Hospital Admissions For COVID Revised

Reapportionment Commission approves House seat move from O‘ahu to Hawai‘i Island
The Big Island will gain an eighth seat this year in the state House of Representatives at the expense of O‘ahu, following an 8-0 vote Thursday by the state Reapportionment Commission. West Hawaii Today. Civil Beat. Star-Advertiser. Hawaii Public Radio. Hawaii News Now.

General fund forecast to grow 15% this fiscal year
Another sign of Hawai‘i’s economic recovery came Thursday when the state Council on Revenues forecast a 15% increase in the state’s general fund for the fiscal year that’s already underway as visitor arrivals in the past six months already have surpassed the 3.3 million tourists who came to the islands in fiscal year 2021.  Star-Advertiser. Civil Beat.

About 100 Hawai‘i National Guard soldiers to be deployed to the Middle East
The Department of Defense has notified about 100 Hawai‘i Army National Guard soldiers that they will be deployed to the Middle East in 2023. Officials said it will be a year-long deployment in which soldiers will be supporting the US Central Command efforts in the region. Hawaii News Now.

At least 8 Hawai‘i charter schools go virtual or extend break due to Covid-19
Kamaile Academy Public Charter School in Wai‘anae has sent 100 middle school students home to quarantine, while DreamHouse ‘Ewa Beach has shifted to full virtual learning for at least two weeks. Star-Advertiser.

7 Hawaiian Air employees file class-action lawsuit to block vaccine mandate
The suit claims Hawaiian Air is violating their religious rights and disability protections by denying all requests for medical or religious exemptions. Hawaii News Now.

Hawai‘i faces a shortage in Covid treatments as cases reach new highs
The limited availability of Covid medicine has prompted a process by which the federal government allocates drugs to each state and then the state works with health care leaders to allocate drugs to each hospital. Civil Beat.

Honolulu’s republican party told to move fundraiser off Army base
The event at Schofield Barracks was to feature mainland party activist Scott Presler, described in reports as anti-Muslim. Hawai‘i law does not specifically prohibit political fundraisers from being held on government property if “the facility’s use rules do not prohibit political activities on the premises.” Civil Beat.

Miske associate ‘Harry Boy’ Kauhi details Hawai‘i murder-for-hire in plea deal
A member of an alleged Hawai‘i crime lord’s organization entered into a plea agreement with the federal government today, acknowledging a role in murder for hire schemes, racketeering, and robbery. Star-Advertiser. Civil Beat.

Grand Princess passenger cruise set to dock in Honolulu on Jan. 9
The Grand Princess, which will be sailing from California, will be docking on Sunday, Jan. 9, in Honolulu. It is the first cruise ship with passengers welcomed since the start of the coronavirus pandemic after the state reached an agreement with Carnival and Norwegian Cruise Lines. KHON2.

Key congressional panel poised to press Navy on whether they’ll de-fuel Red Hill tanks
The House Armed Services’ Subcommittee on Readiness will call some of the Navy’s top officials in Hawai‘i and on the mainland to testify about the fuel spill. They will also question them about whether the Navy plans to comply with the state’s order to shut down the fuel tanks. Hawaii News Now.

December caps record year for Oʻahu real estate. Home prices expected to rise in 2022
For a sixth consecutive month, the median price for a single-family home on Oʻahu was more than a million dollars, according to a new report from local real estate firm Locations Hawaiʻi. Hawaii Public Radio.

With all the changes in the labor market, it is not surprising that the most popular story of the year on our website was the feature on Hawai‘i’s 2021 Best Places to Work. Here’s what got the most traffic on our website, our twice-daily newsletter Today’s Hawai‘i News and our social media… read more.

‘Priority projects’ aim to reach 5,000-unit goal
The Maui County Council is hoping a series of housing projects in the works will help the county reach its goal of building 5,000 affordable for-rent and for-sale units over the next five years. Maui News.

Kalaupapa has thousands of unmarked graves
A proposed memorial would honor all who lived there. Exactly 156 years ago on Thursday, the first dozen people diagnosed with leprosy, or Hansen’s disease, landed at Kalaupapa on Molokaʻi. Hawaii Public Radio. Star-Advertiser. Hawaii News Now.