SEE STATION PAGE 7A
KAILUA-KONA — For those
without private transportation, a trip
from Hilo to Kailua-Kona means
more than three hours on a bus
as it travels through Laupahoehoe
and Honokaa then down through
Waimea.
Meanwhile, Kona is growing, and
by 2040 the region is expected to
provide 25 percent more jobs than
Hilo, according to a draft transit
master plan prepared for the county’s
Mass Transit Agency.
That’s why, said Rossella
Guardascione, human resources
director at the Courtyard by
Marriott King Kamehameha’s Kona
Beach Hotel, it’s crucial to make the
island’s east and west communities
HILO — The state
Senate passed two bills
affecting management of
Maunakea on Thursday.
Both measures —
House bills 1585 and
1985 — likely will end
up in conference committees
since the House
is expected to reject
changes the Senate
made through a process
known as “gut and
replace.”
HB 1585 would prohibit
new construction
on the mountain until
the University of Hawaii
receives a new master
lease for the Maunakea
Science Reserve, completes
administrative
rules and comprehensive
management plan action
items, and conducts
multiple audits.
Thirty Meter
Telescope supporters
say it would kill the $1.4
billion project by adding
to delays but Sen.
Kai Kahele, who is promoting
the measure,
said it would keep UH
accountable.
Kahele, D-Hilo, voted
yes; Sen. Josh Green,
D-Kona, Ka‘u, voted yes
with reservations.
Voting no from the
Big Island were Sens.
Lorraine Inouye and
Russell Ruderman.
Inouye’s district
includes Hamakua,
North Hawaii, Waikoloa
and parts of Hilo.
Ruderman represents
Puna and parts of Ka‘u.
Both are Democrats.
KAILUA-KONA —
What does the extension
of an agricultural theft
pilot program on the Big
Island have in common
with moves to facilitate
an expanded market for
Hawaii-grown papaya in
China?
The answer is almost
nothing, except that a
late-stage amendment
from the Senate Ways
and Means Committee to
a piece of House legislation
has made House Bill
1883 a vehicle for both
initiatives. The measure
passed its final reading in
the Senate
Tuesday
and will
head next
to conference
committee
where its
fate will be
decided.
Rep. Richard Creagan
(D-Hawaii Island), primary
introducer of HB
1883, said the mashing of
papayas into his legislation
is an example of the
“gut and replace” tactics
happening with greater
frequency this year in the
Senate.
“They just take one bill
and turn
it into
another,”
Creagan
said.
“When
you have
a title like
this one,
‘Relating
to Agriculture,’ you can
put anything in there. It
had nothing to do with ag
theft.”
The ag theft program
is a joint venture between
the state Department
of Agriculture (DOA)
and the Hawaii County
Prosecutor’s Office that
created a position to
police secondary and tertiary
markets for stolen
agricultural goods.
County Prosecutor
Mitch Roth said the
program has proven
effective in its first year.
Creagan’s legislation
extends the program two
years and adds a second
position on Hawaii
Island. Depending on
success, the program
may expand statewide
down the line.
The papaya initiative
appropriates funds to
study why and where in
the growing and transport
process the fruit
breaks down so as to
make it more viable for
export, thereby strengthening
Hawaii’s agricultural
economy, particularly
on the Big Island
where the vast majority
of the state’s papaya is
grown.
Hawaii exported nearly
$8.1 million in papaya
globally in 2016, including
more than $2.2
million to Hong Kong,
according to export totals
provided by the DOA.
In 2017, export value
dropped to $7 million.
China recently
announced its intention
to place a 15 percent
tariff on U.S.-shipped
papaya amid escalating
trade tensions between
that country’s leadership
and President Donald
Trump’s administration.
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HI 83 LO 73 WEATHER, PAGE 10A
VOL. 50, NO. 103 20 PAGES
Gut and replace strikes again
AG INITIATIVES, POTENTIAL ADC AUDIT INTERTWINE
AND HEAD TO CONFERENCE COMMITTEE
BY MAX DIBLE
WEST HAWAII TODAY
mdible@westhawaiitoday.com
Papayas are sold at the Kona Farmers Market.
LAURA RUMINSKI/WEST HAWAII TODAY
SEE GUTTED PAGE 10A
Creagan Dela Cruz
Maunakea bills pass
BUT MEASURES LIKELY TO
END UP IN CONFERENCE
BY TOM CALLIS
HAWAII TRIBUNE-HERALD
SEE MAUNAKEA PAGE 7A
STILL NOT A GO
YEARS A PRIORITY AND
MONEY ALREADY SPENT,
SOUTH KONA POLICE STATION
REMAINS JUST A WISH
BY TIFFANY DEMASTERS
WEST HAWAII TODAY
tdemasters@westhawaiitoday.com
KAILUA-KONA — Plans to build
a South Kona Police Station remain
unknown since the project was put
off due to lack of funding, according
to Hawaii County officials this week.
Construction planning for the station
was deferred in 2010 after the
county spent $1.4 million in bonds
for the design and survey work in
2008. Now, several years later, former
Hawaii County councilwoman
Brenda Ford hopes to continue the
charge in making the South Kona
station a reality.
“We’ve been trying to get the station
built for 14 years, but it will take
bonds to build it,” Ford said.
A sign on the South Kona Police substation in Captain Cook indicates the location is not routinely
manned. LAURA RUMINSKI/WEST HAWAII TODAY
Cheryl Soon, consultant for SSFM International,
gives her presentation at Thursday night’s mass
transit meeting at the West Hawaii Civic Center.
LAURA RUMINSKI/WEST HAWAII TODAY
Getting on board
RESIDENTS INVITED TO ASK QUESTIONS, GIVE
FEEDBACK ON DRAFT TRANSIT MASTER PLAN
BY CAMERON MICULKA
WEST HAWAII TODAY
cmiculka@westhawaiitoday.com
SEE TRANSIT PAGE 11A
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