HART requests $1 billion appropriation from state. The Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation has petitioned the state Department of Budget and Finance to appropriate that sizable sum for the agency’s next two budget cycles. The $1 billion would come from the mass transit special fund, created under a 2017 state law known as Act 1. Star-Advertiser.Insurance Companies Are Still Trying To Block The $4 Billion Maui Fire Settlement. Insurance companies hoping to recoup billions of dollars they’ve already paid in claims to Maui fire victims are asking a federal judge to get in the middle of a legal squabble that has been playing out in state court. Civil Beat.Hawaii’s tourism goals unlikely to keep up with inflation. The Hawai‘i Tourism Authority board on Thursday approved a goal for Hawai‘i Tourism USA, the global marketing team responsible for driving travel demand to Hawaii from its core U.S. market, to grow visitor spending by just 1.4%. Star-Advertiser.UH Foundation raises over $115M for students, programs, research. The University of Hawaii Foundation raised $115.2 million in fiscal year 2024, exceeding its $100 million annual goal by 15%, marking the fourth consecutive year of surpassing the $100 million milestone. Star-Advertiser. Maui Now.Hawaiʻi receives $12M federal grant to establish health care reform. Hawaiʻi is one of only six states chosen to participate in this program, making it a rare opportunity. Hawaii Public Radio.Report: Deaths associated with with hepatitis C happening at earlier age in Hawaiʻi than elsewhere in the United States.  The Hawaiʻi Department of Health released “Premature Deaths and Disparities Associated with Hepatitis C: The Hawaiʻi Hepatitis C Mortality Report” as part of Liver Cancer Awareness Month, which is observed in October. Big Island Now.Here are the changes to SNAP benefits starting this month. Several changes to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, also known as SNAP, start Tuesday. This year, the USDA has increased maximum allotments but also changed eligibility requirements for SNAP benefits, but exact amounts vary based on where you live and the size of your household. Hawaii News Now.OahuHonolulu Voters To Decide Whether Lifeguards Need Oversight Commission. Whether to create a volunteer commission that would oversee the Department of Ocean Safety and have the power to appoint and remote its chief will be up to voters in November. The commission would be analogous to those that oversee the city’s police and fire departments. Civil Beat.Could a vacant home tax end the housing crisis? That means, in addition to paying Hawaii real property taxes annually, anyone with a home that is vacant six months out of the year, would have to pay taxes on 1% of its assessed value the first year, 2% the next year and 3% after that. KHON2.Catholic church sells land to senior living complex. The nonprofit operator of the Kahala Nui senior living complex is buying the land under the project built in 2005 on a parcel leased from the Roman Catholic Church of Hawaii. Star-Advertiser.Homeless kauhale units still without power, city says. Over the summer, the Aala Respite facility was set up as part of a joint effort between the city and state to provide shelter and medical care for vulnerable, medically fragile people who’ve experienced long-term homelessness on Oahu. Star-Advertiser.Increased Hawaii park surveillance without public approval. City officials plan to more than double the video surveillance at Ala Moana Regional Park. KHON2.Kapi‘olani nurses set to return to work Sunday morning. With a new contract in place, union nurses are scheduled to return to work Sunday at the Kapi‘olani Medical Center for Women & Children. Star-Advertiser.Tensions rising after ten days of a workers strike at the Hilton Hawaiian Village. Striking workers at the Hilton Hawaiian Village aren’t happy that after ten days of striking, they’re still not any closer to getting a new contract, or even an offer to return to the bargaining table. Also unhappy are guests, some surfers and neighbors around the resort. Hawaii News Now. KITV4.A 76-year-old man has been arrested in connection with a brush fire that happened in Haleiwa on Tuesday, Honolulu police said. Police arrested the man Thursday afternoon for fourth-degree arson. Hawaii News Now. KHON2.Ex-Miske Associate Sentenced To More Than 10 Years In Prison. Jake Smith emerged as a key witness against the convicted Honolulu crime boss after agreeing to a plea deal with prosecutors. Civil Beat.Hawaii IslandOHA Grant Supports Hale Mua Cultural Group Efforts In Waipiʻo Valley. The $145,000 grant will assist the ʻAi Me Ka Iʻa Waipiʻo: Perpetuating ʻOhana Connection to Loʻi Kalo and Loko Wai Program. A program reinforcing cultural practices and freshwater fishpond preservation in Waipiʻo Valley is getting support from the Office of Hawaiian Affairs. Big Island Video News.MauiOpening of residential areas off Lahainaluna Road set for today. With residential debris removal 100 percent complete, opening of residential areas off Lahainaluna Road is set for Friday, Oct. 4, at 6 a.m. This is Phase 4 of the Maui Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) zone reopening plan and marks one of the final large residential zones to be reopened. Maui News. Maui Now. Traffic Alert: Caravans to carry over 100 modular homes for Maui wildfire survivors. The Hawaii Department of Transportation is alerting drivers of potential traffic delays as modular homes for wildfire survivors are being transported from Kahului to Lahaina starting on Friday. Hawaii News Now.Timeline shows Maui Electric inspection missed damage before power started fire. MPD commanders and the federal ATF did say that the fire was caused when damaged electric lines were re-energized. But the detailed timeline shows a key inspection failed to find the damaged equipment - and led to a decision to throw the switches that sparks the flames. Hawaii News Now.Kahului man pleads guilty in Maui explosives case. The U.S. Attorney’s Office said Robert Francis Dumaran, 47, entered a plea agreement in federal court in Honolulu Wednesday, pleading guilty to possessing explosive powders as a convicted felon and possessing an unregistered destructive device. Hawaii News Now. KHON2. KITV4.This Lahaina Fire Survivor Tends The Memorial Every Day. Susie Richter hauls up jugs of water for the plants amid the crosses and portraits of Maui fire victims. She often has company. Civil Beat.KauaiDisciplinary proceedings being initiated for Kauaʻi police chief who left gun in bathroom. The Kauaʻi Police Commission is considering disciplinary measures for Police Chief Todd Raybuck after he left his gun unattended in a bathroom earlier this year.  Kauai Now.Kapa‘a transfer station to be closed nearly 1 year beginning in early November. The renovations are part of the county’s islandwide Refuse Transfer Station Improvements project. Kauai Now.'It needs to get better' | Calls continue for change to search and rescue operations on Kauai. Nearly two months after a Kauai man was found dead in Wailua, calls are growing for change to the way official search and rescue efforts are conducted. KITV4.Padraic Gallagher named executive director Kauai Humane Society.  Gallagher, the former disaster program manager at the American Red Cross in Lihue, will be the new executive director. Garden Island.