Election law changes could bring long lines, state attorney general investigates bribery allegations, Senate halts dedicated funding for tourism authority, more news from all the Hawaiian Islands

Will Hawaiʻi Voters Once Again See Long Lines On Election Day? Voters may be forced to wait in line this election season after the death of legislation that would have funded more county voter service centers. Civil Beat.

State investigators conduct 18 interviews in campaign contribution probe. State investigators have conducted 18 interviews and reviewed “thousands” of pages of documents as they continue to look into $35,000 in campaign contributions an influential state legislator allegedly accepted during a dinner with another lawmaker working as an FBI informant and a controversial lobbyist. Star-Advertiser. Hawaii News Now.

Residency bottleneck drives exodus of doctors.The University of Hawaii John A. Burns School of Medicine currently offers 23 accredited residency and fellowship programs, with additional programs in development. Star-Advertiser.

More Hawaiʻi Students Are Prepped For College. Will They Attend? Hawaiʻi has been pushing for more college and career readiness for high school students, but college enrollment is stagnant. Civil Beat.

Lawmakers look to protect victims of image-based sexual abuse. Hawaiʻi could soon give better protections to those who have intimate images of them shared without their consent. Hawaii Public Radio.

‘Exile’ of Hawaii’s prison population targeted for reduction or end. This year, more than a dozen members of Hawaii’s House of Representatives set out to force the state Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to bring back most of the roughly 800 Hawaii inmates from a privately operated Arizona prison within five years. Star-Advertiser.

Senate halts effort to restore dedicated tourism funding. After years of legislative skepticism and repeated restructuring, the Hawai‘i Tourism Authority appeared poised this session for a partial restoration of its dedicated funding — until the effort stalled in the state Senate. Star-Advertiser.

Oahu

Large fallen boulders shut down Kamehameha Highway north of Waimea Bay; 1 lane reopens. Installation of steel plates to protect the waterline from rockfall is expected to take 3 to 4 months. Contra-flow traffic in effect as 1 lane remains open.  KITV4. Star-Advertiser. 

Army to conduct annual prescribed burn at Schofield Barracks. The Army will conduct its annual prescribed burn of the Schofield Barracks training range complex this week to help with wildfire mitigation efforts. The burn will take place Monday, April 13, through Saturday, April 18, as part of the U.S. Army Garrison Hawaii’s natural resource management program to help manage invasive vegetation that can fuel wildfires and harm wildlife. Hawaii News Now.

Fatal Work Accident Spurs Hawaiʻi Immigrant’s Widow To Fight Back. An undocumented Chinese warehouse worker faced safety hazards at a Honolulu job site that a lawsuit says cost him his life after 87 weeks in the hospital.  Civil Beat.

Hawaii Island

Controversial housing resolution heads to full council. A Hawaii County Council committee last week recommended a favorable vote by the full council on a controversial resolution authorizing the Office of Housing and Community Development to lease homes it purchased with federal funds for “long-term permanent housing for underserved populations who face significant barriers to secure, safe and affordable housing.” Tribune-Herald.

Hawaiʻi Island Fire Department seeks public input for new strategic plan. Officials are inviting residents to complete a brief online survey and attend a series of community meetings to provide feedback on fire department operations.  Big Island Now.

$100K Tab For Failed Hawaiʻi Island Charter School May Fall To Taxpayers. Eight years after Hawaiʻi closed Kaʻu Learning Academy or financial mismanagement and faulty record keeping, taxpayers are on the hook for thousands of dollars worth of rent and property damage the school’s partners failed to pay.  Civil Beat.

Oahu halau with kumu from Keaukaha wins Merrie Monarch. Halau Hi‘iakainamakalehua, under the direction of kumu hula Robert Ke‘ano Ka‘upu IV, took both the overall and kane overall categories with 1,225 points.  Tribune-Herald. Big Island Video News. Big Island Now. 

Maui

Maui Council hears appeals for agriculture and animal shelter relief. Local farmers told Maui County Council members Thursday that the government is falling short of providing island agriculture the help needed to sustain operations. Maui Now.

Council committee reviews budgets for Departments of Water Supply, Management. The Maui County Council’s Budget, Finance and Economic Development Committee focused its fiscal year 2027 review Wednesday on addressing emergency resilience and the future of the island’s water infrastructure. Maui Now.

Molokai residents face challenges in flood recovery. Molokai was especially hit hard by the second of two Kona-low storms to sweep across Hawaii in two weeks last month. Star-Advertiser.

Ahupua‘a restoration in Molokai offers potential flooding remedy. The pair of Kona-low storms that hit the Hawaiian Islands in March showed no forgiveness when it descended upon Molokai. Star-Advertiser.

Kauai

About 140,000 gallons of wastewater spills near Kauai harbor. Kauai county officials warned the public  to stay out of Kikiaola Harbor after about 140,000 gallons of wastewater spilled on Friday from the Waimea Wastewater Treatment Plant. Star-Advertiser.