Hawaii's Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander population edges up, Biden panel coming to Honolulu to seek input, Green signs health care bills, more news from all the Hawaiian Islands

Hawaii’s Native Hawaiians, Pacific Islanders up 1.8% in 2022. The Native Hawaiian and “other Pacific Islander” population in the U.S. rose to nearly 1.76 million in 2022, an increase of 1.8%, or almost 32,000 people, over the previous year, according to population estimates released Thursday by the U.S. Census Bureau. Star-Advertiser.

Biden Panel On AAPI And Native Hawaiians Seeks Local Input. President Biden’s Advisory Commission on Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders will meet in person in Honolulu July 7, the first time the commission has met outside the U.S. mainland, the administration said. Civil Beat.

Gov. Green returns to Hawai‘i Island where he practiced medicine to sign health care bills.  Gov. Josh Green used West Hawaii as a pulpit on Thursday to address Hawaii’s problems and sign several bills into law.  Green traveled to the Hawaii Island Community Health Center in Kealakehe for a signing ceremony for three bills related to health care and one for consumer telecommunications. West Hawaii Today. Big Island Video News.  Big Island Now.  KHON2.

Oahu

Hawaii report details health effects of Red Hill leak.  A new report released by the state Department of Health provides an assessment of the health effects people may have faced after being exposed to jet fuel, the cleaning product Simple Green, high levels of chlorine and an anti-icing agent in their drinking water after a pipeline burst at the Navy’s Red Hill fuel facility on Nov. 20 2021. Star-Advertiser.

HPD officer justified in shooting, prosecutor says.  Honolulu Prosecutor Steve Alm announced Thursday that a plainclothes acting police sergeant was justified in the Dec. 28, 2020, fatal shooting of a 45-year-old man in the parking lot of a public-housing apartment complex in Ahuimanu. Star-Advertiser. Civil Beat. Hawaii News Now.  KHON2.  KITV4.

‘Safe and Sound’ sees lower crime stats in Waikīkī.  The Honolulu Police Department is providing an update on the “Safe and sound” program that they instigated in Waikīkī.  According to HPD, crime is going down. KHON2.

Businesses hoping for boom in customers ahead of the June 30 opening of Oahu's new rail system. Like many businesses along the rail line, Ichiriki in Aiea endured months of construction that affected the number of customers coming into the restaurant. KITV4.

Honolulu rail’s launch means big changes ahead for bus riders, too.  The city’s long-awaited rail line opens on June 30, but regular bus riders may not yet be aware that it could affect their usual routes, especially west of Aiea. Hawaii News Now.

Thousands of endangered Hawaiian snails in captivity relocated to new home on Oahu. Some 8,000 snails were moved from Kailua to their new home in the Pearl City area Thursday morning. Hawaii News Now.

Hawaii Island

Councilmember Seeks Emergency Declaration For Abandoned Hilo Hotel.  Hawaiʻi County Councilmember Sue Lee Loy has introduced a resolution urging Governor Josh Green to declare a state of emergency for the condemned and dilapidated former Uncle Billy’s Hilo Bay Hotel on Banyan Drive. Big Island Video News.

Charges brought in Merrie Monarch Festival burglary.  Hawaii island police have brought an array of charges against two men arrested for the recent Merrie Monarch Festival office burglary and trespassing at a closed business in Hilo. Star-Advertiser. Big Island Now.

Maui

Bill to regulate air and replica guns advances. A bill that would limit air and replica guns in certain public spaces to improve safety for the community and police officers was unanimously recommended by a Maui County Council committee on Wednesday afternoon.  Maui News.

County of Maui seeking public input for future Kehalani Mauka Park improvements.  The County of Maui Department of Parks and Recreation will hold a pop-up open house to share information and seek input from the public on future improvements for Kehalani Mauka Park in Wailuku. Maui Now.

Kauai

Garden sprouts on Rice Street in downtown Lihu‘e.  The garden is part of the Downtown Lihu‘e’s Lihu‘e Placemaking, Forestry and Gardens Initiative, a two-year effort to build valued community green spaces in Lihu‘e and a shared vision for future green infrastructure along Rice Street. Garden Island.

Outrigger Resorts & Hotels to acquire Kauaʻi Beach Resort & Spa.  The transaction to purchase the 25-acre beachfront property with 350 guest rooms is expected to close on Aug. 22, 2023. Kauai Now.

Hawaii employers can mandate vaccinations, officials seek to expand categories of Pacific Islanders, Chinatown changes sought, more news from all the Hawaiian Islands

Hawaiian kupuna in court pre-COVID ©2021 All Hawaii News

For racial designations, some seek more boxes to check for ‘other.’ Pacific Islanders Of Hawaii’s 1.5 million residents, 38% are Asian — mostly Japanese and Filipino — 26% are white, 2% are Black, and many people are multiple ethnicities, according to U.S. census figures. Native Hawaiians account for about 20% of the population. Associated Press.

Hawaii employers are allowed to mandate vaccinations but are hesitant to do so. A legal ruling in Texas is opening the door to mandatory vaccinations in Hawaii, according to Hawaii’s attorney general. A federal judge allowed a Houston hospital to fire workers who refused to be vaccinated. The attorney general said that means the state can also require employees to get the shots. Hawaii News Now.

State enforcement of years-old raw milk ban blindsides pet food businesses. Local pet food shops say they’ve felt blindsided by recent a state crackdown on raw, unpasteurized goat’s milk. They’re being told to either dispose of all of their stock, or send it back to the vendors — both costly options for small local businesses. Hawaii News Now. KITV4.

Hawaii Consumers Can Now File Complaints Online. The Regulated Industries Complaints Office has an updated system that finally allows Hawaii residents to submit electronic complaints. Civil Beat.

Inmate Deaths In Hawaii Prisons And Jails Are On The Upswing This Year. The state is on track to have more fatalities in correctional facilities in 2021 than in any year in the past decade. Civil Beat.

July 4th parties blamed for virus spread in Hawaii. Hawaii officials are attributing the recent spike in coronavirus cases statewide to July Fourth celebrations and the still substantial number of residents who have not been vaccinated against the virus that so far has sickened over 39,000 people here and killed 523. Star-Advertiser.

Hawaii sees 164 new coronavirus cases, bringing statewide total to 39,254. Sunday's new confirmed and probable infection count by island includes 104 new cases on Oahu, 12 on Maui, 18 on Hawaii Island, six on Kauai and 24 Hawaii residents diagnosed outside the state. Star-Advertiser.

Oahu

Hawaii Tourism Authority considers Oahu plan to address demand to limit tourism. The Oahu Destination Management Action Plan, an effort to figure out that and other tourism challenges, is expected to go before the HTA board for a vote July 29, with the plan slated for release to the public sometime in August. Star-Advertiser.

The Case Of 3 Honolulu Cops Charged With Killing Teen Is Ramping Up. Defense attorneys are working to get charges dropped as prosecutors prepare to present evidence against the officers on Tuesday. Civil Beat.

Low inmate forecasts at OCCC could affect costs of future jail. The average daily inmate population at Oahu Community Correctional Center is forecast to fall from 1,316 in 2019 to 788 in 2032, which will have profound implications for the planning of a future OCCC, including its size and long-term operational costs. Star-Advertiser.

Chinatown hopes Weed & Seed and foot patrols will clean up neighborhood. Twenty-four hour police foot patrols of Chinatown — funded by $2 million in overtime — began slowly last week, as law enforcement and city officials revive a program to reduce crime, then rebuild a beleaguered community in the midst of a pandemic. Star-Advertiser.

Historic Chinatown commercial building slated for residential use. A development firm led in part by state Rep. Mark Hashem is pursuing the $27 million project that would convert the three-story Hocking Building on a corner of North King Street and Nuuanu Avenue into 40 apartments with monthly rent as low as $634 reserved for households with low incomes. Star-Advertiser.

Hawaii Island

Highways Chief Neil Azevedo put on leave. Neil Azevedo, the county Highways Division chief who ran unsuccessfully for mayor last year, has been suspended without pay for 30 days, sources told West Hawaii Today.

Brush Fire Burns On Saddle, Closes Highway. The Hawaiʻi Police Department reports the brush fire near Old Saddle Road is still active. Old Saddle Road, between Daniel K. Inouye Highway junction and Highway 190 junction, remains closed. Big Island Video News. Big Island Now.

Hilo Orchid Society to hold orchid sale in lieu of cancelled show. The Hilo Orchid Society has canceled its popular annual orchid show for 2021, as it did in 2020, because of the novel coronavirus pandemic. Tribune-Herald.

Maui

Pandemic caused delays to telescope. Final review scheduled; work expected to finish in November. The world’s largest solar telescope, located atop Haleakala, will undergo a final review by a scientific panel next week in preparation for its soft startup later this year, which had been delayed by the pandemic. Maui News.

Maui County Loses Again In Federal Court Over Pollution Discharges. For years, the county has violated the Clean Water Act by discharging treated wastewater into the Pacific Ocean through injection wells at a Lahaina sewer plant. Civil Beat. Associated Press.

Testifiers Suggest Delayed Implementation of Plastic Disposable Foodware Ban. Maui restaurants and distributors continued to express supply chain concerns and economic challenges compounded by pandemic impacts when testifying on an ordinance amendment that outlines a ban on single-use plastic foodware in Maui County. Maui Now.

Kauai

Kaua‘i has state’s highest jobless rate. The unemployment rate is decreasing statewide. However, Kaua‘i still has the highest unemployment rate among the counties, 11.2% in June. Garden Island.

A Kauai Family Gave Homeless People A Place To Live. Now They All Face Eviction. Marcia and Buna Leialoha felt they had no choice but to offer homes to those evicted from a nearby temporary homeless camp, but their landlord thinks otherwise. Civil Beat.

Anaina Hou Community Park reopens on Kauai, welcomes events for community. Community members of Kauai’s North Shore are looking to bring life back to Anaina Hou Community Park by adding more events to its roster of summer entertainment. KHON2.

Ige talks legislation, Coco Palms. The Garden Island met with Gov. David Ige last week through a Zoom call, and was told any question goes, but we had only 20 minutes with him. Garden Island.