Hawaii among 4 states sued by Trump administration for climate policies, state sues fossil fuel companies, ICE targets coffee workers' kids, Legislature blocks proposed landfill location on Oahu, more news from all the Hawaiian Islands

Justice Department sues Hawaii, Michigan, Vermont and New York over state climate actions. The U.S. Justice Department filed lawsuits against four states this week, claiming their climate actions conflict with federal authority and President Donald Trump’s energy dominance agenda.  Associated Press. Star-Advertiser.

Hawaii sues big oil companies over climate change. The 196-page civil complaint filed Thursday in Oahu Circuit Court accuses Exxon Mobil, Chevron, ConocoPhillips, Shell, BP, Aloha Petroleum, Phillips 66, Woodside Energy Hawaii, BHP Hawaii, Equilon and the American Petroleum Institute of lying to the public about how fossil fuels cause climate change. Star-Advertiser.

Hawaiʻi AG says the state is 'fully engaged' in responses to Trump administration. Trump's executive orders have triggered more than 200 lawsuits. Hawaiʻi has joined other states in at least 14 of the legal challenges. Hawaii Public Radio.

Hawaiʻi Consumer Advocate Pushes Back Against Young Brothers’ Rate Hike. The state watchdog could get behind a more modest increase if public utility regulators investigate the interisland shipper’s relationship with its parent company. Civil Beat.

Hundreds of bills have passed the Hawaiʻi Legislature. Here are 6 you should know about. State lawmakers passed over 200 bills on Wednesday. That’s a lot to keep track of, so with the legislative session ending on Friday, HPR is narrowing it down to the important bills we’ve been tracking. Hawaii Public Radio.

Hawaii Marines field new weapons in the Philippines. A unit of Hawaii Marines is in the Philippines fielding new weapons for the first time amid simmering tensions with China. Star-Advertiser.

Oahu

Legislature Blocks Honolulu’s Proposed Landfill Location. Supporters applauded the bill for safeguarding drinking water, but the decision once again delays the closure of the city’s current site in Nānākuli. Civil Beat.

East-West Center offers buyouts to 80% of employees. The East-West Center is offering buyouts to 80% of its 137 employees as federal funding concerns continue under Donald Trump’s efforts Opens in a new tab to slash the State Department’s budget by half next fiscal year. Star-Advertiser.

Honolulu Council OKs merged housing department. During a special meeting Wednesday, the City Council voted 6-1, with Radiant Cordero dissenting, to adopt Resolution 86, which advanced the mayor’s plan to create the city Department of Housing and Land Management. Star-Advertiser.

Military couple demands child abuse probe at Navy day care. A military couple is demanding justice, saying their daughter was abused at a U.S. Navy day care. Evie, who was nearly 2 years old, had been attending day care at the Navy’s Ford Island Child Development Center (CDC) since she was baby.  Hawaii News Now.

Falling power poles stir concerns of wildfire risks, but mitigation efforts are underway. Hahaione Valley in East Oahu is like so many other valleys around the state. It’s lush and green -- and the slopes are dotted with power poles that largely go unnoticed. Hawaii News Now.

Hawaii Island

ICE Takes Aim At Immigrant Kids In Big Island’s Coffee Belt. President Trump has said he wants to deport hardened criminals. But on Hawaiʻi, agents are snaring undocumented children and their adult relatives. At the start of March, a Big Island first grader was taken into custody at his elementary school by a Hawaiʻi Police Department school resource officer. Civil Beat.

Salvation Army’s Kona Thrift Store To Close, May 17. The Kona Corps is shifting focus to maximize support for its other local social services and The Salvation Army’s Kona Preschool. Big Island Video News.

Kilauea bursts into the night sky in 19th episode. Kilauea's latest episode began with fountains spouting from the volcano, filling more pools of lava on Thursday night. KITV4.

Maui

Nearly 20% of fire survivor families in FEMA rental housing have missed a payment. FEMA says 175 families in the program have missed at least one rental payment since March. That’s almost 20% of the 984 households currently in the program. Hawaii Public Radio.

Proposed Maui shipping increase raises worries. Some Maui County residents and elected officials are expressing concerns about a requested temporary rate increase of 25% by Interisland shipper Young Brothers, especially in light of efforts to rebuild Lahaina devastated by the 2023 wildfire. Maui News.

Kauai

JABSOM expands family medicine residency program to Kauai. More family doctors are coming to Kauai as the University of Hawaii’s medical school is expanding its family medicine residency program. Hawaii News Now.

Water conservation request for Hanalei and ‘Anini areas ongoing. Department of Water customers in the Hanalei Community and ʻAnini Beach areas remain under a water conservation request due to a mechanical failure on the water system’s pump station. Kauai Now.

Kaua‘i teen graduates high school, college at the same time. A Kaua‘i student is making history on the island as she prepares to walk the graduation stage not once, but twice in May. KHON2.

Hawaii climate lawsuit against oil and gas companies to proceed, governor doubles down on invitation to California fire survivors, HECO unveils $450M wildfire mitigation plan, more news from all the Hawaiian Islands

Supreme Court clears a path for climate lawsuits to proceed. US Supreme Court declines to hear from oil and gas companies trying to block climate change lawsuits. The Supreme Court said Monday it won’t hear an appeal from oil and gas companies trying to block lawsuits seeking to hold the industry liable for billions of dollars in damage linked to climate change. The order allows the city of Honolulu’s lawsuit against oil and gas companies to proceed. Associated Press. New York Times.

Hawaiian Electric submits wildfire safety plan. Hawaii’s largest electrical utility has formalized a three-year plan to reduce future wildfire risks in a new report filed with state regulators. Hawaiian Electric said its latest wildfire safety strategy is expected to cost $450 million to implement over three years through 2027 after $120 million spent on wildfire risk mitigation in 2024. Star-Advertiser. Tribune-Herald. Maui Now. KHON2.  KITV4.

Hawaii offering discounts to survivors, first responders. Gov. Josh Green has asked Hawaii’s visitor industry to partner with the state to offer heavily discounted packages to give California residents and first responders an opportunity to come to Hawaii for respite, and film crews displaced by the California wildfires to continue their work here. Star-Advertiser. KITV4.

Hawaiʻi Agriculture Department Loses Another Deputy. High vacancy rates, particularly in key leadership positions, have cast doubt over the department’s ability to strengthen protections against invasive species. Civil Beat.

Hawaii’s governor responds to deadly fireworks blast with proposed $300 fines, more prison time. Hawaii Gov. Josh Green on Monday proposed a range of new penalties to crack down on those who flout the state’s fireworks laws, nearly two weeks after a fireworks explosion at a Honolulu home on New Year’s Eve killed four people and injured about 20 others. Associated Press. Star-Advertiser.  Civil Beat. Hawaii News Now.

Weather Monitoring System Dispatched In Hawaiʻi. An advanced network of weather monitoring stations are being installed across the state of Hawaiʻi to strengthen flood and wildfire early warning systems. Big Island Video News. Hawaii News Now.

Lawmakers look to expand preschools, tackle teacher shortages this year. Expanding preschools, tackling teacher shortages, and banning cell phones in the classroom are some of the priorities on lawmakers' to-do lists. Hawaii Public Radio.

Struggling To Survive: Hawaiʻi Residents Take On Debt, Think About Leaving. Report: More people having trouble getting by are on neighbor islands. A quarter of households in Hawaiʻi spent more than their income in 2024.  Civil Beat. Hawaii Public Radio.

Oahu

Kai Kahele, OHA board chair, on a renewed push to develop Kakaʻako Makai. Current law bans residential housing on the ocean side of Ala Moana Boulevard. The state transferred the Kakaʻako Makai land to the Office of Hawaiian Affairs years ago as a land base. For the past several years OHA has tried unsuccessfully to get the zoning changed to allow it to build high-rise towers as part of a development called Hakuone.  Hawaii Public Radio.

Honolulu Department of Planning and Permitting temporarily shutters online system. The Honolulu Department of Planning and Permitting today is expected to perform the second major upgrade to its electronic plans review software called ePlans. Star-Advertiser.

Strike at Queen’s is averted in final hours. A strike by union nurses at two Queen’s hospitals on Oahu was averted Monday after a tentative agreement on a new, three-year contract was reached during the early morning hours. Star-Advertiser. Hawaii Public Radio.  KITV4.

Possible security threat triggers evacuations at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam. The commissary and base exchange on Hickam Air Force Base were shut down Monday evening due to a possible security threat. An alert was posted by Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam at around 4:16 p.m. Hawaii News Now.

Hawaii Island

Island begins new year in drought. Most of the island is in moderate drought, with a sliver of the northern portion of West Hawaii in severe drought, according to an update Friday by the National Weather Service in Honolulu. Tribune-Herald.

Maui

Rescuers free two whales entangled in lines off Maui. Two humpback whales were rescued in separate incidents by disentangling them from lines in waters off Maui at the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary. Maui News. Maui Now. Hawaii News Now.

Millions of dollars soon to be available for Maui immigrant fire survivors. Maui immigrant fire survivors will soon be eligible for millions of dollars to help with their recovery efforts. Roots Reborn has launched the Our Financial Future program aimed to help immigrants who lost their jobs or homes in the 2023 fires. Hawaii News Now.

Public comment sought on Maui County Food and Nutrition Security Plan. The Food and Nutrition Security Plan aims to ensure that all Maui County residents have access to affordable, nutritious and culturally appropriate food. Maui Now.

Discovery of hollow grenade halts play at Waiehu Golf Course. Play was suspended at the Waiehu Golf Course on Saturday not because of the weather but because of the discovery of what appears to be an unexploded grenade. Maui News.

Kauai

Nurses at Wilcox Medical Center to start a three-day strike Tuesday morning. Wilcox Medical Center nurses will go through with a strike this morning after negotiations with the hospital ended last night without an agreement.  Kauai Now.

The Kaua‘i County Office of Boards and Commissions will be closed to the public from Wednesday through Jan. 31 because of construction. In-person service is expected to resume Feb. 3. Kauai Now.

New hours for Kauai Police Department. The Records window will now be open Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., and the Firearms window will also be open on the weekdays but will be available from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Garden Island. Kauai Now.