Honolulu news

• Waipahu woman pleads guilty to income tax, COVID aid fraud

  24-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  A Waipahu woman must pay $70,500 in restitution after she pleaded guilty Monday to underreporting her family’s income and applying for fraudulent COVID-19 unemployment assistance.
  
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• Man charged in mother’s killing: ‘I’m not a monster’

  24-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  The 29-year-old man charged with the murderof his 60-year-old mother, Michele Hanapi-Auna, told a responding police officer she molested him and his cousin, according to court documents filed Tuesday in court.
  
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• Kokua Line: Does Social Security ever call?

  24-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  Question: I am concerned about scams but on the other hand my mother has been expecting to hear from Social Security. Do they ever call?
  
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• HART board revises closed-door meeting policy

  24-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  One member of theHonolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation’s board of directors has for years been disallowed from attending the rail agency’s most confidential, closed-door meetings.
  
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• Condo owners file lawsuit over Maui rentals law

  24-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  Less than a week after its passage, a group of more than 40 Maui condo owners challenged the county’s new short-term rentals law, contending their property rights were violated with the requirement that they must convert their units into long-term housing.
  
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• Baby boomers struggle with housing, food and health risks

  24-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  Baby boomers in Hawaii were born between 1946 and 1964 — the year after World War II ended, through the Korean War and as Democratic President Lyndon B. Johnson escalated U.S. military involvement in Vietnam.
  
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• No charges for Hawaii island officer in death of police dog

  23-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  There will be no criminal animal cruelty charges filed against Hawaii Police Department Officer Sidra Brown, the handler of K-9 Archer, the narcotics detection dog that died Sept. 4 after being left unattended ina police vehicle in Kona.
  
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• Kokua Line: Has blood bank relaxed donation rules?

  23-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  Question: The Blood Bank of Hawaii urgently needs O-type blood donations. I have O+ and would love to give regularly but I lived in Europe during outbreaks of mad cow disease and over the years have been inconsistently told I’m ineligible to give blood. Is there any clarity on whether people who lived in Europe during that period can give blood?
  
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• HART pays $41.3M to settle lengthy Ward Village dispute

  23-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  A years-long legal battle involving the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation’s planned construction of a rail station within real estate developer Howard Hughes Corp.’s 60-acre master-planned property in Kakaako recently settled.
  
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• Gov. Josh Green’s budget reflects federal culling

  23-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  Gov. Josh Green hasproposed a $10.8 billion state budget that would help the state respond to on-going cuts in federal funding for Hawaii while continuing to focus on affordable housing, climate infrastructure, healthcare and education.
  
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• Gen X is squeezed, caring for generations before and after

  23-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  On weekends, Raphael Bacani, 51, packs silken tofu and brown‑sugar syrup into his car and heads to the Waipahu farmers market to sell taho, the Filipino street food that’s one of two side businesses he and his wife run to help cover the bills.
  
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• Anniversary of Kilauea eruption marked by ongoing vog

  23-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  Today marks one year since Kilauea began erupting, and state health officials are warning that volcanic gas emissions continue to affect air quality across the islands despite the recent pause in activity.
  
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• 3 Hawaii men caught in nationwide child sex abuse operation

  23-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  Three Hawaii men accused by federal prosecutors of child sex abuse were among 293 pedophiles rounded up as part of nationwide effort that identified 205 victims.
  
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• 100th Infantry Battalion families cheer ‘Purple Heart City’ status

  23-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  On Monday at the 100th Infantry Battalion Memorial Building, the families of veterans from the famous unit gathered to celebrate Honolulu’s designation as a “Purple Heart City.”
  
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• Hawaii’s Millennials juggle unaffordable housing, other economic obstacles

  22-12-2025 11:06 via staradvertiser.com
  Corey Strickland spends his days shuttling passengers, spinning music sets and working a third job on Oahu to keep up with Hawaii’s high cost of living.
  
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• Hawaii’s Millennials juggle unaffordable housing, child care

  22-12-2025 11:06 via staradvertiser.com
  Corey Strickland spends his days shuttling passengers, spinning music sets and working a third job on Oahu to keep up with Hawaii’s high cost of living.
  
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• Waipio Soccer Complex to undergo repairs, rest during June next year

  22-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  Facilities at the Waipio Soccer Complex will close in June for monthlong repair work, city officials announced.
  
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• Visitor safety to take center stage at HLTA’s annual summit

  22-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  Hawaii’s largest hospitality trade group will convene a high‑level public safety summit next month as part of a growing statewide push to keep visitors, residents, and hospitality workers safe.
  
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• U.S. vetting proposal threatens Hawaii’s tourism economy

  22-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  Hawaii tourism officials are raising alarms that a new federal proposal requiring millions of foreign visitors to disclose their social media handles could further depress international arrivals — and potentially undermine the benefits of a major national marketing reboot aimed at restoring global travel to the United States.
  
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• U.S. vetting proposal threatens Hawaii economy

  22-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  Hawaii tourism officials are raising alarms that a new federal proposal requiring millions of foreign visitors to disclose their social media handles could further depress international arrivals — and potentially undermine the benefits of a major national marketing reboot aimed at restoring global travel to the United States.
  
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• Hawaii senator condemns U.S. travel ban that includes Tonga

  22-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  State Sen. Jarrett Keohokalole (D, Kaneohe-Kailua) last week condemned a newly announced expansion of federal travel bans that will add 20 countries — including Tonga — to a list of nations facing new U.S. restrictions on travel and immigration.
  
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• Hawaii County police chief applicants narrowed down to 11

  22-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  Eleven candidates for the Hawaii Police Department’s vacant chief position will receive invitations to be interviewed next month by the Hawaii County PoliceCommission.
  
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• Counties urged to boost role protecting residents from hunger

  22-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  As federal nutrition programs face deep cuts and food insecurity continuesto rise across Hawaii, a new policy brief from the Hawaii Appleseed Center for Law &Economic Justice is urging county governments to step into a more central role in protecting residents from hunger.
  
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• Vital Statistics: Dec. 12-18, 2025

  22-12-2025 11:04 via staradvertiser.com
  Marriage licenses and birth certificates
  
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• Volcanic Ash: Keen words from the wise make the holidays sparkle

  21-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  We’ll put the dismal state of public affairs aside for the week and observe the holidays with some of my favorite quotations about the season:
  
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• Target Distribution Center’s 500 volunteer hours include Adopt a Family

  21-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  Surpassing their annual volunteer hours goal by 180%, Target Distribution Center team members concluded a year of philanthropy by adopting two families through Helping Hands Hawai‘i’s Adopt a Family campaign.
  
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• New Ocean Safety chief selected is a 20-year lifeguard veteran

  21-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  The five-member Honolulu Ocean Safety Commission unanimously selected Kurt Lager as the first commission-appointed chief of Ocean Safety in the department’s short history.
  
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• Kokua Line: Why is home exemption missing from assessment?

  21-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  Question: The home exemption we’ve always had is not deducted on my 2026 Real Property Notice of Assessment. Is this because my husband died? It makes my tax bill higher.
  
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• Hawaii’s young adults struggle to launch amid skyrocketing costs

  21-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  When 26-year-old Danielle Wilbanks looks at the cost of living, the student loans she’s still carrying and a career path reshaped by the pandemic, she feels like she’s standing on shifting ground.
  
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• Hawaii delegation defends minority-serving programs

  21-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  Hawaii’s four-member congressional delegation condemned a new opinion by the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Legal Counsel questioning the constitutionality of Native Hawaiian and other minority-serving institution programs, saying they will fight to preserve them.
  
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• Hawai‘i Convention Center repair climbs to $87M — a 70% surge

  21-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  A major leak crisis at the Hawai‘i Convention Center — with five meeting rooms affected during a major event this week — is underscoring the urgency of a long delayed rooftop repair project that has now swelled to $87 million and forced the center to reshuffle capital improvement funds to keep construction on track.
  
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• HART CEO gets $350K following citywide pay raises

  21-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  The board of directors for the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation has approved a new 4% pay raise for Executive Director and CEO Lori Kahikina to continue to oversee completion of the more than$10 billion Skyline project.
  
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• Four siblings charged for housing illegal game rooms

  21-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  Four adult siblings are the first property owners charged under a state law enacted to target people who knowingly let illegal game room operators set up their businesses.
  
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• Woman gets 18 months in prison for her role in tax scam

  20-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  A 66-year-old Honolulu woman will spend 18 months in federal prison and pay more than $1.6 million in restitution for her role in a scam to file false tax returns and use local businesses, banks and trusts to launder therefunds.
  
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• Southwest Airlines launches nonstop Hilo-to-Vegas route

  20-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  Southwest Airlines has announced it is launching new direct flights from Hilo to Las Vegas.
  
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• Redeveloping obsolete homes at Kuhio Park Terrace underway

  20-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  Work is underway to revitalize and expand the state’s largest public housing complex where demolition has begun on part of the Kuhio Park Terrace community in Kalihi to make way for a greater number of low-income rental apartments.
  
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• Kauai coffee farm landowner considering takeover

  20-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  The landlord of a 3,100-acre coffee farm on Kauai run by a multinational beverage firm could become the next operator of the nearly 40-year old business employing 141 people.
  
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• Hawaii lawmaker presents his plan for state park in Hilo

  20-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  About 100 people attended a recent Hilo community meeting to hear about a proposal by state Rep. Matthias Kusch to create a wilderness park on 283 acres on Akolea Road in Kaumana.
  
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• HART audit concludes results are positive, rail agency says

  20-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  The Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation announced Friday that a recently completed annual audit of its financial statements proved “positive”for the agency tasked with constructing the more than $10 billion Skyline project.
  
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• Wahiawa man gets 20-years for sexual assault of foster kids

  19-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  A 33-year-old Wahiawa man, convicted in the sexual assault of two foster children for more than seven years while they were under his mother’s care and with her knowledge, was sentenced Wednesday in Oahu Circuit Court to 20 years in prison.
  
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• Red Hill victims win attorney fees as appeal continues

  19-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  A U.S. District Court judge this month ordered the federal government to pay more than $160,000 in attorneys’ fees to plaintiffs in the Red Hill civil lawsuit, following a nearly $600,000 judgement issued in September and amid an appeal on behalf of child victims.
  
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• Rearview Mirror: Lost, then recovered ring captures tale of true love

  19-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  Writing this column reminds me that there are so many things that make Hawaii a special place. Last week, I shared some of the things I learned writing this column in 2025.
  
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• Lawsuit tying Maui police chief to Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs dismissed

  19-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  The chief of the Maui Police Department said he and his family were hurt by allegations in a lawsuit that he was a fixer for jailed rapper Sean “P. Diddy” Combs amid the mogul’s criminal sexual assault saga, after the lawsuit was dismissed this week by a federal judge in California.
  
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• Kokua Line: Why don’t all Hawaii eateries have public bathrooms?

  19-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  Question: How is it that some eateries and coffee shops can get away with not having restrooms for their customers? I thought it was a state law that eateries had to provide public restrooms.
  
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• Future is unclear for largest coffee farm in Hawaii

  19-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  Changes could be in store for the largest coffee farm in Hawaii as its owner faces the expiration of a land lease for the 3,100-acreoperation on Kauai early next year.
  
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• Aloha Stadium Authority hires executive with construction background

  19-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  The Aloha Stadium Authority board voted at itsfinal meeting at the facility Thursday to install Michael Yadao as deputy manager ahead of the facility’s dismantling and replacementin Halawa by the New Aloha Stadium EntertainmentDistrict.
  
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• On the Move: G70

  19-12-2025 11:04 via staradvertiser.com
  G70 has hired Ethan Santiago as a planner and Andrew Choy as a senior planner and project manager.
  
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• Prison guard and wife permanently banned by DOE

  18-12-2025 11:06 via staradvertiser.com
  The state Department of Education issued a permanent ban from all campuses and properties against a man accused of punching out Moanalua High School’s associate athletic director after allegedly harassing referees at his son’s exhibition basketball game Dec. 4.
  
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• Troubled Maui water system due for improvements

  18-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  A state commission has fined Maui Land &Pineapple Co. for failures earlier this year to manage stream water feeding competing demands that include taro farming, wildlife habitat, golf course irrigation and residential landscaping.
  
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• Maunakea observatory discovers new planet, ‘failed star’

  18-12-2025 11:05 via staradvertiser.com
  Astronomers on Mauna Kea found the first space object on which NASA’s Roman Space Telescope can test its imaging technology.
  
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