State Climate Advisory Team begins work, Maui official oversaw $1M in contracts to family members, fake email invites homeless people to camp out at Hawaii Island mayor's house, more news from all the Hawaiian Islands

Team has work cut out to make Hawaii more resilient to natural disasters.  Gov. Josh Green’s Climate Advisory Team, led by retired Alexander &Baldwin Inc. CEO Chris Benjamin, is about to move from information gathering to crafting solutions that initially will focus on a package of draft bills for the governor to submit for consideration in the upcoming legislative session that begins in January. Star-Advertiser.

Recent COVID data shows the virus is not stopping. According to the Hawaii State Department of Health, weekly data showed an 11% average positivity rate and 88 daily average cases statewide. KHON2.

Can Hawaiʻi keep up with the growing demand for solar panel recycling?  Michael Cooney, a professor at the Hawai‘i Natural Energy Institute, believes Hawaiʻi should enact a statewide stewardship program into law that can manage revenues, offset costs and handle the logistics of solar recycling.  Hawaii Public Radio.

Criminal case against former Maui lawmaker is dismissed.  Honolulu District Court judge Tuesday dismissed the 2023 criminal case against former Maui state Rep. Kaniela Ing, who pleaded no contest to not filing timely campaign spending reports. Star-Advertiser.

Oahu

Staffing Shortages Plus More Cases Are Causing Delays At The State Public Housing Agency. The Hawaii Public Housing Authority has reduced the amount of time it can spend meeting with Honolulu tenants in the low-income housing program. Civil Beat.

Deadly officer-involved shooting in Waianae leaves man dead, 3 seriously injured. A man has died, and three adults are in serious condition following an officer-involved shooting in Waianae Wednesday night, according to Honolulu Police officials. Hawaii News Now. KHON2. KITV4.

Leihōkū Elementary gets new firebreak ahead of school year. A 1,000-foot firebreak has been cleared at Leihōkū Elementary in Waiʻanae to help with fire preparedness. Hawaii Public Radio.

Famous Amos cookies founder advocated for childhood literacy.  Wallace “Wally” Amos, 88, founder of Famous Amos cookies, died Tuesday in his Makiki home due to complications from dementia. Star-Advertiser. Associated Press.  KHON2.

Hawaii Island

Hawai‘i Island police investigate fake email inviting houseless individuals to camp out at mayor’s home. A police officer is guarding the home of Hawaii County Mayor Mitch Roth Wednesday after someone invited the island’s homeless community for a 5-day sleepover. Big Island Now. Hawaii News Now. KHON2.

Don’t Feed The Animals At The Zoo, Hawaiʻi County Says. Items found in the animal enclosures at the Panaʻewa Rainforest Zoo & Gardens present serious risks to the animals, officials say. Big Island Video News. Tribune-Herald. Big Island Now.

Maui

A Maui County Appointee Oversaw Grants To Nonprofits Tied To Her Family Members. Two nonprofits with family ties to Luana Mahi, an economic development director for Maui Mayor Richard Bissen, won more than $1 million in county grants overseen by Mahi since she was appointed in 2023. Civil Beat.

Maui County Council approves Mayor Bissen appointees for recovery roles. Council voted 9-0 during its regular meeting to adopt resolutions recommending approval of Mayor Richard Bissen’s three appointees. Maui News.

Some sound off against mound of rocks they say is blocking off a Maui beach. Criticism is mounting on Maui over a mound of rocks reportedly stacked along the shore near a seaside home in Sprecklesville, with some raising concerns over public beach access in an area that is already hard to get to. KITV4.

New playground dedicated at King Kamehameha III temporary site in West Maui. The students lost their place to play last year when a wildfire destroyed their Front Street campus. Maui Now.

Kauai

New research sheds light on relationships between plants and insects in Kaua‘i forests. The study took place in 40 forests including ʻŌhiʻa-dominated native forests on both the Big Island and Kaua‘i.  Kauai Now.

Kauaʻi County proclaims August 14 ‘Tatiana Weston-Webb Day’.  Olympic surfer Tatiana Weston Webb was honored by the County of Kauaʻi in a ceremony at the Lihuʻe Civic Center on Wednesday morning, when Mayor Derek S.K. Kawakami proclaimed Aug. 14 Tatiana Weston-Webb Day. Kauai Now. Garden Island.

Improved Waikiki Beach greets Japanese 'Golden Week,' Honolulu sewer moratorium halts development, Oahu travel agent disappears with Arkansas band's money, Molokai group fights undersea cable, Kauai regulates ag solar, Hannemann stumps in Kona, more news from all the Hawaiian Islands

Waikiki Beach (c) 2012 All Hawaii News

Beach users gave good reviews Thursday to the just-completed sand replenishment proj­ect that widened Waikiki Beach from the Duke Kahanamoku statue to the Royal Hawaiian Hotel. Star-Advertiser.

Riding on three months of strong momentum, Hawaii's tourism industry is already anticipating a healthy summer. Star-Advertiser.

A 27 percent gain in visitors from Japan last month bodes well for this weekend’s start of Golden Week, traditionally a high-volume period for Japa­nese tourists in Hawaii. Star-Advertiser.

The official at the center of the General Services Administration scandal over a lavish Las Vegas conference was reprimanded in 2011 for appearing in a campaign ad for Sen. Daniel Ino­uye, Roll Call, a Washington, D.C., magazine, reported Thursday. Star-Advertiser.

Legislature

State House and Senate negotiators were still working late Thursday to reach an agreement on the state budget, a stalemate that left dozens of bills in limbo ahead of tonight’s procedural deadline to complete work before the legislative session ends. Star-Advertiser.

Passage of the single-most important bill at the Hawaii Legislature is being held up by the single-most controversial bill before lawmakers this session. Civil Beat.

A measure that would bring most of Hawaii's 1,600 mainland-incarcerated prisoners back is nearing key deadlines at the Capitol. The trend is already starting. KHON2.

The state Legislature will be voting on Hawaiian language mandates in the coming week. Associated Press.

Legislators effectively killed a bill Thursday that would have extended the University of Hawaii's controversial exemption from the state procurement code, a move hailed by some as a victory for government fairness and transparency but which UH lamented as likely to increase construction costs. Star-Advertiser.

Hawaii lawmakers are poised to pass two bills to overhaul the state's charter school system. But the focus has centered more on what the proposed law says charter schools don't have to do than any new requirements or expectations. Civil Beat.

Selling or smoking the synthetic drug "spice" is now a felony in Hawaii. KHON2.

Laura Thielen

Civil Beat has obtained portions of an email exchange between members of the party's State Central Committee conducted between April 10 and April 13 — the latter date just four days before Laura Thielen announced that she would run in the primary without the party's blessing. Civil Beat.

The International Longshore and Warehouse Union has its first woman president. Hawaii Public Radio.

About 9,000 U.S. Marines stationed on Okinawa will be moved to Hawaii, Guam and other locations in the Asia-Pacific under a U.S.-Japa­nese agreement announced Thursday. Associated Press.

Hawaii is one of only two states where consumers won’t see a piece of an estimated $1.3 billion in rebates from health insurers who spent more on administrative expenses and profits than allowed by the federal health care reform act, according to a new analysis by the Kaiser Family Foundation. Pacific Business News.

State roundup for April 27. Associated Press.

Oahu

The City and County of Honolulu Department of Environmental Services has issued a moratorium on new sewer connections from Halawa to Pearl City. Hawaii News Now.

The state granted owners of the Hale‘iwa Farmers' Market a second extension to vacate the site where they've held the popular weekend event for three years. Star-Advertiser.

Honolulu City Councilmember Ann Kobayashi has introduced a bill to amend the historic residential property tax exemption. Hawaii Reporter.

The plastic bag ban is still three years from starting, if Mayor Peter Carlisle approves it, but the movement toward biodegradable bags has already begun. Hawaii News Now.

Public housing getting modern renovations with private help. KITV4.

Nearly four decades since starting a renowned cookie empire, Wally Amos is poised to launch a company using the original recipe that made him Famous Amos. Star-Advertiser.

Officials at Southside High School in Fort Smith, Ark., have contacted the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Department of Justice after an Oahu travel agent told them via email he had lost $267,500 paid by the school for a summer trip to Waikiki. KITV4.

Hawaii

Mufi Hannemann

A U.S. representative’s job, congressional candidate Mufi Hannemann told Rotarians Thursday, is to advocate first for state residents. West Hawaii Today.

The site of the Big Island’s first geothermal power project may once again be put back to use. Tribune-Herald.

Hawaii’s Doppler radars will be shut down, one at a time, beginning in May for upgrades to a next-generation system that will allow for better weather forecasts. Tribune-Herald.

We’ve failed: Hawaii County’s air is the second worst, by county, in the country for annual particle pollution, the American Lung Association says. West Hawaii Today.

Maui

The new hearing officer in the case challenging a University of Hawaii telescope project on Maui is also UH president M.R.C. Greenwood's personal attorney. Civil Beat.

Maui Electric Co. is installing new, "smart" power meters that will enable the utility to remotely monitor electricity fed to more than 100 residents taking part in the Maui smart-grid demonstration project. Associated Press.

Maui Electric Co. has begun installing new, "smart" power meters in Maui Meadows, enabling the utility to remotely monitor electricity fed to more than 100 residents taking part in the Maui smart-grid demonstration project. Maui News.

Judge Adrianne Heely

The state Senate confirmed Adrianne Heely on Wednesday as a District Family Court judge for Maui's 2nd Circuit Court. Maui News.

Adrianne Heely has been confirmed as a family court judge on Maui. Associated Press.

Maui Judge Joseph E. Cardoza today was named Chief Judge and Administrative Judge for the Second Circuit Court. Maui Now.

The long-awaited Courtyard Maui Kahului Airport hotel is set to open in June, a month earlier than previously announced. Maui News.

Kauai

After a few deferrals and various amendments, a bill to regulate solar farms on agricultural lands passed a final vote Wednesday by the Kaua‘i County Council, although some council members wanted more time for scrutiny. Garden Island.

The Kaua‘i County Council on Wednesday unanimously passed a resolution to encourage schools to adopt anti-bullying policies and regulations. Garden Island.

Reid Judson is suing Norberto Garcia and Kaua‘i County for alleged negligence in an officer-involved automobile crash. Garden Island.

Molokai

A high-voltage undersea transmission cable planned for Massachusetts has been killed by one of the nation’s major utilities because it would be a “high-risk” installation, too expensive to construct, with too many severe environmental impacts and too difficult to maintain. Molokai Dispatch.