Turtles get protection, economic signals mixed, developers' permits take years, state looks to loosen marijuana laws even as feds raid Cannabis Ministry, Hawaii County to consider ethics, more state news

The National Marine Fisheries Service and the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service jointly published a proposal to "up-list" North Pacific turtles to endangered under the Endangered Species Act.

The state Council on Revenues delivered mixed news yesterday: No need for any more state budget cuts to get through the fiscal year that ends in June, but the state will have to find more money to stay out of the red next year.

Hawaii's economy is showing signs of recovery, but uncertainty remains about how long it will be before the state fully emerges from recession

The momentum is shifting from negative to positive when it comes to the state general fund revenues.

The Council on Revenues Thursday forecast $48 million less in tax revenues to be collected by the state this fiscal year ending June 30, and next fiscal year.

Three marijuana bills are making their way through the Hawaii State Capitol.

Federal agents raided the downtown Hilo sanctuary of The Hawaii Cannabis Ministry Wednesday morning, assisted by local police.

Flag Bill Dead For Session

The state Department of Land and Natural Resources may issue a request for proposals for a kayak concession at Kealakekua Bay, the agency's director says.

A developer who hopes to build 3,500 homes makai of the H-2 freeway says farmers working on the land have found another place to plant.

It has taken six years, but Sterling Kim has gotten his final construction approvals from Maui County for phase one of his Hale Mua affordable housing project on about 200 acres mauka of Happy Valley.

The 16th iteration of a burial treatment plan that would allow Naue landowner Joseph Brescia to move forward with construction on his single-family home atop 30 known Hawaiian burials was approved this week by the State Historic Preservation Division.

The accrediting agency that six years ago raised serious concerns about the University of Hawai'i's operations is praising UH-Manoa for a big turnaround, saying the campus has "emerged from a difficult past," benefited from "stable" leadership and shows promise on meeting its goals.

Hawaii County's two bands will play on, according to County Council members working to preserve the $347,027 budget Mayor Billy Kenoi has proposed eliminating.

Dueling ethics proposals will be presented to the Hawaii County Council at an April 6 committee meeting, thanks to action taken Wednesday by the Board of Ethics.

ACLU: State discriminates against unmarried couples, more than 5k medical marijuana users, tourism is king, green building code costing, meth addict guilty of throwing baby off overpass, more

Hawaii’s sandalwood industry is long gone. Even sugar operations are a distant memory. For now, tourism is the industry in Hawaii.

Ten years after Hawaii became one of the first medical marijuana states, lawmakers are planning to make more marijuana available to patients. However, law enforcement agencies are objecting, saying the current law is not working the way it was intended.

So far the state has granted more than five-thousand medical marijuana permits, majority of those on the Big Island.

State general fund tax collections for the first seven months of the fiscal year decreased by 5.4 percent compared with the same period last year, but the decline wasn't as severe as the drop in revenues reported in the first half of the year.

The American Civil Liberties Union has filed a complaint alleging that the Department of Land and Natural Resources is discriminating against unmarried couples who want to live together on boats in state-run harbors.

A state judge found an admitted methamphetamine addict guilty yesterday in the death of a toddler thrown from an H-1 pedestrian overpass.

Former Mayor Frank Fasi's body will lie in state at Honolulu Hale all day on March 3 to give the public an opportunity to pay its respects.

Surfers need to say thank you to El Nino. The weather phenomenon is bringing in great surf conditions today and all winter long.

Big Island business leaders argue that a state House of Representatives bill to lower unemployment insurance tax rates doesn't provide enough relief for overburdened entrepreneurs.

Laupahoehoe High and Elementary School may now apply to the state for public charter school status following Wednesday's supportive 145-35 vote by parents and teachers.

A new "green" building code that goes into effect this spring could cost a bit more green as well.

Maui County Council members who appoint another person to represent them on the board of a nonprofit could still face a conflict of interest in voting on matters that affect the organization, the Board of Ethics stated.

After hearing nearly four hours of emotional testimony, the Kaua‘i/Ni‘ihau Island Burial Council on Thursday unanimously rejected the 16th draft of the burial treatment for Naue landowner Joseph Brescia’s controversial single-family home.

Kilauea sends lava through subdivision, surf's up, lawmakers advance casinos, fireworks and legal marijuana, but snuff out cigarettes, more state news

Fires are burning on the Big Island of Hawaii as a surge of lava pulses down slope through as many as six tubes, threatening the last remaining home in a neighborhood scorched by lava flows.

Lava from Kílauea volcano once again has oozed through the mostly abandoned Royal Gardens subdivision, covering portions of the small open areas untouched by previous flows.

A high surf warning is in effect for north and west facing shores of Niihau, Kauai, Oahu and Molokai as well as north facing shores of Maui and west facing shores of the island of Hawaii. The warning is posted through 6:00 PM Thursday.

Marijuana could be sold legally and have its own tax under a proposal approved Tuesday by a state Senate committee.

Two state House committees on Tuesday killed a bill to allow customers to smoke in certain bars.

A bill that could lead to casinos on Hawaiian Home Lands passed out of the state House Judiciary Committee, while a separate measure that would allow a single casino on O'ahu also advanced yesterday.

Prospects for a statewide ban on fireworks dimmed yesterday after a state Senate committee chose to give counties the ability to opt out.

Natural disasters were considered "low-probability events" four years ago when planning began here on a hazard preparedness training program, observed University of Hawaii professor Karl Kim.

Spending and visitor arrivals for the Honolulu Marathon have remained at a good pace, with participants spending more than $100 million for the fifth year in a row, despite the tourism industry languishing in a cool-down period.

Residents hoping to visit the incredible natural wonders around the Captain Cook Monument in Kealakekua Bay will soon need to apply for a free permit from the state to land their kayaks.

Statistics about infant health and mortality can be a weathervane when it comes to predicting future trends in the health of the general population, a state health official says.

Honolulu real estate developer and broker Chris Lau has been appointed commissioner to sell the Makena Beach and Golf Resort, which was foreclosed last year. The auction probably will be scheduled for April.

A trio of bills that could go a long way toward curtailing unintended land uses and promoting agriculture on the Garden Isle have piled up on the Kaua‘i County Council’s to-do list.

Casting call for surfer movie on, islands settle into normal trade-wind weather, no Magic in Obama name, residents call for DU cleanup, more news

Gentle winds and big waves are in the forecast for the weekend.

Have you ever dreamed of being in a surf movie? Now's your chance and you don't even have to surf. There's a casting call for extras this Saturday for a movie about Kauai surfing champion, Bethany Hamilton.

Four people urged a panel of judges to force the Army to clean up its depleted uranium-contaminated lands Wednesday.

Four Hawaii residents charged the U.S. Army with trying to cover up its discovery of depleted uranium and then taking a cavalier attitude about cleaning it up during a five-hour hearing Wednesday before a panel of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

There was little support at a City Council meeting yesterday for a plan to name what's popularly known as Magic Island after President Obama anytime soon, and the plan now appears to be in limbo.

While Councilman Tim Bynum pointed to a “non-starter” 50-cent fuel tax proposal to undermine other recommendations in the final draft of the Kaua‘i Energy Sustainability Plan Wednesday, his colleagues offered much harsher criticisms of the fuel tax a day later.

Two Hawaiian Electric Co. employees were injured yesterday by an underground explosion that shook the ground and knocked out power to downtown Honolulu.

"Ambiguous" wording in Hawaii County's so-called "Peaceful Sky" law needs rectifying because it's hampering the Police Commission's work, says the panel's chairman.

Think pulling off the road when you use your cell phone will get you off the hook for a ticket? Think again.

Maui County Council members took a step Wednesday toward altering the county's residential work force housing policy in an effort to coax more development of affordable housing - and any housing - in these troubled economic times.

Even as it closed a door, the Kaua‘i County Council opened a window

Akaka Bill up for debate, new sponges, coral found, bed and breakfasts head to likely defeat, more

Opponents of federal recognition for native Hawaiians are urging Hawaii's congressional delegation to hold hearings in Hawaii on the latest version of the Akaka Bill, which is being discussed in Congress this week.

Sen. Daniel K. Inouye denied accusations yesterday by a group of mostly Native Hawaiians that he is trying to avoid public scrutiny of legislation that would grant them historic new status by hiding it in a defense bill.

A bill that would allow the issuance of more bed-and-breakfast permits on Oahu for the first time in 20 years will likely be defeated when it comes up for a final vote tomorrow.

New and dramatic species of coral and sponges have been found in the Pacific during deep-sea dives near the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, scientists said yesterday.

A shortage of trees had families scrambling this weekend in Hawaii.

An Oahu Christmas tree vendor says more Christmas trees are expected to be available for sale Wednesday or Thursday. Richard Tajiri, who runs the Christmas tree concession at Ala Moana Center near Sears, says 400 more trees have been ordered.

Hawaii County Council members on Tuesday will debate a resolution that would ask the state Legislature to decriminalize marijuana

A garage sale of abandoned liquids, jams, jellies and lotions took a West Hawaii couple by surprise last week, but it turns out that airport officials have signed off on the donation of discarded items to a nonprofit.

Immediate efforts are needed to curb the rapid decline of endemic seabirds being impacted by the modernization of mankind, according to Kaua‘i Island Utility Cooperative’s final draft Short-Term Seabird Habitat Conservation Plan.

Homeowners who have provided affordable housing in recent years but failed to file paperwork to earn property tax breaks were granted a do-over by the Kaua‘i County Council last week but will not get a refund for any increases they may have paid in the interim.

Sen. Inouye, 'earmark guy,' Maui wowie bust, TV stations merge and other top Hawaii news

Sen. Daniel K. Inouye defended his earmarks before a friendly crowd Monday at the Keauhou Beach Resort.

U.S. Sen. Daniel Inouye, normally not a politician who seeks a lot of attention outside of election years, is proclaiming himself Capitol Hill's king of earmarks.

A "weak to moderate" El Nino weather system has developed in the tropical Pacific Ocean and could create unusual weather patterns around the world through March, a U.N. agency said Wednesday

Women inmates from Hawai'i will be removed from a Kentucky prison for safety reasons after allegations that some were sexually abused by prison guards, the state Department of Public Safety announced yesterday.

The shared-services agreement between KGMB-TV and KHNL/KFVE-TV to keep all three stations operating in the throes of the revenue-crippling recession was met with fear and loathing yesterday.

State employees who had planned to retire in December, but instead received layoff notices informing them of their jobs being cut Nov. 13, could be allowed to retire as planned.

"Don't fence us out" was the message from some Big Island hunters who were upset Monday evening about the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's mandate requiring the Army to put in more fencing at Pohakuloa Training Area over the next three years.

Maui police and federal agents confiscated more than 130 pounds of high-quality processed marijuana and arrested a 37-year-old Kula woman this month in what police called Tuesday the largest processed marijuana seizure and investigation in Maui County history.

We had the opportunity to visit the Mealani Experiment Station in Waimea recently to see what the newest and latest work is being done there.

Alan Arakawa, who as mayor encouraged Sterling Kim to pursue his Hale Mua affordable housing project, on Monday encouraged Mayor Charmaine Tavares to sign the final construction plan approval so Kim can build the project on more than 200 acres in Waiehu.

Lydgate Park needs help, again.

Spending Commission: Abercrombie can't use his fed money in state campaign

U.S. Rep. Neil Abercrombie's race for the governor's office suffered a setback yesterday when a state commission ruled the veteran congressman cannot transfer more than $900,000 from his federal campaign fund to his gubernatorial campaign

U.S. Rep. Neil Abercrombie's run for governor took a financial hit yesterday as the state Campaign Spending Commission barred him from transferring about $900,000 left over from his federal campaigns to use in his run for state office.

The state Campaign Spending Commission members ruled against U.S. Rep. Neil Abercrombie transferring funds from his Congressional campaign to his campaign for governor.

A proposal for building 12,000 homes on what is described as the best agricultural land on Oahu goes back before the state Land Use Commission tomorrow.

Looking makai from H-1 Freeway just west of Waipahu is a tranquil view: rows of green and resting fields of fertile dirt covering 1,600 acres.

As of 5 this morning, state Civil Defense had received no reports of flooding or storm-surge damage related to the remnants of tropical depression Felicia.

Green Harvest operations Monday and Tuesday netted 284 plants and nearly three pounds of processed marijuana, said Kaua‘i Police Chief Darryl Perry.

There's not much the state Legislature can do to keep Gov. Linda Lingle from laying off the Big Island workers who run Kulani Correctional Facility and ensure island produce gets to off-island markets.

Lava from Kilauea Volcano has never taken Wendy Ford's Leilani Estates home, but it is wiping out her homeowners insurance.

Top Hawaii Headlines: Wednesday morning edition

The skipper of the $1 billion guided-missile cruiser that ran aground near Honolulu Airport's reef runway Feb. 5 has avoided a military court-martial.

The captain of the Navy guided-missile cruiser that ran aground off the Honolulu International Airport Feb. 5 was cited for dereliction of duty and received an undisclosed punishment yesterday, the Navy announced.

Gov. Linda Lingle yesterday signed a bill into law that reduces pay for the governor, lieutenant governor, department directors, judges and state lawmakers by 5 percent and freezes their salaries through June 2011.

Labor attorneys and public officials are questioning whether Gov. Linda Lingle has the authority to furlough state employees without first negotiating the cuts with their unions.

A state senator is worried that the governor's furlough plan may put people in danger.

While Maui County's leaders said they understood the need for Gov. Linda Lingle to take action because of falling state revenue projections, they questioned Monday her decision to order three-days-per-month furloughs for state workers and reductions of free health insurance benefits for low-income adults.

A turf war between a county councilman and Mayor Billy Kenoi's administration could cost taxpayers thousands at a time when every dollar counts

A proposal authorizing Hawaii County to negotiate buying the Pahoa steam vents sailed through the County Council's Finance Committee with unanimous support Monday.

Of the 197 adults ages 21 and older who have been arrested for 291 marijuana-related offenses in Hawaii County, 106 are Caucasian, while Hawaiians were the second-most arrested ethnicity, with 45.

A Nevada-based developer is asking the state Land Use Commission for another chance to comply with reclassification requirements.

As summertime descends upon Kauai, road repairs will begin to flourish.

Top Hawaii Headlines: Wednesday morning edition

Pipe and cigar smokers along with those who buy snuff and chewing tobacco in Hawaii are getting a four-month, $400,000 state tobacco tax holiday because of an error in a tax law written by the state Legislature.

The state's Employees' Retirement System investment portfolio sank by more than a half-billion dollars during the first three months of the year as stock markets tumbled.

State legislators surprised hospital officials with a $12.3 million appropriation to help offset rising costs of health care for the unemployed and uninsured.

An article posted on the Tax Foundation's Web site said Hawai'i is leap-frogging seven other states to move into the No. 1 spot for income tax rates.

The National Science Foundation says the summit of Haleakala is the best site in the world for its proposed Advanced Technology Solar Telescope.

About 25 people on Tuesday protested at the Honolulu federal court demanding the impeachment and prosecution of federal Judge James S. Bybee.

West Hawaii's own planning commission will meet for the first time on Friday.

Just 75 marijuana plants, ranging in size from seedlings to four-footers, were taken by law enforcement officers during last week’s Green Harvest operations across the island, according to Kaua‘i Police Department officials.

Officers seized 113 plants from indoor pot operation. Two people accused of operating an indoor pot farm have been indicted by a Hilo grand jury.

Imagine getting liposuction during your lunch, then going to work the next day. New technology makes that possible. It's a laser procedure, now available in Honolulu, and it's a first in Hawaii.

Hawaii considers marijuana stamps

HONOLULU -- Talk about your green stamps.

The Hawaii House today advanced a bill that would issue cannabis distribution stamps to participants in the state’s medical marijuana program.

Hawaii has had a medical marijuana program since 2000, allowing doctors to write a pot prescription for everything from glaucoma to AIDS to cancer. The law allows patients with prescriptions to grow what is known in state law as an “adequate supply.”

That’s further defined as “an amount of marijuana jointly possessed between the qualifying patient and the primary caregiver that is not more than is reasonably necessary to assure the uninterrupted availability of marijuana for the purpose of alleviating the symptoms or effects of a qualifying patient's debilitating medical condition; provided that an "adequate supply" shall not exceed three mature marijuana plants, four immature marijuana plants, and one ounce of usable marijuana per each mature plant.”

The problem, unless the patient has the land and the ability to grow his or her own, has been that would-be users must break the law to get their legal supply.

“If a patient is unable to produce enough medicine, they must resort to transacting on the black market, with a variety of inherent risks,” said Big Island proponent Matthew Rifkin in testimony to a House committee.

The Legislative Reference Bureau, in its 2004 publication “In Search Of A Viable Distribution System For Hawaii's Medical Marijuana Program,” recommended the distribution-stamp program.

Under the program, a farmer puts up some land for secure growing facilities and a certified facilitator serves as the go-between from farmer to user. Users are issued stamps at a cost of no more than 50 cents per gram of marijuana.

The bill now moves to two other committees before coming back to the full House for another vote, then on to the Senate. Its chances of passing are pretty good, with only two of the 6 Republicans in the 51-member House voting no.

Law enforcement hopes it can stop the bill before it gets too far.

“The message could be interpreted as the state of Hawaii Legislature legalizing drug trafficking within the state,” said Paul K. Ferreira, acting police chief for the Big Island. “To expand the medical marijuana laws and amend our current statutes from their current restrictions would only assist those individuals now growing marijuana illegally and generating huge profits by allowing them to use the medical marijuana law to aid in avoiding detection.”