Off the News: Legislature locks down for 3rd time

It’s indeed disappointing that the Legislature will be closed to the public for in-person testimony and engagement, due to the current COVID-19 surge.

“We expect this situation to be temporary, and will revisit the closure once the rate of daily cases abates sufficiently,” said House Speaker Scott Saiki, about the “difficult decision” made jointly with Senate President Ron Kouchi.

For the sake of robust public participation, let’s hope this closure — for the third year running — is short-lived. Meanwhile, for virtual input on the session when it starts Jan. 19, see capitol.hawaii.gov; online streaming will be at capitol.hawaii.gov/livevideo.aspx.

Oahu may lose a state House seat

The state House currently has 35 seats for Oahu representatives, but if the Reapportionment Commission follows through on its latest decision, soon there will be 34.

That’s because the commission is accepting new figures on military members who are eligible to vote here, which will shift the lost seat to Hawaii island.

So much about the coming campaign season is murky, but one thing is clear: 35 Oahu incumbents are waiting with bated breath to see which of them gets carved out of the new map.