Trump administration sued over coral decline, Tulsi Gabbard threatens debate boycott, calls DNC primary 'rigged,' Oahu landfill approved, Maui bus hub running late, more news from all the Hawaiian Islands

Cauliflower coral in Hawaii ©2019 All Hawaii News

Trump Sued For Failing To Protect Hawaii’s Cauliflower Coral. A “marine heat wave” is blamed for a 36% decline of the species. Civil Beat.

Trump administration sued over Hawaii’s cauliflower coral. The Center for Biological Diversity sued the Trump administration Thursday for failing to protect cauliflower coral around the Hawaiian Islands, the nonprofit group said in a news release. West Hawaii Today.

The Trump administration caught another lawsuit as a strong marine heat wave is starting to impact Hawaii’s coral reefs, including reports of coral bleaching on Kauai. Garden Island.

Lawsuit Alleges Failure to Protect Hawai‘i Cauliflower Coral. Maui Now.

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Tulsi Gabbard says process is ‘rigged,’ threatens to boycott presidential debate. Hawaii Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard says she may boycott next week’s Democratic presidential debate telling supporters in a videotaped message Thursday that the Democratic National Committee and corporate media “are rigging the election.” Star-Advertiser.

Tulsi Gabbard Threatens To Boycott Presidential Debate. The Hawaii congresswoman, who says the current political system is “rigged,” will make her decision in the coming days. Civil Beat.

Gabbard threatens to boycott the debate she worked hard to get into. Claiming a “rigged” primary process, presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard says she’s seriously considering boycotting the next Democratic presidential debate. Hawaii News Now.

Long-Shot 2020 Candidate Gabbard May Skip Democratic Debate. The Hawaii congresswoman complained in a Twitter message on Thursday about the Democratic National Committee's use of polling to determine debate participants and said the debates are "meant to entertain, not inform or enlighten." Associated Press.

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State lawmakers set vaping-awareness meeting. The state House Committee on Consumer Protection and Commerce and the state Senate Commerce, Consumer Protection and Health Committee will hold an informational briefing on the youth vaping epidemic at 10 a.m. Thursday, Oct. 17, in room 309 at the State Capitol. Garden Island.

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Ige Appoints Hara To Be Hawaii Adjutant General. He is to replace Maj. Gen. Arthur “Joe” Logan, who is retiring. Hawaii Gov. David Ige on Thursday announced the appointment of Brig. Gen. Kenneth S. Hara to be the adjutant general for the state of Hawaii Department of Defense. Civil Beat.

Brig. Gen. Hara Appointed Adjutant General For Hawaiʻi. The man who served as the Dual Status Commander of Joint Task Force 5-0 during the 2018 eruption of Kīlauea volcano will now be the Adjutant General for the State of Hawaiʻi Department of Defense. Big Island Video News.

Newly appointed state adjutant general to step into role in December. Brig. Gen. Kenneth S. Hara is slated to serve as the state’s adjutant general, overseeing the Hawaii Department of Defense, effective Dec. 6. Hawaii News Now.

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Union alleges private security firm owes airport workers nearly $1M. Hundreds of private security and traffic control officers at Honolulu’s five major airports are seeking nearly $1 million in back raises from private firm Securitas. Hawaii News Now.

Labor union seeks $1M in back pay. A labor union representing over 1,000 airport security officers in Hawaii is asking a federal judge to force a company to pay $1 million in back pay to hundreds of employees. Garden Island.

Hawai‘i Gas Prices Inch Down. Gas prices in many areas inched downward in the last week, according to the AAA Hawaiʻi Weekend Gas Watch. Today’s statewide average price is $3.67 a gallon, which is one cent lower than last Thursday, one cent higher than a month ago and 19 cents lower than on this date a year ago, according to GasPrices.AAA.com. Maui Now.

Oahu

Land Use Commission grants OK for landfill to continue. The city will need to close the contentious Waimanalo Gulch Sanitary Landfill at Kahe Point by March 2, 2028, under a permit granted by the state Land Use Commission Thursday by a 6-2 vote. Star-Advertiser.

Waimanalo Gulch Landfill Would Close By 2028 Under New Land Use Permit. The state Land Use Commission gave the city until then to find a new site for a landfill, which has been an issue on Oahu’s Leeward Coast for decades. Civil Beat.

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Long-awaited Ala Wai canal dredging gets underway this month. The state Department of Land and Natural Resources is starting a $21 million-plus Ala Wai dredging project this month — good news for those who have been waiting nearly two decades to get relief from the buildup of sludge, sediment and debris in the man-made canal. Star-Advertiser.

$21 Million Dredging, Improvement Work Set For Ala Wai. The project, the first dredging of the canal since 2002, will last a year. Civil Beat.

Ala Wai Canal dredging and improvement project expected to begin in late October. KITV.

A project designed to protect parts of urban Honolulu from climate-related flooding has sparked community disagreement. The Ala Wai Flood Control Project has been heralded by elected officials at all levels of government as a way to protect some of Hawaii’s most valuable real estate from a devastating flood. Hawaii Public Radio.

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Honolulu Airport Parking Reaching Capacity And Electric Vehicles Are A Big Reason. The Hawaii Department of Transportation on Thursday urged travelers going to the Daniel K. Inouye Honolulu Airport to leave their cars at home and have someone drop them off as the parking structures are reaching capacity. Hawaii Public Radio.

Skyrocketing electric bills have Ewa residents demanding audit. Several Kapilina Beach Homes residents voiced their concerns of surging electric bills to the Ewa Neighborhood Board meeting Thursday night. Hawaii News Now.

How Honolulu’s Japanese, Spurned At The Library, Made Their Own Bookstore Culture. When Honolulu’s library first opened, it ignored the needs of Japanese readers. In response, Japanese shop owners stepped up to provide books. Civil Beat.

City council suggests residents get Real ID sooner rather than later. Honolulu city councilmember Ron Menor introduced a new resolution on Wednesday, urging the public to get the star marking on their ID’s sooner rather than later. KHON2.

18-year-old named youngest Honolulu City Council neighborhood board member. City Councilmember Tommy Waters says she represents a new generation of young adults hoping to shape the future. KITV.

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Ron’s Performance Center closing after 52 years. Ron’s Performance Center, a retailer that has sold and installed custom auto parts and accessories for 52 years, is closing Oct. 31. Star-Advertiser.

After 50 years, Hawaii’s largest performance parts warehouse calls it quits. The owners of the Sand Island auto parts store say business has been declining ever since the closure of the race track in 2006. Hawaii News Now.

Ron’s Performance Center to close after 52 years. The long-time family business has been a staple in the car community for decades. KHON2.

Hawaii Island

Three Ka‘u locations recommended for conservation funding. Three properties in the Ka‘u District of Hawaii Island are among five the Legacy Land Conservation Commission identified as its top priorities for acquisition with the purpose of preservation for Fiscal Years 2020 and 2021. Tribune-Herald.

Lands Recommended For Legacy Land Conservation Grants. Three properties in Kaʻu have been identified by the Legacy Land Conservation Commission as priories for protection. Big Island Video News.

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Hawaii County police issue 4,632 tickets in areas around the TMT protests. Hawaii County police officers deployed in the area around the Mauna Kea protest camp have issued 4,632 citations during a stepped-up enforcement program on the Daniel K. Inouye Highway during the past eight weeks, police announced Thursday. Star-Advertiser.

Police: 4,632 citations issued, 46 arrested amid stepped-up traffic enforcement near Maunakea Access Road. West Hawaii Today.

Maui

New bus hub won’t be done by lease end. County officials in talks with shopping center about 1-year extension. Maui News.

September Maui home sales mixed. Maui single-family home sales soared 47.5% in September but the overall housing market was mixed, according to data released Thursday by the Realtors Association of Maui. Star-Advertiser.

Kauai

Westside farmers market accepts EBT. You can now use Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly food stamps) cards for local produce at the Westside Hale Puna farmers market. Garden Island.

Tulsi Gabbard feels the Bern of Democratic National Committee politics, Clinton opens campaign office, Caldwell wants $21.6M for parks, term limits mulled in Legislature and Hawaii County Council, water for Kauai ag park, Maui tourism head retires, more news from all the Hawaiian Islands

Gabbard on the 2012 campaign trail © 2016 All Hawaii News

U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard resigned her post as a vice chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee on Sunday, allowing her to formally endorse Bernie Sanders for president. Star-Advertiser.

Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard says she’s resigning the Democratic National Committee to support Bernie Sanders for president. Associated Press.

U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard announced Sunday that she is supporting Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders for president. The Democrat from Hawaii will resign her position as vice chair of the Democratic National Committee so that she can actively endorse Sanders. Civil Beat.

In a bold political move, Hawaii Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard today announced she is resigning as Vice Chair of the Democratic National Committee effective immediately, so that she can endorse Senator Bernie Sanders to be the next President of the United States. Big Island Video News.

U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard resigned from her Democratic National Committee post on Sunday to endorse presidential candidate Bernie Sanders. Hawaii News Now.

Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard rejected the notion that intra-party squabbles with the Democratic National Committee led to her resignation from the organization and her endorsement of Bernie Sanders. Politico.

Democratic National Committee Vice Chair Tulsi Gabbard resigned from her post on Sunday to endorse Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders, following months of rising tensions within the group. Reuters.

Former U.S. Sen.Daniel Akaka and former Hawaii Governors George Ariyoshi, John Waihee and Ben Cayetano will speak this Sunday about the “importance of caucusing for Hillary on March 26th.” Civil Beat.

A ranch, a sugar cane plantation owner and a wealthy investor trying to start a dairy farm have received state tax credits under a program that rewards preservation of privately owned farmland in Hawaii. The three entities — Parker Ranch, Alexander & Baldwin Inc. and Pierre Omidyar — acquired $1.5 million in state tax credits for making investments in agricultural operations in 2014, according to a recent state Department of Agriculture report to the Legislature. Star-Advertiser.

Should members of the Hawaii Legislature be term-limited? The Hawaii Senate Judiciary committee has scheduled a hearing Wednesday at the Capitol on Senate Bill 2753, which calls for exactly that. Civil Beat.

Hawaii legislators are exploring ways to bring back more than 1,300 inmates housed in an Arizona prison operated by the Corrections Corp. of America. Star-Advertiser.

Legislation urges more to use food stamps. Tribune-Herald.

Key lawmakers are wavering on whether they will require law enforcement agencies to test hundreds of unprocessed rape kits that have sat in county storage facilities for years and sometimes decades. Star-Advertiser.

Hawaii has no law requiring government agencies to take proper care of public records. But that could change under a bill now moving through the Hawaii Legislature. Civil Beat.

A bill that would transfer $3 million from the state tourism special fund to support travel expenses for the University of Hawaii athletics program advanced through three senate committees Friday. Pacific Business News.

With less than five months to go before medical marijuana dispensaries can open in Hawaii, business owners could be facing unique obstacles in a state of islands separated by federal waters. Associated Press.

A bill allowing licensed clinical psychologists to prescribe medication in Hawaii cleared two state Senate hearings this week. Tribune-Herald.

By a vote of 88 to 30, a Native Hawaiian constitution was adopted Friday by participants in the Nai Aupuni aha, or convention. Civil Beat.

A constitutional convention of Native Hawaiians has adopted a governing document that will go out to a vote for ratification, the organization behind the gathering announced. Associated Press.

Oahu

Mayor Kirk Caldwell will announce that he will seek $21.6 million for parks projects from the Honolulu City Council during a no-frills State of the City address tonight. Star-Advertiser.

Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell plans to give his fourth State of the City address on Monday at Mission Memorial Auditorium by Honolulu Hale. Civil Beat.

Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell will deliver his fourth State of the City address on Monday. KHON2.

Old Case Sheds New Light On Police Major’s Domestic Violence Past. Honolulu Police officials pushing to promote Maj. Ryan Borges never mentioned another time the cops were called and his wife ended up in the hospital. Civil Beat.

Hawaii

Eight is apparently not enough for Kohala Councilwoman Margaret Wille, who is proposing a charter amendment to increase council members’ terms to three consecutive four-year stints. West Hawaii Today.

Battling dengue outbreak, Hawaii faces small staff, pesticide fears. Associated Press.

Hawaii’s last remaining native crow species, extinct in the wild for about 14 years, will begin to be released from a captive breeding program in September, with a dozen in all to be offered freedom by year’s end to seed what biologists hope will be their comeback. Tribune-Herald.

Maui

Terryl Vencl has led the Maui Visitors Bureau through the crippling lows of the Great Recession to the record-breaking highs of today. After 13 years, though, the longtime executive director plans to retire later this year. Maui News.

Neighbor Island medical equipment companies are bracing for change as new Medicare reimbursements take effect this year. Maui News.

Resort installs photovoltaic system. Maui News.

Kauai

Access to water was a major problem for the first phase of the Kilauea Community Agricultural Park. But no longer. Garden Island.

Council members on Wednesday put the brakes on passing a bill that would regulate lobbying on Kauai in order to answer a few lingering questions and to have a full council present for the decision. Garden Island.

Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard disinvited from today's Democratic presidential debate, Maui to fly its homeless one-way elsewhere, state senator says Honolulu police chief should be on leave pending ethics probe, Puna group fights Hualalai geothermal drilling plan, newspaper tours Syngenta secret seed research facility, more news from all the Hawaiian Islands

Rep. Tulsi Gabbbard promoted to major, courtesy photo

The Democratic National Committee has taken the highly unusual step of disinviting one of its own leaders from Tuesday’s presidential debate: U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, who serves as one of five vice chairs of the organization. The reason for the very public slap at the second-term Hawaii congresswoman? Apparently, it stems from her call earlier this fall for more debates. Civil Beat.

For the past several weeks, U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard has been outspoken in her calls for more Democratic Party presidential debates. But after renewing that point during an interview with MSNBC on Saturday, she said officials with the Democratic National Committee told her not to show up for first presidential debate Tuesday in Las Vegas. Hawaii News Now.

Comparing it to childish games by those still in high school, Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard spoke out against DNC Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz Monday after she says she was disinvited from the Democratic presidential debate in Las Vegas Tuesday evening. KITV4.

Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, D, Hawaii, is making national headlines for saying she has been asked not to attend Tuesday’s Democratic debate in Las Vegas. KHON2.

Representative Tulsi Gabbard, a vice chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee, said she was disinvited from the first Democratic presidential primary debate in Nevada after she appeared on television and called for more face-offs. New York Times

Democratic U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard was promoted from captain to major in the Hawaii Army National Guard on Monday morning in a ceremony at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific. Civil Beat.

The Hawaii Army National Guard promoted U.S. Congressional Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, D-Hawaii, to the rank of major. At a ceremony at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific (Punchbowl) on Oahu, former U.S. Senator Daniel Akaka led her in taking her oath of office, according to a a news release sent out by her office. MauiTime.

The proposed sale of Hawaii’s electric company to a giant energy firm based in Florida has played out publicly since the deal with announced last December. At times, it’s felt more like an election campaign than an agreement between two utilities that must clear regulatory hurdles, not win a majority of voters’ hearts. Civil Beat.

Voter registration for one of the biggest elections for Native Hawaiian self-governance will close this week. Nearly 100,000 Hawaiians have been certified by the state-sanctioned Native Hawaiian Roll Commission to vote in a private election for delegates who will gather in Honolulu this winter at a constitutional convention. The governing document these delegates write will form the foundation of a new government by and for Native Hawaiians. Garden Island.

Oahu

State Senate Vice President Will Espero said HPD Chief Louis Kealoha should step aside from his leadership role until the FBI completes its criminal investigation over allegations that he abused his power. Hawaii News Now.

A proposed modular housing project for homeless families in Waianae is drawing criticism from residents who contend that it is not a good fit for their community. Star-Advertiser.

The last vestiges of the Kakaako homeless encampment are expected to be removed from Ohe Street beginning at 7:30 a.m. today — a day later than had been anticipated. Star-Advertiser.

One of the longest-lived military airplanes in Hawaii — the P-3 Orion turboprop — is starting to fade away, with the Navy deciding its sub-hunting jet replacements could be more economically based in Washington state. Star-Advertiser.

Hawaii

A group that has long fought geothermal development in Puna plans to challenge a geothermal survey on Hualalai for lacking an environmental assessment. Terri Napeahi, Pele Defense Fund vice president, thinks the state erred by not requiring the review for the exploration project, which will measure very low-frequency electromagnetic waves underground, and plans to file a lawsuit. Tribune-Herald.

The public has a right to read emails exchanged between Hawaii state legislators and the agribusiness industry, Ashley Lukens, program director for the Hawaii Center for Food Safety told scores Thursday night in Kona. West Hawaii Today.

South Kona paniolo should see about $3 million in improvements to the Honaunau Rodeo Arena by this time next year, as the county begins sprucing up the old arena to better serve the public. West Hawaii Today.

Higher education enrollment on Hawaii Island continues to dwindle, leading University of Hawaii administrators to look for ways to boost revenue. The last three fall semesters at University of Hawaii at Hilo have begun with consistent dips in enrollment, with overall numbers dropping by 328 students, or 7.9 percent, since 2012, according to head counts provided by the University of Hawaii Institutional Research Office. There currently are 3,829 students enrolled. Tribune-Herald.

Maui

The Hawaiʻi Lodging and Tourism Association will donate a $25,000 grant toward a new project to fly an estimated 120 homeless individuals on Maui back to the mainland. The non-profit, statewide trade organization will present a check to Kahului’s Family Life Center this weekend as part of its initial neighbor island funding for the repatriation program. Maui Now.

As Hawai‘i continues to wrestle with the highest rate of homelessness in the nation, one Maui group has come up with a creative solution to alleviate the problem. Hawaii Public Radio.

The burning of large sugar cane fields on Maui has been linked to acute respiratory distress in a new study by health professionals. Civil Beat.

A Final Environmental Assessment has been filed for the proposed Kuhua Street Extension project that is designed to provide an alternate local transportation corridor parallel to the Honoapiʻilani Highway between Front Street and Keawe Street in West Maui. Maui Now.

Except for a double-digit jump in single-family home sales, little has changed significantly in Maui County residential and condominium real estate when comparing the first nine months of this year with the same period in 2014, according to statistics released last week by the Realtors Association of Maui. Maui News.

Opinion: Oh, to be a fly on the wall in Mayor Alan Arakawa’s 9th Floor county office today. You guys saw The Maui News’ huge front-page story yesterday on the dramatic Mar. 5, 2013 meeting at Starbucks in Kahului between then-Maui Film Commissioner Harry Donenfeld (who secretly recorded the meeting because he was worried about his job) and three key aides to Mayor Alan Arakawa: Managing Director Keith Regan, Chief of Staff Herman Andaya and Communications Director Rod Antone. It’s quite the tale of power and influence, concerning the Maui Film Studio (the island’s first locally financed and run film studio, which has since gone out of business) and big-time Hollywood producer Ryan Kavanaugh’s Relativity Media (which recently declared bankruptcy). MauiTime.

Kauai

On a recent sun-drenched afternoon at Syngenta’s seed research facility, tidy rows of spring green leaves peered out of cracks in the earth. Garden Island.