AG: Hawaii Senate Improperly Withheld Testimony From Public
Hawaii’s Department of the Attorney General says the state Senate improperly denied a person’s constitutional protected right to submit testimony for legislative hearings. Such protections are covered...
View ArticleRidding Lehua Island Of Rats Is A Potentially Dangerous Challenge
If all goes as planned, Lehua Island, a 284-acre state-designated seabird sanctuary less than a mile north of Niihau, will be rat-free in the near future. But that’s a big “if.” The state Division of...
View ArticleHonolulu Police Should Work With The Press, Not Hide From It
It’s bad when the public relations consultant you just paid to help you out of a jam makes it even worse. But that’s pretty much what happened last week when details of the Bennet Group’s public...
View ArticleWorking To Save The Ka Iwi Coastline
The successful preservation of the last two parcels along the Ka Iwi coastline signifies a new era of environmental stewardship that honors the legacy of many community volunteers who saw a need to...
View ArticleLawmakers May Put Brakes On Hawaii’s Aquarium Fish Industry
During the next two weeks, Hawaii lawmakers will be negotiating the final details of a bill to limit fishing for the commercial aquarium trade — potentially capping a decades-old battle that has pitted...
View ArticleHouse Legislators Clash Over Bill To Trim Judges’ Pensions
The Hawaii Senate zipped through a pile of bills ahead of a major legislative deadline looming Thursday, addressing airport contract reforms, jurisdictional issues with disputed roads and treating...
View ArticleHonolulu Climate Change Office Hasn’t Opened, But It’s Already Shrinking
Honolulu’s Office of Climate Change, Resilience and Sustainability hasn’t opened yet, but it’s already on the City Council’s chopping board. The council’s Budget Committee axed $134,694 from the...
View ArticleUnder Fire In DC, Gabbard Is Still A Hit On The Big Island
KAILUA-KONA, Hawaii Island — U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, the maverick who represents Hawaii’s 2nd District, has gotten a lot of criticism from some national Democratic Party leaders, who have recently...
View ArticleProtecting Ka Iwi And The Future Of Maunalua
Last week, the mayor of Honolulu made an announcement that many locals have been waiting to hear for a long time: the last two parcels of the Ka Iwi Coast initially slated for development are...
View ArticleVIDEO: For This Waitress, A $400 Tip Was Just The Beginning
Cayla Chandara has been working 80 hours a week waitressing at two Waikiki restaurants. She was waiting on an Australian couple April 5 at Noi Thai Cuisine. As they chatted, she explained to them that...
View ArticleIan Lind: Why Condo Associations Are Sweating After A Judge’s Ruling
It’s probably going to take years to unravel the legal and financial uncertainty now facing condominium associations and law firms that used nonjudicial foreclosures — private sales without supervision...
View ArticleHawaii Set To Roll Back Nation’s Toughest Drug Paraphernalia Laws
What a difference a year makes. A bill that decriminalizes the possession or sale of drug paraphernalia — downgrading the offenses from a felony to a civil violation — is sailing through the...
View ArticleCounties Pressure State To Protect Lifeguards From Lawsuits
County lifeguards will remain on state beaches even if the Legislature ends the protection they have had since 2002 from certain personal-injury lawsuits, a group of mayors and council members said...
View ArticleIs Anyone Paying Attention To The Blaisdell Center Makeover?
There has been much discussion lately on redevelopment of Thomas Square. More than $1 million is being spent redoing the lawn, trees and restrooms, and there are plans to transfer it from Honolulu...
View ArticleHawaii Film About Transgender Woman Is At Center Of Federal Debate
A documentary film about a transgender woman in Hawaii that has received awards and won wide praise is being cited by a Republican congressman as a waste of government money and a reason to eliminate...
View ArticleSan Francisco Uses Conservative Playbook To Sue Over ‘Sanctuary Cities’
San Francisco is suing over President Donald Trump’s executive order against “sanctuary cities.” A federal court hearing is set for Friday, and a decision is expected soon after. The order, signed in...
View ArticleStripping Lifeguards Of Immunity Would Be A Perilous Mistake
You’ve heard the old joke: It takes three personal injury lawyers to change a lightbulb — one to turn the bulb, another to shake him off the ladder, and the third to sue the ladder company. The...
View ArticleWill Popular Big Island Trail Someday Get Toilets?
Briana and Matthew Ramelb emerge from the head of Kaawaloa Trail, sweaty and flushed but victorious. Among a few dozen hikers picking their way along Kealakekua’s steep, ancient trail to the sea, the...
View ArticleKauai Police Chief Says He’s Applied For Honolulu Chief Job
Kauai Police Chief Darryl Perry wants to return to Oahu to run a department that he believes is in need of competent leadership after years of scandal. Perry, a 66-year-old Kauai native, is one of an...
View ArticleWhy Tom Gorak’s Appointment To The PUC May Be In Trouble
The prospects for one of Gov. David Ige’s most significant appointments appeared uncertain Thursday. Tom Gorak’s nomination to serve on the state Public Utilities Commission was submitted to the state...
View Article