Ige taps Shikada for attorney general, USS Daniel Inouye commissioned at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii County Council passes 3% hotel tax, more news from all the Hawaiian Islands

Holly Shikada

Ige Names Holly Shikada To Be Hawaii’s New Attorney General. Shikada is a veteran lawyer who worked for years on educational issues, including ensuring compliance with the Felix Consent Decree. Civil Beat. Star-Advertiser. Big Island Now.  Hawaii News Now.

Red Hill Has Changed The Politics Around The Military In Hawaii. The military has enjoyed unwavering support from state and federal political leaders in Hawaii. But the threat to Oahu’s water supply may be bringing that to an end. Civil Beat.

USS Daniel Inouye commissioned in Pearl Harbor home port, honoring the late U.S. senator as a warrior and statesman. The Navy’s newest warship, the Arleigh Burke-class missile destroyer USS Daniel Inouye, was officially commissioned at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam on Wednesday. Star-Advertiser. Hawaii News Now. KHON2.  

Hawaiian Electric says 3,200 statewide still awaiting repairs, some may go another night without power. Hawaiian Electric said an estimated 3,200 customers are still without power statewide due to the impacts of the “Kona low” storm that ravaged the isles Monday and Tuesday. Those customers include about 400 on Oahu, 200 on Maui, and 2,600 on Hawaii Island. Star-Advertiser. Big Island Now. Hawaii News Now.

US Request For More Bigeye Tuna Denied By Pacific Commission. Wespac Executive Director Kitty Simonds expressed her disappointment, saying the council had been trying for six years to negotiate an increase. Civil Beat.

DAR seeks proposed fishing rule input. This month, the DLNR Division of Aquatic Resources is holding a series of scoping events to receive community input on proposed amendments to statewide rules for select species of herbivorous reef fishes. Garden Island. KHON2.

Hawaii records 6 new coronavirus-related deaths, 72 additional infections. The new confirmed and probable infection count by island includes 51 new cases on Oahu, eight on Hawaii Island, eight on Maui and five on Kauai. Star-Advertiser.

Oahu

Navy Finds Contamination In Second Well And Identifies Pollutant At Red Hill Shaft. Meanwhile, the Navy outlined actions it would take in response to an emergency order by Gov. David Ige, but remained silent on the question of emptying the tanks. Civil Beat. Star-Advertiser. Hawaii Public Radio. Hawaii News Now. KHON2. KITV4.

Honolulu waives permit fees to expedite storm cleanup efforts. The City and County of Honolulu is waiving all permit fees related to storm-damage cleanup in an effort to jumpstart recovery efforts on Oahu following the powerful Kona Low storm system that blasted the islands. KITV4.

Kahikina Is Named Honolulu Rail’s Third Permanent Executive Director. As rail’s interim executive director for 2021, Lori Kahikina guided Hawaii’s largest-ever public works project through yet another tumultuous year – one that saw maddening construction woes, questionable contract awards and steep funding hurdles. Civil Beat.

New plan to fill gap between rail wheels and track. Hawaii’s DCCA has granted a temporary exemption to allow welders without Hawaii licenses to make temporary repairs to fix the rail project’s too-narrow wheels and too-wide track junction. Star-Advertiser.

Carcasses of Fraser’s Dolphins Wash Ashore on Oʻahu, DLNR Reports. Three carcasses of Fraser’s dolphins have washed ashore between Diamond Head and Waikīkī, DLNR officials reported earlier this week. Big Island Now.

Hawaii Island

Council passes 3% TAT: New hotel tax makes up for state cuts. Visitors to Hawaii Island hotels and vacation rentals will be digging a little deeper come Jan. 1, with the County Council on Wednesday unanimously passing a 3% local option lodging tax. West Hawaii Today.

Parks herbicide ban moves forward. The County Council on Wednesday advanced on first reading a bill banning the use of glyphosate-based herbicides in county parks. West Hawaii Today.

CSO one step closer to decommissioning. The planned dismantling and removal of the Caltech Submillimeter Observatory from Maunakea has cleared another hurdle with the publication Wednesday of the final environmental assessment. Tribune-Herald.

Council votes to accept funds to fix ‘major thoroughfare’ in Hilo. The Hawaii County Council voted Wednesday to accept $12 million in state funds to improve a small but vital one-lane bridge in Hilo. Tribune-Herald.

Maui

Dedicated Philanthropists Donate $1 Million to Maui Memorial Medical Center. Maui Health Foundation is the recipient of a one-million-dollar gift from Wayne and Nan Kocourek for dedicated use towards the Maui Memorial Medical Center Emergency Department. Maui Now.

Hazardous Conditions Prompt Closure of Maui Recreation Area & Two Forest Reserves. Due to hazardous conditions and impassable roads and trails caused by this week’s heavy rains and strong winds, DLNR has closed the Kula State Forest Reserve, Kahikinui State Forest Reserve – Papa’anui Tract, and Polipoli Spring State Recreation Area.  Maui Now.

Maui Conservationists Sound Alarm Over Sightings Of Invasive Bird. The first red-vented bulbul was spotted by a forest bird conservationist at Haleakala National Park on Nov. 28. Civil Beat.

Kauai

KFD Air 1 hangar considered inadequate, unsafe. The county’s Air 1 hanger, located at the Lihu‘e Airport, was deemed “inadequate and unsafe” by auditors in a recent utilization study of the Kaua‘i Fire Department. Garden Island.

Endangered bird, rescued from certain death, takes flight. An endangered ua‘u, or Hawaiian petrel (Pterodroma sandwichensis), rescued in October has taken flight after 67 days of care. Garden Island.