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Human Services Department leader to change
The director of the state Department of Human Services plans to resign, and is slated to be replaced by a former state lawmaker. Read more
He is a fourth-generation kamaaina born on Oahu who earned a journalism degree from the University of Hawaii. Gomes has been a reporter for local newspapers since the mid-1990s. He regularly enjoys surfing, bodysurfing and skateboarding.
The director of the state Department of Human Services plans to resign, and is slated to be replaced by a former state lawmaker. Read more
Sales and prices of previously owned homes on Oahu rose for a second consecutive month in February, after roughly two years of weakness in at least one major element of the market. Read more
Gov. Josh Green has let the state Legislature know how big an emergency funding appropriation he believes is needed to pay Maui wildfire recovery costs through June 30. Read more
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A repeatedly stymied state plan to redevelop Aloha Stadium is once again in danger of upheaval. Read more
A state social services agency is working to produce what could be the first temporary housing community developed for Maui fire survivors, a 450-unit project where initial occupancy is expected in a few months. Read more
A recent ruling by the state Public Utilities Commission has led Hawaiian Electric to modify and push back the start of new rooftop solar and energy storage programs to April 1. Read more
A proposal to create an elected community board to govern the rebuilding of Lahaina advanced Friday at the Legislature amid heavy public opposition and a little support. Read more
State finances are bleeding heavily from Maui wildfire recovery expenses, but there is still no firm idea on how bad the hemorrhage will be through June 30 or how to compensate for it. Read more
Lahaina wildfire ash and debris will be headed to Kahului for final disposal. Read more
A risk assessment of potential Hawaii affordable- housing losses presented Tuesday at the Legislature is overblown, according to a state agency that helps finance such housing. Read more
Hawaii is at risk of losing nearly 12,000 affordable homes over the next two decades, according to a study commissioned by a nonprofit promoting action to prevent such loss. Read more
A plan announced by Gov. Josh Green for the state, Maui County and several private entities to pay compensation for Maui wildfire deaths and serious injuries is facing blowback at the Legislature. Read more
A daunting yet still-blurry picture of how much the state might have to pay for Maui wildfire recovery expenses in the near term emerged Tuesday at the state Legislature. Read more
Near-term state costs for Maui wildfire response and recovery work are exceeding recent expectations and have led to an emergency funding request at the Legislature. Read more
The state Department of Hawaiian Home Lands is returning, in a big way, to a practice of issuing unconventional land leases to beneficiaries on its homestead waitlist. Read more
A bill to create an elected community board backed by a state agency to help rebuild Lahaina after the town was leveled by wildfire advanced Thursday at the state Legislature. Read more
Enthusiasm and concern clashed Wednesday at the Legislature over a proposal to establish an elected community board under a state agency to govern Lahaina’s rebuilding from fiery ruins. Read more
Hawaii’s largest electrical utility is maintaining financial stability in the face of still-growing legal claims and recovery expenses from the Aug. 8 Maui wildfire disaster. Read more
A proposal to facilitate rebuilding fire-ravaged Lahaina, perhaps with new land-use rules and funding governed by a community- based board, is slated for discussion Wednesday at the state Legislature. Read more
More federal funding is flowing to reduce homelessness on Maui, six months after the Lahaina wildfire affected this vulnerable population alongside other fire survivors struggling to obtain long-term housing. Read more
A new state program to help middle-income Hawaii households buy their first home is being used to subsidize sales of already subsidized affordable condominiums in a planned Honolulu high-rise. Read more
