Governor moves up renewable energy deadline, OHA approves big pay hikes, bills would ban cellphone use in schools, Honolulu advances resident preference housing plan, more news from all the Hawaiian Islands

Energy stakeholders celebrate renewable goals, but balk at natural gas proposal. In a busy week for local energy policy, Gov. Josh Green moved up the deadline for neighbor islands to eliminate fossil fuel use, and the Hawaiʻi State Energy Office put out a long-awaited report recommending Oʻahu open the door to liquefied natural gas imports. Kauaʻi, Hawaiʻi Island, and Maui County are now expected to run on 100% renewable power by 2035 — a decade ahead of schedule. Hawaii Public Radio.

Tulsi Gabbard Met With Bipartisan Skepticism In Confirmation Hearing. Senators quizzed Trump’s pick for Director of National Intelligence on her past support for leaker Edward Snowden and for meeting with Syrian dictator Basha al-Assad. Civil Beat. Reuters.  Associated Press. New York Times.

Bills would ban use of cellphones in schools. Five similar bills — House bills 298, 458, 1195 and 1224, and Senate Bill 684 — each propose that the state Department of Education limit or prohibit the use of cellphones by students during the school day. Tribune-Herald.

Bill would allow chiropractic students hands-on experience with patients. Hawai‘i is one of only five states in the U.S. that does not allow student chiropractors to intern under existing professionals, according to Dean Shivvers, president of the Hawai‘i State Chiropractic Association. Hawaii Public Radio.

OHA Salary Commission Approves Trustee Pay Raises. The OHA Salary Commission, which acts independently of the trustees, voted unanimously on Wednesday to boost trustees’ annual to $91,560. The chair of the board would make $100,308. Civil Beat.

Flights disrupted at Hawaii airports due to severe weather, visibility issues. Travelers at Hawaii airports experienced delays and cancellations due to severe weather Thursday. A ground stop was issued for interisland flights statewide that essentially kept planes from taking off or landing for about an hour. Hawaii News Now.

Oahu

‘Resident preference’ housing bill unanimously OK’d. Legislation that seeks a “resident preference” for those who participate in city-run housing programs received Honolulu City Council approval this week. Star-Advertiser.

Council begins Cabinet confirmation process. At the start of the mayor’s second four-year term, many of those being tapped for the city and county’s key leadership roles have maintained them since Blangiardi first assumed the city’s top elective office on Jan. 2, 2021. Star-Advertiser.

Honolulu Officers Not Charged In Arrest Mistake Victim Calls Racial Profiling. Officers beat and arrested Tevitatonga Cadiente on Jan. 1, 2024, after mistaking him for a different Tongan man — an armed suspect they were pursuing. Civil Beat. Star-Advertiser.

Four More Arrested In New Year’s Fireworks Explosion. A total of six people have been arrested in connection with the explosion that has killed five people. Civil Beat. Star-Advertiser.

UH campus stadium proposal is revived. A state House bill similar to one in 2024 that died in the Senate intending to move $350 million earmarked for the New Aloha Stadium Entertainment District to building a stadium on the University of Hawaii campus instead is making the rounds through House committee hearings. Star-Advertiser.

Case over public beach access at Kahala Hotel sent back to circuit court. A ruling from the Intermediate Court of Appeals over public beach access takes the state land board to task over upholding public trust law.  Hawaii Public Radio.

Waikīkī Restaurant Owner Investigated For Not Paying Workers. State, federal agencies are looking into claims of bounced paychecks from the owner of Makana Lani and Burgers on Bishop. Civil Beat.

Hawaii Island

Hawaiʻi County Council resolution would urge state to consider humane ways to deal with potential avian flu outbreak. In a resolution introduced by Councilmember Heather Kimball, the state departments of Agriculture and Health are urged to consult with local poultry farmers to develop an avian flu response plan and consider alternatives to depopulation as the main response strategy. Big Island Now.

Pahoa man accused of neo-Nazi child sexploitation. Two men, including one from Puna, were arrested today for alleging participating in a neo-Nazi child exploitation enterprise that groomed and then coerced minors to produce sexual abuse material and images of self-harm. Tribune-Herald.

Maui

Hawaii wildfire victims spared from testifying after last-minute deal over $4B settlement. Lawyers representing victims of a deadly Hawaii wildfire reached a last-minute deal averting a trial that was scheduled to begin Wednesday over how to split a $4 billion settlement.  Associated Press.

Investigators spent months searching for a man unaccounted for in Lahaina fire. Now his 6 children are asking the court to declare him deceased. Elmer Lee Stevens is one of the last two names still left on the official unaccounted-for list, along with Robert H. Owens. Since June, the confirmed death toll from the wildfire has held steady at 102.  Maui Now.

Kauai

Completion dates for Wailua and Puhi play courts updated. The recreational play courts at the Wailua Homesteads and the Wailua Houselots are estimated to be completed earlier than anticipated, except for the Puhi Park courts in Lihue. Garden Island.