From hi-news-l@hawaii.edu Tue Apr 2 23:40:25 1996 eceived: from relay1.Hawaii.Edu (root@relay1.Hawaii.Edu [128.171.3.53]) by roxy.sfo.com (8.7.3/8.7.3) with SMTP id XAA19612 for ; Tue, 2 Apr 1996 23:40:21 -0800 (PST) Received: from relay1 ([127.0.0.1]) by relay1.Hawaii.Edu with SMTP id <11814(10)>; Tue, 2 Apr 1996 21:39:26 -1000 Message-Id: Errors-To: ozawa@hawaii.edu Reply-To: hi-news-l@hawaii.edu Originator: hi-news-l@hawaii.edu Sender: hi-news-l@hawaii.edu Precedence: bulk From: Prophet Zarquon To: Multiple recipients of list Subject: Hawai`i News -- 2 April 1996 [Tue] X-Listprocessor-Version: 6.0c -- ListProcessor by Anastasios Kotsikonas X-Comment: The Hawaii NewsList MIME-Version: 1.0 Date: Tue, 2 Apr 1996 21:38:57 -1000 Status: R <> ----------[ K A ` U P E N A K U K U I ]---------- <> ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Net of Light Tuesday, April 2, 1996 Hawai`i News -- Internet Edition Compiled by Ryan K. Ozawa ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Summarized from various island news sources, including independent interviews and research, radio and television broadcasts and local papers. No material is duplicated directly unless otherwise attributed. Intended for personal use only -- please obtain permission from author before redistributing. Aloha! ============================================================================= Subject: U.S. STUDY FINDS HAWAIIANS WORST OFF IN HOUSING Compared to nationwide figures, ten times as many native Hawaiian households are overcrowded, with 25 percent of them housing more than one person per room. According to a federal study released yesterday by the Urban Institute, the housing situation for native Hawaiians is about twice as harsh as that of the native American reservation population. The study was undertaken at the urging of Sen. Daniel Inouye, who said in a statement today that he will use its findings to push legislation that would make affordable housing more available to native Hawaiians. The institute pegs Hawaii's high cost of living as the prime cause for the overcrowding problem, which also plagues nearly 14 percent of the state's non-Hawaiian population. The study also makes reference to the findings of island researchers, who found native Hawaiians to be the most susceptible to homelessness in the state. More than 2,000 native Hawaiians are without a home on any given day, the study says. The study also focuses on the Mainland migration of the native Hawaiian population. According to the institute's figures, the number of native Hawaiians living on the Mainland has been increasing at about twice the rate of other ethnic groups. In addition, the institute warns that with the recent growth in the native Hawaiian population in Hawaii, the number of low-income native Hawaiian families will quickly outpace the anticipated growth in the number of affordable homes. -----------------------------------------------------------------------==:]>- Subject: RENT-TO-OWN OUTFITS FACE STATE AUDIT A recent rise in the number of consumer lawsuits filed against rent-to-own stores in Hawaii has prompted the House Consumer Protection Committee to pass a resolution urging the state auditor to look into the industry. Most of the lawsuits allege unfair and deceptive practices, stemming from "confusing" lease agreements. Rep. Marcus Oshiro, who introduced the resolution, said that some customers end up paying nearly twice the retail price of televisions, appliances and furniture by the time the lease agreement ends. "Next thing they know," Oshiro said yesterday, "they've paid $600 for a second-hand TV." Specifically, the committee wants rent-to-own companies to clearly disclose the final price of an item both in stores and on lease agreements. According to local consumer advocates, Similar litigation has led to similar regulations in the majority of U.S. states. Promoted especially for the low-income consumer, rent-to-own companies frequently charge high lease interest, despite the fact that most customers end up opting for eventual ownership. Also, state regulations currently exempt rent-to-own shops from having to disclose interest rates like banks and other institutions. Representatives for the Legal Aid Society, a local legal group, say that there is a nationwide effort to implement federal regulations. -----------------------------------------------------------------------==:]>- Subject: STATE CUT MAY LEAD TO TAX HIKE Members of the Honolulu City Council yesterday were critical of a Senate plan to redirect funds from the state's hotel room tax, saying it may force them to increase Honolulu's property taxes. The bill, introduced this week by the Senate Ways and Means Committee, would allocate hotel room tax revenues to fund the Hawaii Visitor's Bureau, reducing the percentage of revenues given to three of the four counties. In order to make up the lost money, council- member Duke Bainum said today, a tax increase at the county level may be the only option. If the counties do increase their taxes, however, senators warn their share of the hotel room tax may be slimmed even further. Committee Chair Donna Ikeda argued that the HVB's work is a benefit for all islands. Under the measure, the standing 6 percent tax on hotel rooms is expected to raise about $115 million next year. Of that, the Hawaii Visitor's Bureau would get $25 million -- taking the agency's dependence away from the state's general fund. $19.4 million would be set aside to cover construction costs of the Hawaii Convention Center, and $2 million would be put in the state's coffers. Only then would the remainder of the tax revenue pie be split between Honolulu, Maui, Kauai and Hawaii counties. The bill would give O`ahu $28 million, 19 percent less than what it got last year. Maui and the Big Island would also see reductions, each getting $14 million. Only Kauai County would see an increase, also getting $14 million. -----------------------------------------------------------------------==:]>- Subject: SCHOOLS MAY LOSE MILITARY STUDENT SUPPORT The U.S. Congress is considering a cut to long-standing federal support to states that covers part of the cost of educating students from military families. National lawmakers are looking at a 4 percent cut in the $720 million Federal Impact Aid budget, which means island schools will get about $1.5 million less. Nevertheless, state education officials vow that the reductions won't lead to cuts in student programs. Some educators are revisiting proposals to create a school system specifically for military families. According to the state Department of Education, children of military families constitute over 10 percent of the students in Hawaii's public schools. The cost of educating each dependent -- whose families are exempt from local taxes for education -- is approximately $5,700. Even with Federal Impact Aid, state officials say, about $4,500 per student remains to be paid for by Hawaii taxpayers. State officials are quick to point out, however, that the tradeoff is found in the contribution military and civilian employees make to island businesses. In addition, they say, Hawaii has traditionally been more fortunate than most school districts nationwide. Hawaii is one of about 1,600 school districts receiving federal funds. -----------------------------------------------------------------------==:]>- Subject: BITS AND PIECES ACCORDING to Honolulu law enforcement officials, the informant who pointed police towards the Kawainui Marsh grave of a woman believed to be Sherry Lynn Holmes had offered the tip in exchange for undisclosed terms of clemency in an unrelated case. An autopsy on the body yesterday determined asphyxiation as the cause of death. Holmes, 32, had gone missing a week before her boyfriend John Nahale Miranda died in a police shoot-out on Feb. 6... GOVERNOR Ben Cayetano has refused to apologize for lashing out at state Ethics Commissioner Dan Mollway, despite urging this week from state senators. Mollway had written a letter to the editor in the _Star-Bulletin_ in which he defended UH Board of Regent member Joseph Blanco, who also worked in the governor's office. Cayetano allegedly responded by saying Mollway's letter could threaten Blanco's job. JUMPING from her moving car on the H-1 freeway, a 43-year-old Pearl City woman yesterday escaped an ex-boyfriend who'd assaulted and kidnapped her. Police say the 35-year-old suspect had hidden in the back seat of her car before she left her home last night. He allegedly forced her to sit in the passenger seat and repeatedly struck her while driving towards town. After the escape, police found her car abandoned near Dole Playground... AFTER the brand new J.C. Penny store opens this year at Hilo's Prince Kuhio shopping center, the Hawaii County government will purchase its old home adjacent to Kaiko`o Mall. According to Big Island officials, the 80,000- square-foot building and its 6 acre lot will cost the county $10.5 million. Its location across the Hawaii County Building made the location ideal, and the price was right with the older mall's tenants slowly moving out... TEMPS: O`ahu 82/72, Kaua`i 81/72, Moloka`i 81/69, Maui 82/72, Hilo 80/71 CASTS: Warm, weak trades to 15MPH. Surf on north and west shores to 8 feet. WEDNESDAY'S TIDES: High 4:13PM; Low 9:45AM ============================================================================= This report is part of The Hawai`i NewsList family of internet features. It and a number of other Hawai`i-related items can be delivered directly to your e-mail address. Send a subscription request to listproc@hawaii.edu, with the text "SUBSCRIBE HI-NEWS-L Firstname Lastname" in the body of the message.