges for Justice' $17,000 for making the request ....

... Federal authorities, March 30, 2021, unsealed indictments charging six DPP employees in a bribery scheme going back as far as 2012.  Challacombe had been Deputy Director of the Honolulu Department of Planning and Permitting from 2013-2016, and then Acting Director in 2016-17 ....

... Hawaii businesses might be reopening, but Hawaii government agencies still have a ways to go ....

... The lawsuit seeks to end HPD’s continuing policy of allowing officers with conflicts of interest to abuse their police powers for personal benefit ....

... Hawaii Supreme Court is seeking to fill four attorney and two non-attorney positions on the Disciplinary Board ....

... the Agency has collaborated with the Nonprofit Corporations in the development of the content; and second, the Agency specifically encouraged the Employees to undertake this additional work ....

... Nickie Lum Davis pleaded guilty last year to aiding and abetting FARA violations in connection with the work ....

... data about Hawaii’s open records law collected by 284 state, county, and independent agencies on their UIPA Record Request Logs for FY 2020 ....

... A recently unsealed search warrant application shows the FBI believes a Hawaii defense contractor illegally funneled $150,000 to a pro-Collins super PAC and reimbursed donations to Collins' campaign ....

... The State Capitol has been closed since March of 2020 when the pandemic began, and unlike other State and government buildings across our State, the Capitol has remained closed to the public ....

... The NOVO was issued due to the licensee’s ongoing failure to submit annual independent financial audits ....

... Blangiardi: “I had nothing to do with that contract” ....

... Marked “Confidential (Not for Distribution),” the document contains analyses of both the original plan for the rail and 27 alternatives ....

... At least six other current and former members of Hawaii’s congressional delegation have supported such legislation one or more times ....

... They were authorized via special legislation approved by Congress, including members of Hawaii’s own delegation ....

... During the 2021 legislative session, lawmakers demonstrated strong interest in matters concerning the Office of Hawaiian Affairs (OHA) ....

...The Fumble or The Phantom Punch....

... This bill was so close to the finish line that the only question seemed to be whether Gov. Ige would agree to limit his power ....

... HB526 and SB1329 ....

... Court documents said Harleman used his firm, Precision Accounting Hawaii, to defraud an Oahu landscaping business out more than $415,000 ....

... a “potential catastrophe” enabling “abuse of discretion… (which) …will promote and enable favoritism and/or corruption in public procurement.” ....

... “We’re not proud of it.  But crystal methamphetamine is our gift to the nation. It started here.” -- Judge and Former US Attorney Ed Kubo ....

... and he pulls no punches ....

"...This is a great loss to OHA‘s beneficiaries. There are numerous questions of accountability and transparency which will go unanswered without the state legislative audit...."

... the report spends lots of time reviewing the Auditor’s recent actions involving the Office of Hawaiian Affairs ....

... OHA shall promote the idea that every property in Hawai'i is sacred and pursue initiatives that help achieve a broad acceptance of this truth ....

he “...had previously attempted to divert federal grant funds to his bank account”....

... The House voted for a suspension running through December 31, 2022 ....

... Scathing ‘audit’ of Hawaii state auditor Les Kondo is met with scathing rebuttal ....

... Federal regulators are probing financial reporting discrepancies stemming from an effort to funnel $75 million through state Republican parties to the national GOP effort to reelect Donald Trump ....

.... Speaker Saiki and Senate President Kochi have until April 28 (Adjournment Day) to rectify the situation if they so desire ....

“...Securities Commission of the State of Hawaii is about to commence an enforcement action ... based upon the sale of unregistered Kingdom of Hawaii Exchequer Bonds, in violation of HRS § 485A-301....”

... Six years after the fact, State court litigation in the Sgt Anson Kimura shooting case is about to kick into high gear ....

... There's a lot there: acronyms, bureaucracy-speak, family-inside politician dealings, tax fraud convictions, and the like ....

... The report was written solely for the purpose of keeping OHA Trustees Executive Session minutes out of the hands of State Auditor Les Kondo .... 

... DLIR hired a vendor to perform investigations focusing on overpayments. Solid State Operations, Inc. will begin with 25 investigators on April 6 ....

... The Judicial Council is seeking applicants to fill upcoming vacancies on the Hawaii State Ethics Commission and Campaign Spending Commission ....

... Federal corruption probe targets DPP staffers and one local architect ....

... Cap't Ben Mahi was the 2nd-highest-ranking officer of HPD Division 1, when a drunken Division 1 Sgt Anson Kimura accidentally shot waitress Hyun Ju Park ....

... Hanalei Aipoalani, 42, of Waianae, Hawaii, pled guilty in federal court today to embezzling more than $500,000 from AmeriCorps and to agreeing to accept a bribe for the administration of grants under the CARES Act ....

... ODC complaint claims a conflict of interest existed when local attorneys Megan Kau and Tristan Andres worked simultaneously for a Michael Miske company and for an HPD Sgt who arrested Miske ....

... Hawaii's Legislature is about halfway through its 2021 session, and if we're lucky, the good will outweigh the bad when it's over ....

"...caused approximately a 10% reduction in the Fall 2020 enrollment...."

"... make a contribution of any amount to my campaign, and I’ll send you a Zoom invite to my webinar fundraiser. It’ll be worthwhile, I promise!...."

... SP18 requires an agency that relies on the suspended deadlines to acknowledge receipt of “UIPA Requests”  ....