State tax revenue rises 2.7% in quarter
State tax collections are up 2.7 percent through the first three months of the new fiscal year, the state Department of Taxation announced Friday.
General excise and use tax collections, the largest single source of state revenue, are up 8 percent, according to the department. Hotel room tax collections are up 8.7 percent. Individual income tax collections are down 0.2 percent.
The state Council on Revenues has projected 3.5 percent growth for this fiscal year, which runs through June. The council downgraded the forecast in September from 5.5 percent growth, a move that will likely influence state budget preparations by the next governor and the state Legislature.
Online game aimed at getting out the vote
The Office of Hawaiian Affairs and a grass-roots organization are using an online game to help get more Native Hawaiians interested in statewide elections.
OHA and Kanu Hawaii created a game that allows voters to take an online quiz to see which candidates in the Nov. 4 general election best match their own political opinions. It’s part of a larger effort to increase interest in statewide elections and get more Native Hawaiians and others to vote.
OHA CEO Kamanaopono Crabbe says he hopes the interactive tool gives voters confidence they can vote for candidates who are aligned with their beliefs.
The game, which includes quizzes for governor, Congress and OHA trustee candidates, can be found at elections.oha. org/oha2014.
$250,000 pledged to aspiring engineers
University of Hawaii alumnus Fred Chan and his wife, Annie, are pledging $250,000 to help community college students transfer to the College of Engineering at the University of Hawaii at Manoa.
The University of Hawaii Foundation said Thursday the money will help full-time undergraduates who are transferring from community colleges within the UH system.
Chan co-founded a private manufacturer of computer multimedia products in California in 1984. ESS Technology Inc. today holds a leading share of the digital video and audio market.
Man charged in stabbing
WAILUKU » A Lahaina man has been charged with the attempted murder of a woman who complained about the odor from his mother’s cooking.
Maui police say 26-year-old Jacobs Khoi Duong Duy told investigators he stabbed his 64-year-old upstairs neighbor because she complained about the odor and swore at his mother.
Judge Blaine Kobayashi on Wednesday ruled there was probable cause to support an attempted murder charge.
Detective Brandon Koyama testified that Duy stabbed the woman Saturday night as she attempted to flee to the manager’s apartment at Honokowai Kauhale. Koyama says the woman suffered a deep stab wound to her upper right back that penetrated her chest and punctured her lung. Duy is jailed at Maui Community Correctional Center; bail is set at $250,000.
Driver arrested in hit-run death
Kauai police have located and arrested a motorist who struck a 60-year-old woman in a marked crosswalk in Lihue and left the scene of the accident.
Police arrested a 33-year-old Lihue woman Friday morning on suspicion of accidents involving death or serious bodily injury and driving without a license.
Paulanna Larish of Lihue was crossing Rice Street on Tuesday morning when she was struck by two vehicles. She was pronounced dead at the scene.
Officers also arrested a 48-year-old Lihue man Friday afternoon. He was the driver of the first vehicle that struck Larish. Police arrested him on suspicion of first-degree negligent homicide.
Both were released pending further investigation.
