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Off the news: ‘Shaka’ could be official state gesture
No other state has such a thing, but Hawaii loves having official-state-this-or-thats so why hold back on the “shaka” sign being the official state gesture? Read more
No other state has such a thing, but Hawaii loves having official-state-this-or-thats so why hold back on the “shaka” sign being the official state gesture? Read more
Funding for the State Foundation on Culture and the Arts (SFCA) is on the chopping block with House Bill 1807, which deletes about $2.5 million that comes from capital improvement spending on state building renovations. Read more
The State of the City address on Thursday included two updates important to North Shore and West Side parks users. Design work has begun for a “long-promised” swimming pool and recreation center at Kahuku District Park, filling a gap that stretches between Kaneohe and Waialua, the nearest community pools, Mayor Rick Blangiardi stated. And the city is creating new roving park maintenance crews to service Waianae and Ewa Beach parks. “The teams will work when the parks are the busiest, including weekends and holidays,” Blangiardi announced. Read more
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“Safety first,” that ageless slogan, seems to have dropped off the script for public schools facilities upkeep. Read more
Consider it Round 1 of the state budgeting process, with the state House sending House Bill 1800 over to the Senate. Read more
U.S. Sen. Mazie Hirono’s Compact Impact Fairness Act (CIFA), signed into law last week with the federal spending bill, has major implications for citizens of Compacts of Free Association (COFA) nations — the Marshall Islands, Micronesia and Palau — who have wrongfully been blocked from access to federal benefits. Read more
In a heartbreaking case arising from a deadly assault on security guard Michael Stubbs in 2022, Stubbs’ attacker, Razi White, was sentenced to 20 years in prison Tuesday after pleading guilty to manslaughter. Read more
At long last, trial has begun in the pay-to-prosecute case against former city Prosecutor Keith Kaneshiro, engineering firm CEO Dennis Mitsunaga and four of his associates. Read more
At the City Council’s hearing Monday on Mayor Rick Blangiardi’s proposed $3.63 billion operating budget, one focus was the perennial issue of budgeted, vacant positions that probably won’t get filled — and in some cases, haven’t been, for years. Read more
With no reprieve coming from any enhanced revenue forecast, it’s time for legislators to start sharpening their budgetary pencils. Read more
Considering how low voter turnout can be in Hawaii elections, the vote count in some of the state’s smaller races can be pretty small. Read more
A Honolulu Building Board of Appeals decision last month upholding the city’s stop-work order and revocation of building permits for a “monster house” at 3615 Sierra Drive wasn’t read into the appeals hearing record, as is customary, or posted immediately, justifiably prompting citizen complaints. Read more
The self-checkout line, just as it’s falling out of favor in some supermarkets, may be coming to an airport near you. Read more
Poll watchers say that Tuesday may be the day that Donald Trump clinches the GOP nomination due in small part to Hawaii Republicans’ votes at their presidential caucus. Read more
“Shall the state constitution be amended to repeal the Legislature’s authority to reserve marriage to opposite-sex couples?” Read more
Take precautions now, as measles is spiking in spots on the mainland and abroad, and spring break will surely increase travel in and out of Hawaii. Read more
On Tuesday, the state House passed House Bill 2664, which would halt the current solicitation of bids to build a new Aloha Stadium at the existing site, instead appropriating $211 million for a stadium at the University of Hawaii-Manoa. Read more
Yes, it was a Super Tuesday of presidential voting nationwide — but right on “Hawaii time,” registered Democrats in this state went to their caucus polls on Wednesday night. Read more
Salesforce CEO and philanthropist Marc Benioff, with wife Lynne, donated a healthy $150 million toward renovating Hawaii Pacific Health’s Straub Medical Center and bringing much-needed upgrades — including the establishment of a birthing center — to Hilo Medical Center. Read more
A $225,000 security camera installation at the Hawaii Convention Center had only recently been completed when it captured footage of a car, including license plate, as it slowed next to the building. Read more
In the midst of all the up-and-down of tourism industry prospects lately, there is this bit of upside — for residents who love travel, as well as the visitors. Airfares as of January were down 6% compared with the previous year, part of a gradual, decade-long decline. Read more
