Hawaiʻi State Government

Lee Cataluna: It’s An Emergency! How Proclamations Cut Through Hawaii Bureaucracy David Croxford/Civil Beat/2022

Lee Cataluna: It’s An Emergency! How Proclamations Cut Through Hawaii Bureaucracy

No, the state is not facing Armageddon. But governors’ reliance on emergency proclamations is a sign of dysfunction.

Green’s First Budget Proposal Focuses On Hawaii’s Health Care System David Croxford/Civil Beat/2022

Green’s First Budget Proposal Focuses On Hawaii’s Health Care System

The governor also announced that $50 million in state grant funds will finally be released to Hawaii nonprofits that have waited months for the money.

A Gag Order In A Foster Death: When Child Welfare Secrecy Goes Too Far Hawaii News Now

A Gag Order In A Foster Death: When Child Welfare Secrecy Goes Too Far

The child welfare system is shrouded in secrecy to protect children. Does it also block scrutiny and reform?

Racial Disparities Vex Hawaii’s Child Welfare System. Can They Be Fixed? Cory Lum/Civil Beat/2019

Racial Disparities Vex Hawaii’s Child Welfare System. Can They Be Fixed?

The causes are complex, but Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander parents are far more likely to have children removed by the state.

‘I Worked Very Hard’: Hawaii Gov. David Ige Looks Back At 8 Years Leading The State Cory Lum/Civil Beat/2022

‘I Worked Very Hard’: Hawaii Gov. David Ige Looks Back At 8 Years Leading The State

The Hawaii governor gets mixed reviews from other top state officials on how well he governed. Ige thinks he did just fine.

Hawaii Sent At Least 10 Foster Children To An Abusive Home At The Center Of A Drug Ring Hawaii News Now

Hawaii Sent At Least 10 Foster Children To An Abusive Home At The Center Of A Drug Ring

Hawaii Child Welfare Services may have had no reason not to approve Yvonne and Paul Caitano as foster parents. But when did it find out that things had gone wrong?

Hawaii Judges Were Trained To Run Better Child Welfare Hearings. Their Performance Plummeted Ludwig Laab/Civil Beat/2021

Hawaii Judges Were Trained To Run Better Child Welfare Hearings. Their Performance Plummeted

The hearings can determine whether parents lose their children, but topics that could help avoid that are rarely or never discussed.

Ige Closes Out His Tenure With A Record-Setting Surplus Of More Than $2.6 Billion Cory Lum/Civil Beat/2022

Ige Closes Out His Tenure With A Record-Setting Surplus Of More Than $2.6 Billion

The surplus for fiscal year 2022 is double the previous year, and leaves Josh Green’s incoming administration with ample funding to pursue his initiatives.

‘Just A Number’: Parents Who Face Losing Their Kids Say Court-Appointed Attorneys Don’t Do Enough Cory Lum/Civil Beat/2022

‘Just A Number’: Parents Who Face Losing Their Kids Say Court-Appointed Attorneys Don’t Do Enough

A Civil Beat review found that parents almost never win on appeal, and that the appellate court finds procedural flaws in half the cases.

Hawaii’s Nonprofits Are Still Waiting For Millions Of Dollars In Needed Grants Cory Lum/Civil Beat/2018

Hawaii’s Nonprofits Are Still Waiting For Millions Of Dollars In Needed Grants

The Legislature changed the Grant-In-Aid process this year and that’s keeping money from getting to the organizations that need it.