Teachers rally for education tax, Norwegian Cruise Line promotes post-eruption tourism, Navy responds to Red Hill concerns, more news from all the Hawaiian Islands

Teachers rally in Honolulu, Hawaii State Teachers Association Facebook photo

On Citizen Initiatives, Courts — Not Voters — Often Have The Last Word. Statewide citizen initiatives aren’t authorized in Hawaii. But each of the four counties allow voters to place proposed laws directly on the ballot. Civil Beat.

Commentary: Guess Which Agency Can Impose A State Tax? As voters weigh ballot question on property taxes, keep in mind that the DOE can collect what’s know as “school impact fees.” Civil Beat.

Commentary: There Are Good Reasons To Support The Education Tax. For one, it could reduce home prices. For another, teachers would be paid more. Civil Beat.

The Chamber of Commerce Hawaii donated $600,000 Monday to a political action committee formed to encourage residents to vote “no” on a ballot measure in the general election that asks whether the state should be empowered to levy property taxes in support of public education. Star-Advertiser.

The Hawaii Chamber of Commerce is donating $600,000 against the amendment that teachers will likely be voting for. KITV.

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Norwegian Cruise Line is offering a bodacious airfare promotion to help stimulate travel to islands in the aftermath of the Kilauea eruption. Star-Advertiser.

NCL: The Big Island is ‘open for business’. In the hope of bringing more tourists to the Big Island, Norwegian Cruise Line invited dozens of travel professionals and journalists to an event celebrating the culture and history of the island. Tribune-Herald.

Norwegian Cruise Line launches promotion to encourage travel to Hawaii. Starting Thursday, Oct. 4, the cruise line is offering customers free and reduced airfare from 37 airports across the country and Vancouver, British Columbia, to encourage travel to Hawaii as a new, limited-time Free At Sea offer. KHON2.

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The Office of Elections and County Clerks will be conducting drive-thru voter registration at various locations statewide. KHON2.

Should Psychologists Be Able To Prescribe Drugs? Lawmakers have confronted the question for decades. Proponents say it could boost access to treatment, while opponents warn of opening up patients to subpar care. Civil Beat.

Oahu

Pearl Harbor museums hoping for resumed USS Arizona Memorial access. It’s not been the best of summers for the four public museums and memorials in Pearl Harbor. Star-Advertiser.

Judge forces changes to private Moiliili road. A state judge kind of played the role of traffic cop Tuesday, allowing a private landowner to finish widening a road that is largely owned by a neighboring property owner but open to public use. Star-Advertiser.

Navy Responds to Concerns Over Red Hill. January will mark five years since 27,000 gallons of fuel leaked out of a massive underground facility at Red Hill and we still don’t know where it all went. Hawaii Public Radio.

Red Hill meeting canceled due to lack of timely notice. An annual meeting called to monitor safety improvements at the Red Hill Underground Fuel Storage Facility near Pearl Harbor has been canceled after Hawaii Department of Health officials failed to provide adequate public notice of the meeting in violation of Hawaii’s Sunshine Law, which governs public meeting requirements for government boards and commissions. Star-Advertiser.

A major change is in the works for Hawaii’s only women’s prison. State lawmakers set aside $40 million to expand the Women’s Community Correctional Center. Hawaii News Now.

A vacant 6.8 acre parcel in Kailua in two years could become the first park of its kind in Hawaii — dog friendly and complete with water features, rock climbing apparatus, playground equipment, workout machines and a community garden. Star-Advertiser.

Resurfacing of Kamehameha Highway to begin. Pearl City commuters will face more lane closures in coming weeks but they will have a smoother surface to drive on before the holidays. Star-Advertiser.

Kamehameha Highway in Pearl City will soon go back to 3 lanes each way. For roughly two years, the commute along Kamehameha Highway has been a rough ride for drivers, residents and businesses because of rail construction. Hawaii News Now.

A Filipino evangelist and big supporter of Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte is being accused by a former church follower of running a “child sex ring.” Kristina Angeles came to Hawaii on a religious visa in 2014 working for Pastor Apollo Quiboloy’s Kingdom of Jesus Christ Church in Waipahu. Hawaii News Now.

Hawaii Island

Lava viewing site takes shape.  “Managing expectations” will be key to the success of a public-private partnership to create a lava viewing area now that the lava flow has subsided. West Hawaii Today.

Despite Eruption, No Support For Pahoa, Volcano Business Tax Breaks. Resolution 690 is requesting amnesty for commercially zoned properties in Pahoa and Volcano Village by assessing them the minimum property tax rate. Big Island Video News.

Governor David Ige has signed a fourth supplementary proclamation to support Hawaii Island’s recovery from the Kilauea Volcano’s lava flows and activity. Maui Now.

County will hold off on clearing Highway 137 near Pohoiki. Despite discussion last month about possibly reopening Highway 137 in lower Puna, Mayor Harry Kim said Tuesday that lava cannot be cleared from the highway until more than six months have passed since Kilauea eruption’s pause. Tribune-Herald.

Teachers, others show support for amendment. A number of teachers, along with some students and parents, lined sidewalks in front of Hilo High and Hilo Intermediate schools early Tuesday morning. Tribune-Herald.

Aggressive strain of rapid ohia death detected at Kalopa State Recreation Area. West Hawaii Today.

Maui

A Maui County Council committee continues to mull over what to do with 50 residential lots the county acquired in a legal settlement seven years ago, following a failed attempt earlier this year to sell the lots at a discounted price for affordable housing. Maui News.

Wristbands for Pools of Oheo are considered. Haleakala National Park is considering a wristband reservation system at the Pools of Oheo in the Kipahulu District due to increased visitor traffic and concerns about rockfalls and flash flooding. Maui News.

Wastewater disposal in Maalaea is topic. The Maalaea Village Association will hold a town meeting at 5 p.m. Friday at the Pacific Whale Foundation’s downstairs classroom at the Maui Harbor Shops in Maalaea. Maui News.

Calls to support schools. Maui High School and Maui Waena Intermediate School teachers wave signs along Lono Avenue in Kahului on Tuesday morning in support of a constitutional amendment on taxation on the Nov. 6 ballot that would allow the state Legislature to place a surcharge on investment properties to support public education. Maui News.

Maui Teachers Join Statewide HSTA Walk-in Protest. Frustrated by the lack of funding in Hawaii’s schools and by Hawaii being ranked worst in the country for teachers just last week by a national survey, educators around the state are participating in a walk-in protest today, Tuesday, Oct. 2 from 7 to 8 a.m. Maui Now.

Kauai

Teachers rally for funding. About 40 teachers from Elsie Wilcox Elementary School were joined by about 10 students and one mother in holding signs on Hardy Street Tuesday morning. Garden Island.

Voters can learn about county council and mayoral candidate stances on the environment thanks to nine Kauai organizations posing a few questions. Garden Island.

Anahola group works out new community gym. What was once a place for unsavory riffraff in Anahola is now a gym, where community members are working out together. Garden Island.

Hawaii on the Hill in D.C., Hawaiian Electric shareholders vote on sale today, new blood wins teachers union leadership, Thirty Meter Telescope protesters allowed to camp on site, Honolulu homeless sweeps continue, more news from all the Hawaiian Islands

Hawaii on the Hill, courtesy Chamber of Commerce Hawaii

More than 50 companies from Hawaii are converging on Capitol Hill this week for the second annual Hawaii on the Hill event, which kicked off on Tuesday with a reception at Google's Washington, D.C., headquarters. Pacific Business News.

Hawaiian Electric Industries Inc. is hoping to get shareholder approval Wednesday for its sale to Florida-based NextEra Energy Inc. after it failed to win the necessary votes at a May 12 meeting. Star-Advertiser.

Hawaiian Electric Industries will hold a special shareholders meeting today. They’ll vote on whether or not to approve the $4.3 billion sale to the Florida-based company NextEra Energy. Hawaii Public Radio.

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals might have upheld Hawaii’s law banning government contractors from donating to political candidates. But in reality the prohibition doesn’t do much to curb the outsized influence that businesses have on politics in the Aloha State. Hawaii can’t block individuals from donating their money to political campaigns, even if they own a company that has ongoing contracts with state and local governments. Civil Beat.

Campbell High School social studies teacher Corey Rosenlee, who's led a grass-roots movement to improve teaching conditions at Hawaii public schools, has been elected to lead the powerful Hawaii State Teachers Association, the union announced Tuesday. Star-Advertiser.

The new leaders of the Hawaii State Teachers Association say they have big plans for changing the way their union tackles some of the toughest education issues in the state. But before Corey Rosenlee, Justin Hughey and Amy Perruso can start addressing problems like teacher retention or school spending, they will have to deal with the divisions caused by one of the most contentious elections in union history. Civil Beat.

NOAA wants to expand its focus and boundaries of the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary and is currently in the comment period for the proposed expansion – more than 2,000 signed letters have been received opposing it. KITV4.

Oahu

Homeless families in Honolulu are figuring out where to go after the city swept the banks of a canal where they were living in tents. Star-Advertiser.

A day after the homeless encampment along the Kapalama Canal was given notice to pack their belongings, crews moved through to clean up and enforce the city's stored property ordinance -- which officials say is designed to keep public areas safe and sanitary. But just hours after crews cleared the area Tuesday morning, many of the homeless who were camping out here had already returned. Hawaii News Now.

Hawai’i government and social service partners have adopted the national goal to end homelessness for veterans on O’ahu by the end of this year. Hawaii Public Radio.

In early February, officials were worried vast sections of reefs in Kaneohe Bay might be overrun with a fast-moving and deadly coral disease. Now it appears the malady has vanished and, in fact, the disease wasn't even what officials thought it was. Star-Advertiser.

The state is not buying two new ZipMobiles to replace the aging machines that both went down a little more than two months ago, creating a traffic nightmare for H-1 freeway commuters. But the state is greatly boosting the repair and maintenance expenses of the ZipMobiles, after officials admitted not enough money was spent on upkeep in the past. Hawaii News Now.

Caretakers of a historic home that once belonged to King Kamehameha III and Queen Kalama say the historic site is not getting the respect it deserves. The area is off-limits to the public, but that’s not stopping people from using the site as their own playground. KHON2.

Kualoa Ranch in Windward Oahu has plans to expand its operation to the North Shore with a sheep operation as part of a proposed solar energy farm, and a partnership involving cattle with Big Island’s Parker Ranch and Honolulu social impact investment firm Ulupono Initiative, the head of Kualoa Ranch confirmed to Pacific Business News.

Less than two weeks after the city Ethics Commission announced former Honolulu City Councilman Nestor Garcia had been fined $8,100 for ethical breaches, Garcia quit his job as a television reporter at KHON2 effective Friday. Star-Advertiser.

A house of squalor in Kaimuki remains untouched with heaps of trash fouling up the neighborhood. Neighbors are in disbelief, wondering what it takes to get help from anyone in the government. Hawaii News Now.

Hawaii

Despite rules prohibiting camping on Mauna Kea, protesters of the Thirty Meter Telescope have been allowed to do so for more than two months, maintaining a 24-hour presence outside the Mauna Kea Visitor Information Station. Tribune-Herald.

Organizers of a charter school planned for Ka‘u have scaled back enrollment projections, but they say the project is on track for a July opening. Ka‘u Learning Academy, the state’s only charter school approved this year, plans to use the Discovery Harbour golf course clubhouse as a temporary facility. Organizers have been appearing before the state Public Charter School Commission, the Windward Planning Commission and the Hawaii County Liquor Commission as they wrap up fundraising efforts and attend to the myriad of details associated with turning a golf clubhouse into a school. West Hawaii Today.

The number of cruise ship visits to Hilo Harbor declined in the first five months of 2015 compared with the same time period last year. Forty-eight vessels arrived in port between Jan. 1 and the end of May, according to data provided by the state Department of Transportation. Fifty-seven cruise ships visited Hilo during the same period in 2014. Tribune-Herald.

Lava insurance moratorium lifted. Tribune-Herald.

A talk story session is scheduled at Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park on Wednesday to discuss its draft general management plan, wilderness study, and environmental impact statement. The meeting will be held at the Kilauea Visitor Center from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Big Island Now.

Maui

Shark attacks are increasing in Hawaii, especially off Maui, and scientists think they have figured out why. A report due to be released next month by University of Hawaii marine biologists basically concludes that a burgeoning recreation industry is butting up against shark-friendly environmental conditions to create a double whammy of sorts, at least for the human population. Civil Beat.

A $7,000 settlement payment to the state is being proposed for Maalaea reef damage that happened when the Ocean Odyssey went aground a quarter-mile northeast of McGregor Point in 2013. Maui News.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is reopening a 15-day public comment period that ends June 25 on the proposed critical habitat designation of 135 species found in Maui County. Maui News.

Kauai

Gov. David Ige channeled his inner-engineer on Tuesday when he summed up his governing philosophy: “It’s about execution: doing the right thing, in the right way.” The governor made the remark at a Kauai Chamber of Commerce luncheon during his first visit to the island since he was sworn into office in December. Garden Island.

A parachute inflated during a test of new technology for landing larger spacecraft on Mars, but it disintegrated immediately afterward, NASA officials said Tuesday. Associated Press.

A Kauai Community College researcher is seven months into the first field experiment studying the potential of ulu (breadfruit) as a major field crop. Garden Island.