Senate Majority Caucus

By Hawaii State Senator J. Kalani English

Now that Maui Circuit Court Judge Joseph Cardoza has lifted his earlier injunction preventing Hawai‘i Superferry from sailing into Kahului harbor, removing the final legal impediment to the ferry’s operation, some may question whether the vocal opposition to the ferry served any meaningful purpose. After all, there had long been a discussion in the community over whether the legislature would go into Special Session to allow the Superferry to operate while an environmental review is conducted. The bill’s passage by a vote of 20-5 in the Senate and 39-11 in the House of Representatives was almost anticlimactic. (more…)

Good luck to the University of Hawaii football team’s game against Boise State and the women’s volleyball team in the NCAA tournament.

By Hawaii State Senator Gary L. Hooser

The nomination of Katherine Leonard to serve as a judge of the Hawai‘i Intermediate Court of Appeals (ICA) has again focused attention on the Hawai‘i State Senate’s duty to “advise and consent” on the governor’s nominees for judicial posts. In past cases, questions of the nominees’ fitness to serve have led some to ask whether the process is overly negative, and how such individuals of apparently high qualifications would not receive immediate and unanimous approval. However, the nature of the Senate’s legal and constitutional duty

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Photos are available from the Senate Judiciary and Labor Committee’s confirmation hearing on Katherine Leonard’s nomination to the Intermediate Court of Appeals. 

Decision-making is scheduled for Monday, November 19, 2007, starting from 2 p.m. in the Hawaii State Capitol conference room 229.

The Hawaii State Senate will be convening again on November 19-20, 2007, to consider the nomination of Katherine G. Leonard to the Intermediate Court of Appeals. 

The Senate will open on Monday, November 19 to officially receive the Governor’s Message, refer it to the Judiciary and Labor Committee, and file the committee report.  Final action will be taken on the next day, Tuesday, November 20 at 9 a.m.

The Judiciary and Labor Committee has scheduled a hearing prior to special session on Friday, November 16, 2007, starting 

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A Report from Eloy, Arizona

By Hawaii State Senator Will Espero

Senators Norman Sakamoto, Clarence Nishihara, and I recently visited the Red Rock and Saguaro Correctional facilities on the mainland to meet with prisoners, inspect the facilities, meet with prison officials, and review the programs and services available to our inmates. The site visit was very informative and productive, and when the majority of our male Hawaii inmates are transferred from the Red Rock site to the new Saguaro facility, the monitoring and oversight of the prison and its inmates should be easier and more efficient.

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Haven’t had a chance to contribute to the draft Hawaii 2050 Sustainability Plan? There is still time!

You have until Sunday, November 11 at 5 p.m. to take the web survey about the draft Plan’s strategic actions. The proposed strategic actions are highly effective strategies designed to move our Islands toward long-term sustainability.

This link will take you to our web survey. Tell us which strategic actions are most imporant as we prepare for our children and grand-children’s future. Hawaii 2050 website

Listen (audio only) to Senator Gary L. Hooser’s Speech on Senate Bill 1 (Superferry Legislation) from October 29, 2007.

Senator Hooser’s Floor Speech (17Mb) (MP3 File)

Governor Linda Lingle signed into law (Act 2 of 2nd Special Session in 2007) Senate Bill 1 Senate Draft 1 and issued Executive Order 07-10. During last week’s special session, the Legislature passed out Superferry Legislation after hearing testimony from hundreds of testifiers. Act 2 is expected to allow the Hawaii Superferry to operate while a Environmental Impact Study is being conducted.  As the law required, Executive Order established various operating conditions to mitigate environmental concerns.

By Hawaii State Senator Gary L. Hooser 

In her Governor’s Message of October 24 (”Decisions made in special session will shape our future,” Honolulu Star-Bulletin, 10/24/07), Governor Linda Lingle attempts to make a case that the 2007 Special Session was not only about the Hawai‘i Superferry. She attempts to distract the public from the session’s obvious central purpose by impressing upon the community that the confirmations of three department heads and hundreds of boards and commissions will shape our future. (more…)

PDF files of several floor remarks from Monday, October 29, 2007, when the Senate approved the Superferry legislation, have been added to the original post. 

Please see “Day 4- Superferry Legislation Moves Forward.”