Hawaii Dead Last in Technology Exports

That's what Bill Spencer, Hawaii Venture Capital Association, claims in a scathing letter to the editor in today's Honolulu Star-Bulletin. Spencer accuses Economic Development Director Ted Liu of painting a rosy picture of Hawaii's economy tied to what he calls "status quo" industries such as tourism and construction, and blasts the Governor's "lack of commitment" in developing an innovation economy. (In all fairness, it seemed that the administration went into a full court press on innovation during most of the session - hardly what you would call lack of commitment.) Spencer makes an interesting point, though, on Hawaii's ranking compared to other states. Can we really be dead last, behind Puerto Rico (gasp!) in technology exports?

Not to worry. According to House sources, Hawaii ranks #1 in citizen longevity, lowest depression level (tied with New Jersey), access to healthcare, and most disciplined flossers. When the question was asked how one would go about measuring dental floss discipline, another source answered...

...by oral exams.

LWV wants to cut LG Aiona out of PSA's

Daryl Huff at KITV filed a story yesterday that the League of Women Voters is calling for L.G. Duke Aiona to step down from his spokesman role in public service announcements. Rep. Marcus Oshiro, who introduced the law prohibiting candidates from appearing in psa's while they are running for office wrote about the issue here and in letters to the editor in June. The loophole is that the candidate doesn't have to stop the appearances until he/she files to run. Even though he is raising funds and has announced his candidacy, it is not likely that the LG will file until 2010 allowing him 3 more years to promote his image to the voting public using taxpayer dollars. The LWV believes he is violating the spirit, if not the letter, of the law. Should the legislature amend the law?

"25 Online Ideas Worth Stealing"

State Legislatures, the publication of the National Conference of State Legislatures, published a list of 25 internet-based ideas "worth stealing" from state legislatures across the country. It's a nod in acknowledging that legislative websites have "informed citizens, brought them closer to their government, provided new services, and made legislative processes more accessible and transparent." We couldn't agree more. Hawaii is listed as Idea #2 for allowing committee testimony by email and the assistance provided by the Public Access Room.

Comments welcomed on whether Hawaii should, as we say, cock-a-roach any of these ideas to make the legislative process more user-friendly. If you'd like the web address for any of these programs, let us know.

#1 from Minnesota. Property Tax and You. Webpage devoted to property tax, asking citizens to share their property tax stories and offer ideas for solutions.

#2 from Hawaii. Testimony by Email.

#3 from Arizona. Request to Speak in Committee. Citizens wishing to testify on a bill can sign up in advance online.

#4 from Nevada. Online Opinion Poll.

#5 from Utah. Blogging. This is the famed Senate Site from the Utah Senate Majority. (And very helpful to Hawaii when we started our own blog.)

#6 from Kentucky. Email Your Legislator. What's different is that a link is provided for a general "in-box" where messages are sorted and directed to the right legislator, and a link sending messages to "all" legislators.

#7 from Arizona, Search Those Archives, searchable video archives of floor actions and committee hearings; and from Utah, Hear the Debates, searchable audio clips for the same.

#8 from Vermont and Texas. Roll Call Votes. Vermont allows search of roll call votes by member name or by bill number. Texas provides roll call votes by various methods, such as bill number, date, bill text.

#9 from Nebraska. "I'm new here" guide. Informational guide to the legislature and process.

#10 from Florida. Online sunshine for kids.

#11 from West Virginia. Up to the minute RSS feeds. News releases, meeting schedules, tracking action on bills, etc.

#12 from Washington. Spanish language version. Did you know Spanish is the second most common language in Washington state? Not everything is available in Spanish, but there is a Spanish version of the homepage and television coverage of political debates.

#13 from Michigan. Load it on your PDA. Session schedules, calendar, committee bill records, and committee meetings in a small-screen viewing format.

#14 from Illinois and South Dakota. Personalized bill tracking. "My legislation" feature allows customized bill tracking.

#15 from Texas. Current amendment. Web page automatically updates as legislative activity occurs on the House floor, including a scanned image of the amendment or current bill being considered.

#16 from Virginia. Live help hotline. Clicking on the "Live help" button begins an internet chat session with a staff member who can respond to questions.

#17 from Wisconsin. Who represents me? Enter street address or use interactive district maps to figure out the names of your legislators.

#18 from North Carolina. Privacy policy.

#19 from Louisiana. Virtual Tour.

#20 from Missouri. Podcasts.

#21 from Pennsylvania. Legislation Archives. Dates back to the 1969-70 session.

#22 from South Carolina. Quick Search. Legislation, budget, Constitution, House and Senate Journals, bill summaries, all searchable from the home page.

#23 from California. Accessibility. Website compliance with the W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines.

#24 from Idaho. Budget Process demystified, including fiscal facts and budget analyses.

#25 from New Jersey. Site Map and Easy Navigation. It's a loaded site, but navigation features make it user-friendly.

New Electronic Surveillance Law

Not much in the local newspapers on this, but President Bush signed a new expanded wiretapping law Sunday that would seem to have implications for many Hawaii residents who make international telephone calls or send international emails. Read the NYT story. The new law allows the National Security Agency to listen to Americans calling overseas, without a warrant. The White House spokesman said that the intent is not to focus on Americans, but to give the government greater "flexibility in focusing on foreign suspects overseas." In a nutshell, the new law provides a legal framework for the National Security Agency to eavesdrop on foreign communications, placing the surveillance outside the jurisdiction of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978.

When the topic exploded in 2006 as a privacy issue, telecommunications companies balked at cooperating with the federal government, and Hawaiian Telcom indicated that they had not been contacted by the NSA to participate in the program. Now, it appears that the companies can be ordered to cooperate by the attorney general or the director of national intelligence (although it also appears likely that this section of the law will be challenged in court.)

The Hawaii legislature passed SB965 in 2006 to update the state's electronic surveillance law, and several resolutions were introduced (but went nowhere) calling for an investigation into warrantless wiretapping. Hawaii has a large population with family and business contacts overseas. They should be made more aware of this new law.

Who is Faye Hanohano?

Photo: Rep. Faye Hanohano. Credit: Hunter Bishop

Rep. Marilyn Lee ended her series on freshmen representatives with an interview with Big Island Rep. Faye Pua Hanohano. Rep. Hanohano has a hard act to follow. She won the district formally led by Rep. Helene Hale who stepped down at age 88 after serving in county and state politics for 52 years, and who was the only member of African-American descent in the state legislature. Faye Hanohano has her own unique qualifications.

She is the only member of the state legislature whose first language is Hawaiian. She was raised in a Hawaiian family that stayed very close to the native culture. She raises her own dry land taro, makes her own poi, and is bothered by the watery consistency of poi that is sold commercially. In fact, she may even introduce legislation that would address poi consistency.

She was the first female correctional officer at the Kulani correctional facility in East Hawaii. She had planned to become a police officer, but she got the job at Kulani and ended up serving there for 25 years.

She believes her community is open to the idea of expanding geothermal operations by the Puna Geothermal Venture, located on the East Rift Zone of the Kilauea Volcano. Currently, Puna Geothermal provides 30% of the electrical demand on the Big Island.

Rep. Hanohano is also concerned about the amount of depleted uranium left by military operations, particularly Pohakuloa on the Big Island. Even though this is not in her district, she will be looking to address this issue next session.

Other critical issues for District 4 (Puna, Pahoa, Hawaiian Acres, Kalapana) include road access (only one way in and one way out), and the need for a dialysis center in the area as many of the residents in the district are diabetic.

The show will re-air on Sunday, August 19, 4:00 p.m., channel 54.

The Taddster at Reno-Tahoe

Photo: Rep. Scott Nishimoto, Tadd Fujikawa and Rep. Glenn Wakai. Both reps report a golf handicap of 28

Tadd Fujikawa made his professional debut at the Reno-Tahoe Open on Thursday. While this is being posted, Tadd appears to be struggling to make the cut. However, he has lots of fans in Hawaii cheering him on who will be proud of his performance, no matter the score. This session, Rep. Glenn Wakai, who represents the district where Tadd lives and goes to Moanalua High School, sponsored a floor presentation to honor the young golfer.

Lucky Dog

Photo: Representatives Sharon Har, Faye Hanohano and Jon Riki Karamatsu with Beth and Duane "Dog" Chapman

What got the most public and media attention at the 2007 legislative session? Affordable housing? Healthcare? Quite possibly, it was the looming extradition of Dog the Bounty Hunter to face criminal charges in Mexico. Duane Dog Chapman, who films his successful TV series in Hawaii, has been in the news recently, not only to promote a new book, but because it appears the Mexican government is about the dismiss his case. Star-Bulletin story. Advertiser story.

Could it be (wink!) because the House Committee on International Relations heard House Concurrent Resolution 50 requesting the president of Mexico and the second district court of Guadalajara to drop the charges? While the resolution did not make it out of the Judiciary committee, the House did honor Dog and his team on the House floor with a Certificate of Appreciation, HR284, commending Duane and Beth Chapman for their contributions to Hawaii.

Photo: Rep. Maile Shimabukuro with Duane "Dog" Chapman

Peacekeepers sent to Darfur

The United Nations Security Council yesterday approved a 26,000 member force made up of mostly African peacekeeper soldiers from the western region of Sudan. Their mission is to end four years of rape and slaughter in Darfur; it is estimated that 200,000 people have died, and 2.5 million have been uprooted and are refugees. The peacekeepers are expected to be in Darfur by year's end, and when fully deployed, it will be the largest peacekeeping operation in the world. Today, Denmark, France and Indonesia signed on to contribute to the effort.

What has Hawaii done to help? There were several measures introduced in 2007 to recognize the extreme atrocities being done to human life in Darfur. HB34, introduced by Rep. Roy Takumi, was the measure that passed into law. It prohibits the Employees' Retirement System from acquiring any securities of companies that have active business operations with Sudan. HR22, introduced by Rep. Rida Cabanilla, makes recommendations to the UN Security Council and others on the conflict.

World Wide What?

Chances are, 16 years ago, you never even heard of the world wide web. Now it is one of the primary ways we communicate with each other and receive news and information. August 2007 will be the 16th anniversary of the web, and Hawaii has taken its first step toward achieving statewide internet access through the passage of HB310. The bill was introduced by Rep. Kyle Yamashita, chair of the House committee on Economic Development and Business Concerns. This bill establishes the Hawaii Broadband Task Force with an appropriation of $50,000 for fiscal year 2007-2008. Their mandate is to develop a long-term strategy to offer affordable internet access and promote broadband usage statewide. The task force will provide their findings and recommendations to the 2008 and 2009 Legislatures.

Next on Kukui Connection - Sundays at 4 p.m.

Rep. Marilyn Lee continues her interviews with freshmen legislators on her cable television show, Kukui Connection. In August, her guest will be Rep. Faye Pua Hanohano, the representative from the Big Island, District 4 - Puna, Pahoa, Hawaiian Acres, Kalapana. That show airs on the first and third Sundays, August 5th and 19th, 4:00 p.m. Channel 54.

Give Peace a Chance

By Rep. Jon Riki Karamatsu - Vice Speaker

On September 21, 2007, Hawaii will become the first state in the country to annually celebrate its own Peace Day. In honor of that day, which is celebrated throughout the world as the United Nations International Day of Peace, people of all ages from around the state are invited to submit an artistic expression of what "peace" means to them. The art work will be displayed at the State Capitol and award winners will be announced at a special ceremony.

I introduced the Peace Day bill on behalf of youth members of the Hawaii Buddhist Association. I was impressed that these young people cared enough about peace in the world to stick with it through the legislative process. We all need to start thinking more about how we, as individuals, can create peace. They say that life imitates art, and if that's the case, let's begin with our personal expressions of peace through art.

Here's how to submit expressions of peace:

Format: For this first year, art work format will be limited to 2-dimensional art such as paintings, drawing, prints or posters; and literary submissions 500 words or less, such as stories, essays and poetry.

Eligibility: Everyone! People of all ages are encouraged to participate.

Deadline: September 1, 2007

Information required: Please include your name, age, mailing address and telephone number. If desired, you may also include a brief bio and explanation of the piece submitted.

Mail to: Dr. Jeannie Lum, Matsunaga Institute for Peace, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Saunders Hall #723, 2424 Maile Way, Honolulu, Hawaii 96822.

Or drop off in person to: Office of Rep. Jon Riki Karamatsu, State Capitol, Room 427.

Art at the State Capitol - Korean War Memorial

On July 27, 1953, the Korean War Armistice was signed at Panmunjom. On July 27th, 1995, President Bill Clinton and South Korean President Kim Young-sam together dedicated the Korean War Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. So, today, we highlight the Korean War Memorial which is located on the west end of the State Capitol grounds along Richards Street. It is combined with the state's Vietnam War Memorial.


The two memorials are made of polished black granite arranged in a serpentine wall, about 6 ft. high and nearly 100 ft. long. The wall contains individual squares on which are engraved the names of veterans who died during each war. The names are listed chronologically by year.

The memorials are graced by two poems:


Korea:
Long ago, far off,

We fell in fields of honor.

Remember us now.


Vietnam:
Grieve not for lost youth.
Graved in memory and stone
we dwell in your dreams.

Smart Growth

Chair of the Smart Growth Interim Task Force, Rep. Sharon Har, put together an impressive discussion group last week, including the 4 county planning directors - Kathy Sokugawa representing Henry Eng from Honolulu, Ian Costa from Kauai, Jeff Hunt from Maui and Chris Yuen from the Big Island. The goal of the task force is to develop legislation that supports smart growth principles, such as improve land use, create more open space, compact urban areas, develop more affordable housing, and decrease infrastructure cost.



Rep. Joe Bertram is not on the task force, but participated in the meeting. His viewpoint in support of the Wailea 670 project, also known as Honua'ula appeared in the Maui News on 7/22. The project has come under attack from groups such as Maui Tomorrow and Save Makena. Maui has the highest median price for a single family home of any county in the state. He warns that while many people oppose development, they may not be aware of the consequences. Bertram writes, "Stopping development actually pushes home prices even higher and widens the gap between haves and have-nots. Instead of simply opposing development, it would be more constructive to ask ourselves: 'What kind of development does Maui need?'"

Center for Public Integrity Ranks Hawaii Legislature #2 and Grade A

The interim task force on HR176, to establish a standards of conduct committee, is underway. The bi-partisan task force includes Kirk Caldwell, Majority Leader, as chair, and members Lynn Finnegan, Jon Riki Karamatsu, Michael Magaoay, Barbara Marumoto, Colleen Meyer, Blake Oshiro, and Kymberly Pine. The group has met twice and will reconvene on August 21st. At the August meeting, the task force is scheduled to meet with Dan Mollway, executive director of the State Ethics Commission and Dean Avi Soifer of the UH Law School.

Rep. Blake Oshiro provided the task force with informational material, including the results of a survey on public disclosure by The Center for Public Integrity, Investigative Journalism in the Public Interest. Conducted in 1999, and updated in April 2006, the 43-question survey was designed to determine whether legislators stand to gain personally from actions taken in office. Hawaii ranked as the 2nd best legislature with a grade of "A". The state of Washington ranked #1.

In the Governors Disclosure rankings, released on July 19th, Hawaii also ranked #2 behind Washington. However, Washington was the only state to receive an "A", and Hawaii received a "B".

Finance Committee heads to Maui

Every year, the House Finance Committee travels to all the major islands of the state to see first-hand the projects that they have funded, and to become as educated and informed as possible of the state's financial needs. The committee will be on Maui today through Friday, including an all day visit to the island of Kahoolawe on Friday. They plan to go to schools (Pomaikai Elementary, Old Maui High School, Maui Community College), Maui Memorial Hospital, get an update on the Hawaii Superferry, tour the Maui Research and Technology Center, and visit the Kaheawa Wind Farm.

Is the state ready for a fireworks ban? While at the wind farm, they will take a special trip to see the nearby Olowalu brush fire damage, requested by Rep. Angus McKelvey (District 10 - Lahaina, Kaanapali, Kapalua, Maalaea, Kihei.) The brush fires on Maui, many of which were set off by fireworks, have claimed hundreds of acres of property, including one home that was burned to the ground. Fighting the fires has been a drain on county resources. Rep. McKelvey plans to introduce legislation for 2008 proposing a ban on fireworks, determined by each county.

Photo: Brush fire on Maui between Olowalu and Maalaea.

Using Highway Fund for Pedestrian Safety is not a Raid

Finance Chair Marcus Oshiro defends the legislature's position to use the highway fund rather than the general fund for improvements to crosswalks in this morning's Advertiser. Read entire piece here. His main points are:

1)Federal dollar match is only in jeopardy if the fund is depleted. The law requires that the fund maintain a 35% cushion (about $60 million), and the projection for the end of FY2007 is that the fund will have a balance of $90 million.

2)This is not a "raid". There is a clear nexus between the highway fund and road safety. In fact, there is an entire program within DOT called "Highway Safety" whose sole purpose is to provide a safe, efficient and accessible highway system.

3)If our state highways are in bad shape, it is due to inefficient management and not a lack of funding. The Reason Foundation, an independent think tank, released a report that said in 2005, Hawaii ranked 5th in the highest amount spent to build and maintain each mile of highway. Sadly, we ranked 5th lowest for highway safety.

4)State economy is slowing. It will be difficult to find $3 million in the general fund for pedestrian safety. Let's use the highway fund for this purpose and save more money in the general fund for other needs.

Contradictions from the Lingle administration

"We want to reassure the public that there will be no budget shortfall, and public services will not be cut or delayed, as has been claimed." Robert Piper, Deputy director, Budget & Finance on 7/20 Kauai Garden Island and 7/22 Honolulu Advertiser.

"The state Department of Budget and Finance told the Department of Education that it would not release $110 million out of $235 million appropriated by lawmakers from the general fund in the past two legislative sessions. The restrictions could delay construction work for at least eight months in about 55 of 96 public schools that are first in line for repairs." Honolulu Star-Bulletin, 7/22.

"They ignore the fact that with the state collecting $150 million more in revenues in fiscal 2007 than 2006, there is ample money to keep state services at the same level, if not increase them." Ted Liu, DBEDT Director, Honolulu Star-Bulletin, 7/22.

"On July 1, 2007, departments will receive their respective budget allocations for the first quarter only. Full-year allocations are targeted to be available by September 15, 2007....Please be alerted that budget restrictions may be imposed in September should the current revenue condition continue." Governor Linda Lingle, Exec. Memorandum No. 07-01, 6/27.

Utah Senate Visits China

When the Hawaii House Majority was contemplating the idea of starting a blog, we looked to what other state legislatures were doing, and one of the best sites we found was the Senate Site, a blog by the Utah Senate Majority. They were very helpful in answering our questions and sharing from their experiences as a popular political blog in Utah. Recently, the Utah Senate went to China, and they've posted some great photos and stories about their trip. It's a reminder that Hawaii, with our large Asian population, is not the only state reaching out to Asia. Aloha to our Utah readers.

Art at the State Capitol - Message in a mural

This interactive mural is located on the ewa or west side of the chamber level at the State Capitol. I have walked past this mural a hundred times, always drawn to its vibrant color and strong design, but never knew its story until today.

The mural was created by a group of young artists at a downtown poetry slam. The event was organized by Progress Hawaii which, according to the information card, engages young citizens in the political process through creative, dynamic and sometimes unusual means. Progress Hawaii registered the young voters and educated them about legislation that affects their lives. The mural is an expression of their concerns and their pledge to participate in Hawaii's political process. The interactive mural was coordinated by Hawaii artist Solomon Enos. There is no date on the card, and the websites listed are no longer active. Is Progress Hawaii still around? Getting more young people engaged and politically active is an important cause.

Georgette Deemer - House communications director

Using cane haul roads to alleviate highway closures

On Wednesday night, the H-1 near the airport viaduct was closed for over 6 hours, from 7:45 p.m. to 2:10 a.m., due to a one-car crash. In the future, highway closure time could be shortened, and the impact to motorists alleviated, due to HB1608, signed into law as Act 141, introduced by freshman Rep. Angus McKelvey. McKelvey's District 10 on Maui includes Lahaina, Kaanapali, Kapalua and Kihei, and is an area where there is one way in and one way out. A traffic emergency and road closure puts this district in jeopardy.

The bill gives authority to the Governor, the state Director of Transportation, the 4 county Mayors and the county Directors of Transportation, to designate an area as a "traffic emergency zone". This is defined as an area that is accessible by only one state highway, and the public health and safety would be endangered by the closure of the highway due to a traffic accident, natural disaster, or other emergency. The bill allows the state or county to designate the old cane haul roads as a temporary state highway and indemnifies the owner of the cane haul road from liability. The cane haul roads were once an important transportation system for Hawaii at a time when our state's economy was driven by agriculture. They now have the potential to be an important part of the state's emergency traffic plan.