Federal Transit Administration extends Honolulu rail finance deadline, Big Island Democrats mull transparency rule changes, workers comp revamp sought, Kauai electric rates fall, Maui leaders join administration, Abe not the first to visit Pearl Harbor,more news from all the Hawaiian Islands

Red ohia blooms front Maua Kea this week, Facebook photo

The snowfall is returning to the summits of Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea on the Big Island.Hawaii News Now.

Shipping ʻōhiʻa plants and plant parts from Hawaii Island is now illegal on a permanent basis, thanks to new administrative rules drawn up to prevent Rapid ‘Ōhi’a Death from spreading across the state. Big Island Video News.

Shipping ohia from the Big Island is now forever banned. Civil Beat.

Delays, Denials Plague Hawaii’s Program To Help Injured Workers. The state is trying to streamline its workers’ compensation system, but critics say wholesale changes are needed. Civil Beat.

Tuna Commission’s ‘Glacial’ Pace Suits Some In Industry Just Fine. Diverse interests always seem to stymie a global organization charged with saving bluefin and bigeye tuna from overfishing. Civil Beat.

A report has been delivered to the state’s Department of Land and Natural Resources from a group of experts and organizations with interest in establishing non-commercial fishing licenses in Hawaii. Garden Island.

Not the first: Abe predecessor visited Pearl Harbor in 1951. Associated Press.

The faithful turned out in droves Wednesday to remember Pearl Harbor and the men who valiantly tried to defend it on Dec. 7, 1941, three-quarters of a century ago. Star-Advertiser.

Hawaii remembers 75th anniversary of Pearl Harbor attack: Slideshow Pacific Business News.

Oahu

The rail system’s federal partners have again extended the deadline for the city’s crucial rail “recovery” plan, giving local leaders four more months to deal with daunting budget problems but not as much time as they’d hoped. Star-Advertiser.

The Federal Transit Administration has given Honolulu’s troubled rail project until the end of April to submit a plan for how it plans to bridge a shortfall likely to approach $2 billion. Civil Beat.

The Federal Transit Administration has extended the deadline for the Honolulu rail project’s recovery plan, but did not give the agency overseeing construction of the multibillion-dollar project as much time as it requested. Pacific Business News.

In a letter sent to Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell, the Federal Transit Administration said it’s giving the city a four-month extension to secure more funding for the cash-strapped Honolulu rail project. Hawaii News Now.

The seven-member Honolulu Police Commission voted unanimously Wednesday to make hotel executive Max Sword the chairman of the closely watched panel effective Jan. 1. Star-Advertiser.

A state board is taking more time before deciding whether to approve another condominium high-rise at Ward Village after receiving lots of public testimony for and against the project. Star-Advertiser.

Hawaii

New rules are being proposed by Hawaii County Democratic Party officials to select candidates to fill legislative vacancies, after a text message between district officers showed the outcome prior to Saturday’s vote of candidates for the House seat vacated by the death of Rep. Clift Tsuji. West Hawaii Today.

Mayor Harry Kim has one more major hire to make as he fills out his administration. Ed Teixeira, who started as interim Civil Defense administrator last May, retired Monday, leaving the administrative position vacant for the time being. Tribune-Herald.

It took about a year of arguing with the Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources, but we finally got our hands on Ethan Ferguson’s job application. Ferguson is the DLNR officer accused of sexually assaulting a teenager on the Big Island.  Civil Beat.

Food safety rule amendments that will require every restaurant to have at least one certified food handler per shift, among other changes, will be the subject of a public hearing from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. today at the West Hawaii Civic Center. West Hawaii Today.

The leasehold Pagoda Hilo Bay Hotel on the Big Island of Hawaii, known for years as Uncle Billy's Hilo Bay Hotel, could be demolished and be redeveloped into a Hilton Garden Inn under a plan by the owner of the nearby DoubleTree by Hilton Grand Naniloa Hotel, Pacific Business News has learned.

Maui

Familiar faces in Maui County government, including two outgoing council members, are joining Mayor Alan Arakawa’s administration as vacancies open up in some key positions. Maui News.

A dispute over water rights that dominated the last legislative session is expected to continue Friday at a Board of Land and Natural Resources hearing. Civil Beat.

Kauai

The Public Works/Parks and Recreation Committee unanimously approved a bill Wednesday that would allow the sale of alcohol at Wailua Golf Course. Garden Island.

The Kauai Island Utility Cooperative's rates for its members have fallen by 18 percent since 2008, the Lihue-based cooperative said Tuesday. Pacific Business News.

Hanalei Watershed Hui is accepting applications from Hanalei residential property owners interested in a funding subsidy to replace aging cesspools with updated waste water systems. Garden Island.

The last of the 20 Hawaiian Petrels brought into the 7.8-acre Nihoku colony this fall fledged, flying safely out to sea Wednesday on Kauai. Garden Island.

The first real estate component of the 450-acre Hokuala Resort master-planned oceanfront community on the site of the former Kauai Lagoons project in Lihue is scheduled to be completed in the summer of 2017. Pacific Business News.

Legislative negotiators agree on $10M for preschools, bluefin tuna at risk, Martin pulls papers for Honolulu mayor, rail could mean more new schools, Maui named top island in the world, Oahu elementary school named for Inouye, igloos for homeless, more news from all the Hawaiian Islands

Budget conference committee, courtesy Hawaii House

State Senate and House lawmakers began working out their differences on more than 300 bills today.  A high priority this session was homelessness and affordable housing. Hawaii Public Radio.

House and Senate lawmakers have agreed to provide $10 million for Preschool Open Doors, which is expected to help 1,500 at-risk kids access an early education program for low-income families. It was the most significant of many budget decisions that House Finance Chair Sylvia Luke and Senate Ways and Means Chair Jill Tokuda announced Tuesday in a packed conference room at the Capitol. Civil Beat.

Legislative leaders want to boost funding for a program that helps fund preschool for children from low-income families, and say they’ve agreed to increase the budget for the Preschool Open Doors to $10 million. Associated Press.

The latest scientific assessment paints a likely bleak future for the Pacific bluefin tuna, a sushi lovers’ favorite whose population has dropped by more than 97 percent from its historic levels. Associated Press.

Last year nearly a quarter of middle school students in Hawaii said they had seriously considered suicide, according to the 2015 Youth Risk Behavior Survey. Civil Beat.

At a recent press conference to show support for bills to help the homeless and provide affordable housing, state Sen. President Ron Kouchi quoted from scripture. Civil Beat.

Chevron Hawaii’s gas stations will be rebranded to Texaco once the sale of the company’s Hawaii assets closes later this year to New York’s One Rock Capital Partners LP, a spokesperson for One Rock Capital said Tuesday. Pacific Business News.

Oahu

The answer to “will he or won’t he” took a new turn Tuesday when Ernie Martin pulled papers to run for mayor of Honolulu. Civil Beat.

The state Department of Education anticipates future residential development along the city’s rail line in urban Honolulu will bring with it an additional 10,200 students to area public schools, far exceeding existing capacity and requiring several new schools from Kalihi to Ala Moana. Star-Advertiser.

The state could be saddled with some big school construction costs in coming decades if current housing and population growth predictions hold true for a 4-mile swath of urban Honolulu, according to a Department of Education report. Civil Beat.

A new Department of Education report says approximately 39,000 new residential units will be built between Kalihi and Ala Moana and that could bring in about 10,000 new students to the district. KHON2.

A month after approving a $4.7 million payment to settle two lawsuits filed by one current and two former Honolulu police officers who alleged discrimination, the Honolulu City Council is being asked to approve more money for attorneys’ fees. Star-Advertiser.

Plans to allow two managed homeless encampments on Oahu are moving forward, while the city also plans to build a hygiene center for the homeless. Hawaii News Now.

The City and County of Honolulu has denied a $180,000 grant to Mental Health Kokua Activity Center, a non-profit organization that serves severely mentally ill people in downtown Honolulu and Chinatown. Civil Beat.

Red Hill’s First Assembly of God church wants to erect a dozen igloo-­shaped domes from Alaska to create a “shelter village” somewhere in town for about 40 homeless people. Star-Advertiser.

Officials at an Oahu high school were negligent in not preventing an alleged rape between two special-education students, a lawyer told jurors Tuesday. Star-Advertiser.

The Hawaii State Board of Education approved the renaming of Hale Kula Elementary School to Daniel K. Inouye Elementary School during its meeting on Tuesday. KITV4.

Hawaii

After hearing from supporters and critics of embattled Mayor Billy Kenoi, it was the Hawaii County Council’s silence that spoke the loudest Tuesday. Tribune-Herald.

More than two dozen people showed up Tuesday evening to speak their minds on a proposed one-half percent general excise tax increase, with all but one opposed to the idea. West Hawaii Today.

A plan to create a 306-unit multiple family residential development just mauka of the popular Kahalu’u Bay goes before the Leeward Planning Commission this week. Big Island Video News.

After months of uncertainty, plans to build the Daniel K. Inouye College of Pharmacy’s long awaited permanent building are finally moving forward. The University of Hawaii on Monday awarded the project to Isemoto Contracting Co. for $31.3 million. Tribune-Herald.

BJ Penn told a mixed martial arts podcast Monday night that allegations of sexual assault that put his plans for a return to fighting on hold “definitely hurt my heart.” Tribune-Herald.

Maui

Maui is Nō Ka ʻOi once again. The island of Maui was just ranked the Top Island in the World and the Top Island in the US by the travel planning and booking website TripAdvisor. Maui Now.

Developers of a 1,500-home Olowalu development, which has been a decade in the making, have withdrawn their plans in a victory for those who opposed the project as inappropriate for the West Maui area. Maui News.

Developers have withdrawn plans to build 1,500 homes in a west Maui community, a decision that comes months after state officials rejected the project's environmental assessment. Associated Press.

Designs for the final phase of the long-awaited North Shore Greenway - a 7-mile pedestrian and bike-friendly pathway between Kahului and Paia - are "90 percent done," and the project could go out to bid by summer and be completed next year, county Department of Public Works engineers said. Maui News.

The Maui Young Democrats invites the public to attend their Upcountry County Council debate on Wednesday, April 27, 2016, at the Pukalani Community Center. Maui Now.

Kauai

Bills covering smoking in a motor vehicle, homestays and vending on county-owned property are slated to go before the Kauai County Council on Wednesday. Garden Island.

The final report on pesticide use by agribusiness on Kauai is in the works. Garden Island.

State Rep. Dee Morikawa has a list of projects she wants done in her district. Garden Island.