Civil Beat Categories

Let The Sunshine In

Showing 10 of 179 results.
The Sunshine Blog: Bring On The Tourists. Or Not Brittany Lyte/Civil Beat/2023

The Sunshine Blog: Bring On The Tourists. Or Not

Short takes, outtakes, our takes and other stuff you should know about public information, government accountability and ethical leadership in Hawaii.

A Civic Creed For Hawaii Cory Lum/Civil Beat/2021

A Civic Creed For Hawaii

What does it mean to be a good citizen in a world full of challenge and temptation?

The Sunshine Blog: Hawaii’s New Nepotism Law Is Kicking In Cory Lum/Civil Beat/2022

The Sunshine Blog: Hawaii’s New Nepotism Law Is Kicking In

Short takes, outtakes, our takes and other stuff you should know about public information, government accountability and ethical leadership in Hawaii.

The Silent Treatment Is No Way To Run A Maui County In Crisis Kevin Fujii/Civil Beat/2023

The Silent Treatment Is No Way To Run A Maui County In Crisis

The county won't talk about its communications strategy regarding the deadly Lahaina fire, including who is making decisions on what to tell the public.

Hawaii Ethics Commission Steps Up Training Of Government Employees Screenshot/2023

Hawaii Ethics Commission Steps Up Training Of Government Employees

Compliance with taking a mandatory ethics course has increased significantly, but some organizations still lag.

Chad Blair: When The Hawaii Legislature First Decided Public Access Was Important File Photo

Chad Blair: When The Hawaii Legislature First Decided Public Access Was Important


Public access at the State Capitol barely existed until 1989 when House Democrats succeeded in enacting major reforms. Their work is still a template for future reform.

The Sunshine Blog: Zoomed Out, Wahiawa Moolah, And Someone Doesn’t Like Us Ronen Zilberman/Civil Beat/2022

The Sunshine Blog: Zoomed Out, Wahiawa Moolah, And Someone Doesn’t Like Us

Short takes, outtakes, our takes and other stuff you should know about public information, government accountability and ethical leadership in Hawaii.

Beth Fukumoto: Hawaii Should Look To Other States When It Comes To Ethics Reform Patti Epler/Civil Beat/2023

Beth Fukumoto: Hawaii Should Look To Other States When It Comes To Ethics Reform

While an Office of the Public Advocate would be one way to hold officials accountable, there are other options.

The Civil Beat Editorial Board Interview: Maui County Council Chair Alice Lee Screenshot/Civil Beat/2023

The Civil Beat Editorial Board Interview: Maui County Council Chair Alice Lee

She discusses economic concerns following the August wildfires, the steep challenges in rebuilding, and why it's important for public officials to speak directly and frequently with the media.