Hawaii’s Emergency Management Agency Struggles To Fill Many Key Jobs. About 45% of HIEMA's civil service jobs are vacant, forcing the agency to use temporary and exempt employees to fill in. Civil Beat.
Hawaii public school executives’ maximum salaries raised to $192K to $206K. Seven months after angry public testimony helped to compel the state Department of Education to scale back a proposal to raise salaries of officials at the top levels of Hawaii’s public school system, the state Board of Education has approved salary increases of 4.6% to 6% for the 2023-2024 fiscal year for 21 out of 25 of its “subordinate superintendents.” Star-Advertiser.
Inouye’s son making first run at House seat against La Chica. The son of the late U.S. Sen. Daniel K. Inouye plans to make his first foray into politics at the age of 59 by challenging fellow, first-time Democratic state Rep. Trish La Chica for the House seat representing Waipio-Mililani in 2024. Star-Advertiser.
Late state Sen. Sam Slom to be celebrated at Capitol. Friends, family and legislative colleagues have planned the only public “celebration of life” for state Sen. Sam Slom, who died in May at the age of 81 after serving 20 years in the Senate. Star-Advertiser.
State Central Committee of Democratic Party of Hawaiʻi votes to oust chairperson Jung. The State Central Committee of the Democratic Party of Hawai‘i on Sunday voted to remove Chairperson Dennis Jung and begin the process to elect new party leadership. Maui Now.
Hawaii Ethics Commission Steps Up Training Of Government Employees. Since a new law requiring state legislators and employees to complete live or online ethics training classes every four years went into effect Jan. 1, the number of people taking the course has increased significantly as compared to 2021. Civil Beat.
50,000 acres of state farmland set to move under Department of Agriculture management. About 50,000 acres of Hawaiʻi farmland managed by the state Department of Land and Natural Resources are set to be transferred to the Department of Agriculture. The move is two decades in the making. Hawaii Public Radio.
Oahu
Waikiki climate change study underway, city says. The city Department of Planning and Permitting says it’s kicked off a nearly $400,000 pilot project to study the impacts of climate change and sea level rise on Oahu’s prime tourist zone. Star-Advertiser.
Cesspool Conversions: Honolulu Seeks To Connect More Homes To Main Sewer System. A proposal to install sewer lines for a section of Ewa Beach is shaping up as a litmus test for the effort as homeowners say they need more help covering the costs. Civil Beat.
Hawaii to be first to offer Filipino History Culture course in public school curriculum. Waipahu and Farrington high Schools will be the first in the nation to offer a student created Filipino Studies class in a public school curriculum. Hawaii News Now.
Teaching Kids To Read In Hawaii Is Going Back To Basics. Makakilo Elementary is one of about 80 schools in the state to receive funding from a roughly $50 million federal grant awarded in 2019 to improve literacy among the country’s youngest readers. Civil Beat.
Tour helicopter makes ‘precautionary landing’ on small island near Honolulu‘s airport. Honolulu Ocean Safety responded to a helicopter that had made a “precautionary landing” on a small island near the Honolulu Airport Saturday morning. Honolulu EMS officials say the incident happened just after 10:00 a.m. Hawaii News Now. KITV4.
Hawaii Island
County delays Waikoloa siren installation. HI-EMA Communications Director Adam Weintraub Weintraub acknowledged that Waikoloa Village is a particularly at-risk community — the village only has one way in or out for about 7,000 residents — he added that HI-EMA, responding to personnel shortages, has prioritized installing emergency sirens for coastal communities that currently do not have redundant sirens in case of tsunami. Tribune-Herald.
County hopes water study will shed light on Hilo Bay contaminants. After the bay was found to not meet state water standards in 2009, county, state and federal agencies have investigated various methods for improving it. Tribune-Herald.
Surf schools to find out Nov. 17 if they can operate at Kahalu‘u Beach Park. After years of public meetings, draft rules with numerous amendments and jurisdictional disputes, surf schools wanting to operate at Kahalu‘u Beach Park will find out on Nov. 17 if they are awarded one of four coveted spots determined by a lottery. West Hawaii Today.
Hawaii Inmate Serving Two Life Sentences Dies In An Arizona Prison. Richard Keokeo Taylor Jr., 51, a Big Island man who spent nearly 28 years in prison for the robbery of a downtown Hilo Pizza Hut in 1995 has died at the Saguaro Correctional Center in Eloy, Arizona. Civil Beat.
Maui
State Land Board OKs Olowalu For Ash And Debris Disposal From Maui Fires. The site would be monitored for 30 years for any leakage of contamination into the groundwater and ocean. Civil Beat. Maui News. Associated Press. Hawaii News Now.
Deadlines near to receive FEMA wildfire disaster aid. On Friday, federal officials reported that more than $236.8 million already has been approved for 6,505 Maui households affected by the high winds and wildfires. Star-Advertiser.
Immigrants on Maui hesitant to apply for disaster assistance. The deadline is approaching for Maui residents impacted by the August fires to apply for FEMA assistance, but there is some concern that many in the Latino community have not yet applied. KHON2.
Maui’s struggling small businesses driven by the spirit of aloha. Dreams shattered. Shops burned to the ground. Irreplaceable losses. These are the realities that small business owners in Lahaina are dealing with as the three-month mark of the devastating Aug. 8 fires draws near. Star-Advertiser.
Gift drive, celebration aim to lift spirits of young Maui fire survivors. Kanani Oury aunched “Makana no na Keiki” — an online Christmas gift drive and in-person holiday event for children directly affected by the Maui wildfires — to spark joy for that community, but she aches for the stories pouring into her email inbox from families asking for presents for their kids. Star-Advertiser.
Dispute shuts down a major community hub in West Maui. There is one thing that both sides agree on -- that state Rep. Elle Cochran started the hub in the Kelawea Mauka subdivision of Lahaina. But volunteer managers asked her to leave -- and when she didn’t, they decided to dismantle the hub. Hawaii News Now.
Kauai
Next tool for saving Kaua’i forest birds from extinction introduced. A dozen researchers and technicians on Thursday began releasing incompatible male mosquitoes to try and stop the near-certain extinction of at least four species of Native Hawaiian honeycreepers. Kauai Now.
Coco Palms debate continues as demolition nears. As the developer of the Coco Palms Resort reported being just weeks away from commencing demolition of the deteriorated site and constructing a 350-room resort, county officials and members of the public continued to debate the possibility of halting the project in two separate meetings this week. Garden Island.
2-mile-long fence on Kauai ready to protect seabirds. Pono Pacific Land Management LLC built the $1.7 million fence along the perimeter of the Kilauea Point National Wildlife Refuge on Kauai’s north shore. Star-Advertiser.
Zelensky: North Koreans fighting with Russians in Ukraine
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KYIV >> Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Sunday that defense
relationships with his country’s partners would have to change in light of
Nor...