Today Mayor Kirk Caldwell and the City and County of Honolulu’s COVID-19 Household Hardship Relief Fund (HHRF) program launched in partnership with Aloha United Way and the Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement (CNHA). The relief fund will begin with $25 million targeted to assist those hardest hit with basic needs, such as rent or mortgage, eligible utilities, childcare, and other necessary expenses. “The COVID-19 pandemic has caused an unprecedented financial ripple effect in our community,” said Norm Baker, interim AUW President and CEO. “The additional mortgage, rent, and utilities assistance that this program is providing will keep vulnerable families from slipping into poverty.” “Providing support to cover essential bills like rent, mortgage, utilities, and even childcare will give families the stability and peace of mind they need to overcome this unfortunate situation,” added Kūhiō Lewis, CEO for CNHA. “As of 12pm today, CNHA has received over 100 calls and 300 applications for the relief fund.” The program will provide supporting funds to Oʻahu residents in amounts up to $1,000 per month for qualified household expenses and up to $500 per month for qualified childcare expenses to alleviate economic hardships caused by the pandemic. Each household may receive the benefits as the hardship continues up to six months. “This is a prime example of how our government and non-profit organizations can come together to meet the needs of our families, our friends, and our neighbors,” said Mayor Caldwell. “We are grateful to be partnering with Aloha United Way and CNHA.” For more information, Oʻahu residents can reach out to one of our community partners directly: - Aloha United Way (2-1-1 or 808-275-2000) - Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement (808-596-8155) For additional information, please call the providers listed above or visit: www.honolulu.gov/dcs or www.oneoahu.org.

For Hawaii Tourism Authority and state updates regarding COVID-19 visit: https://www.hawaiitourismauthority.org/news/alerts/covid-19-novel-coronavirus/

Social media postings and citizen tips again resulted in the arrest of visitor for violation of Hawai‘i’s mandatory 14-day self-quarantine rule for all incoming visitors and returning residents. Abdulla Aliyev (aka Turgut Aliev), a citizen of Azerbaijan, who lives in Reseda, CA was arrested early Saturday afternoon at the Daniel K. Inouye International Airport, one hour before he was scheduled to catch a flight to Los Angeles. At 11:30 a.m. he allegedly blogged that he was at the airport and was leaving in a few hours. He is charged with violating the 14-day quarantine and unsworn falsification to authority. He was taken into custody by officers from the Airport Sheriff’s Division after they were alerted to his impending departure by Special Agents from the Investigative Division of the Dept. of the Attorney General. It’s reported Aliyev arrived on O‘ahu on May 1 and immediately began leaving an Airbnb condominium that he’d rented on Kūhiō Avenue in Waikīkī. Special agents say his social media posts showed him on the beach, at Diamond Head, at Foster Botanical Garden and at other locations across the island. He blogged while riding the bus. The attorney general’s special agents searched for Aliyev daily, after being alerted to his activities by citizens who had been monitoring his social media posts. In response to one of his posts, in which someone wrote him to tell him he was violating Hawai‘i’s COVID-19 Emergency Rules, he responded, “I know, that’s why Honolulu PD gave me a $460 ticket.” This was a false statement. Aliyev was booked on the charges and bail was set at $2,000 According to State Attorney General Clare Connors, “We and most people in Hawai‘i have little tolerance for anyone, either a visitor or returning resident, who flouts the emergency rules currently in place to protect everyone and to help keep the coronavirus infection rate in Hawai‘i low. If you are out and about in violation of a self-quarantine order, it is likely you will be reported and arrested. We again implore visitors to delay their trips until this pandemic passes and we ask that anyone who arrives here comply with the 14-day self-quarantine rule. Being arrested, and potentially paying thousands of dollars in fines or spending a night in jail, is not the way to begin or end a vacation. And, if you are a returning resident who violates, you can expect the same upon return if you fail to comply with rules to keep our community safe.”

A City and County of Honolulu news release: Mayor Kirk Caldwell announced today that starting Saturday, May 16, Governor David Ige allowed beaches on Oʻahu to be opened for activities based on approved guidelines issued by the City and County of Honolulu. Starting May 16, the beach closures in Governor Ige’s Seventh Supplemental Proclamation, and any subsequent proclamation, are not applicable to the City and County of Honolulu. In addition to those activities already allowed (e.g., ocean access and exercise), starting May 16 beaches or sand bars within the City may also be utilized with the following restrictions: a. All groups are limited to members of the same household or living unit. b. No group can exceed ten persons. c. All persons using the beach, who are not part of members of the same household or living unit, shall comply with Social Distancing Requirements, provided that a caregiver may accompany a dependent. d. The beach or sand area may only be used one-half hour before sunrise to one-half hour after sunset, unless the person is engaged in shore fishing or permitted outdoor exercise. e. All other State of Hawaiʻi or City restrictions related to COVID-19 must be followed, including, but not limited to, any applicable quarantine restrictions. Exhibit A of the Hoʻoulu i Honolulu Order 2.0 has been amended to include certain beach activities. The Mayor’s Emergency Order No. 2020-12 is attached. If you have any questions on Mayor Caldwell’s Ho‘oulu i Honolulu Order 2.0, as amended, visit the website, oneoahu.org to find answers to some frequently asked questions. If you still do not find an answer to your question on the site, O‘ahu residents can call the 768-CITY (2489) information hotline or email covidresponse@honolulu.gov. The City and County of Honolulu COVID-19 information call center remains open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except on holidays.

A news release from the Hawai'i COVID-19 Joint Information Center - May 14, 2020 For a few minutes today, Gov. David Ige took a break from the endless meetings, conference calls, and administrative work associated with the state’s management of the COVID-19 crisis, to join others around the state in recognizing the sacrifices of the healthcare community. From a State Capitol 5th floor vantage point, the governor watched as aircraft from the Hawai‘i National Guard and the 15th Wing Active Duty airmen from Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam flew three separate flyovers over 17 different hospitals and medical centers around the state. It was an occasion to recognize not only military members, many of whom are supporting Hawai‘i’s coronavirus emergency response, but to pay tribute to the thousands of healthcare workers around the islands who are on the frontlines, battling this serious disease. “We see across the country, the ravage COVID-19 has inflicted on community after community. We know that Hawai‘i has fared much, much better than any other state in the country, and it really is due to the healthcare providers here. I’m proud of all their efforts,” said Gov. Ige. As the governor watched the trio of flyovers he reflected, “It’s such a fantastic tribute from people in uniform who risk their lives every single day to the healthcare workers who truly have become heroes in our community because of this pandemic.” RESOURCES (All images courtesy: COVID-19 Joint Information Center) HD video: https://vimeo.com/418676067 Photographs: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/2etx6np7sq5p4sx/AABsL53MFCK_YpaV0KCA5BTia?dl=0

The Senate Committee on Ways and Means Committee Chairman Donovan Dela Cruz today sent a memo to his Senate colleagues outlining a proposed spending plan for federal emergency funding available to the State of Hawai‘i for COVID-19 response. “These allocations provide a responsible, prudent and conservative expenditure approach to meeting both statewide and county needs for COVID-19 response,” said Senate Ways and Means Chair Donovan Dela Cruz. Hawai'i has been given a total of $862,823,978 from the federal Corona Virus Relief Fund (CARES Act) to support the state and smaller counties. The state must pass through $175M to the counties of Kauai, Maui, and Hawai‘i, leaving about $688M for the State of Hawai‘i to allocate. A separate allocation of $387,176,021 was provided directly from the federal government to the City & County of Honolulu. The proposal would allocate from the CARES Act: • $40M to the Hawai‘i Emergency Management Agency for Attorney General enforcement, PPE, Payroll, and other department requests; • $8M to the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations for unemployment program enhancements, IT modernization, staff support, and appeals staff facility support; • $2M for SNAP food benefit program IT improvements; and • $1M for the “PUA” Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program to provide unemployment support to independent contractors and gig economy workers not normally covered by unemployment insurance. • The rest of the money, $637M, would be put into the state’s rainy day fund. Hawai‘i also has $50M available through the federal Health Care Enhancement Act. The proposal would grant: • $36M to the Hawai‘i Department of Transportation for thermal screening machines at the gates of all major airports statewide • $6M to the Hawai‘i Department of Health for contact tracing and testing, vaccination staff, investigation and infection control, IT system, and data science branch • $8M to the Hawai‘i Department of Health for personnel, contract workers, computers, personal protective equipment (PPE), media, lodging, and mass casualty supplies. (AP/HPR: Hawaii To Get $50M For Ramped Up Contact Tracing, Funds For UH Tracers Training Sought) Additional details can be found in the attached memo sent to all Senators. SB75 was advanced by the House Committee on Finance today. The Senate will deliberate on the proposal next week.

May 28 officially marks the end of the 2019-20 school year for HIDOE students. As we transition out 11,000 graduates, we look forward to welcoming our new students. An online registration system is available to enroll students for the upcoming school year. May 28 officially marks the end of the 2019-20 school year for Hawaii State Department of Education (HIDOE) students. Schools have reached out directly to parents to arrange for the pickup of any supplies that were left behind when school facilities closed on March 19, as well as the return of any borrowed HIDOE property such as library books and borrowed equipment. The Department continues to work with schools on plans for summer programming and currently has 18 sites that will be offering summer school via distance learning, in addition to E-School. “As we close out the school year, I want to thank our students and families for their patience and resilience throughout this unprecedented journey.  I also want to thank our teachers, staff and leadership for their innovation, collaboration and commitment in supporting our school communities beyond the classroom, through grab-and-go meal service, telehealth work, door-knocking, device distribution and more,” Superintendent Dr. Christina Kishimoto said. “Together, we have stepped up on behalf of our haumana to deliver on what the power and promise of public education means to this community, this state and this nation. By the end of the month, we will finalize our summer learning plans, ensuring equity and access to all students. We look forward to applying our new and innovative approaches to blended learning to summer learning, the next school year and beyond.” Due to the abrupt closure of school facilities, refunds are being provided for services that were prepaid and not received for transportation and after-school programming. Parents and legal guardians will receive a prorated tuition refund for March for A+ programs (refunds were calculated based on the extended spring break and two school closure days in March). Refund amount information and the refund request form is available online, and should be submitted to the appropriate site coordinator or private provider to initiate the refund process. School bus coupon holders will receive refunds based on the unused portion of paid bus pass coupons purchased on or after March 1. Unused bus coupons must be returned to the school office from which they were purchased in order to be eligible for a refund. Refund checks will be mailed directly to the payee of record. As we transition out 11,000 graduates, we look forward to welcoming our new students. An online registration system is available to enroll students for the upcoming school year. The system allows for the enrollment of new students who were not enrolled at a public or charter school during the 2019-20 school year. Visit bit.ly/HIDOE-enroll for more information and step-by-step instructions. Student enrollment forms and required documents will still be accepted by mail. Parents and guardians are encouraged to contact their school for office hours and additional instructions. Student transfers and withdrawals as well as charter school enrollment will need to be addressed directly with the respective school.

The City and County of Honolulu will be re-opening TheBus pass office at the Kalihi Transit Center on Wednesday, May 20th from a temporary closure due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The re-opening will be for Disability Bus Pass processing only, allowing Disability Card holders to renew their passes before June 1st. New disability applications will also be processed. Applicants will be scheduled to come to TheBus pass office based on a last name basis: TheBus pass office hours of operation are 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Monday to Friday except State Holidays. The office will be closed on Monday, May 25, for the Memorial Day Holiday. To ensure your application will be processed, please be in line by 3:00 p.m., as the line will be shut down promptly at 4:00 p.m. All customers being served at TheBus pass office are required to wear masks while in line and in the office. Line markers will be used to ensure proper social distancing. Senior bus pass renewals are by mail only. New senior applications must be in person and will be processed starting Monday, June 8th at TheBus pass office. Adult and Youth bus passes are still available at all TheBus sales outlets. TheBus pass office will not be selling Adult and Youth bus passes. HOLO card users will be able to reload their cards for June starting on May 20th on the website www.holocard.net, telephone (808) 768-HOLO (4656) or at one of the 14 HOLO card retail locations (see website for listing). For any questions on HOLO cards, please call the call center at (808) 768-4656. #CityandCountyOfHonolulu #TheBus #DisabilityBusPass #Holocard

The Hawai‘i State Senate Committee on Ways and Means today deferred pay raises for legislators and state officials this year that had been recommended by the Salary Commission prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. The amended bill states (HB117), “Due to the unprecedented economic downturn resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, the legislature believes that continued implementation of the commission's recommendations for the executive and judicial branches, and planned adjustments for the legislature, is irresponsible at this time and should be deferred.” The bill defers all salary increases slated for this fiscal year for members of the legislature, the governor, lieutenant governor, justices and judges of all state courts, administrative director of the State or an equivalent position, and department heads or executive officers and the deputies or assistants to the department heads or executive officers of the departments. The amended bill notes that in expectation of an economic downturn due to COVID-19, “the State Council on Revenues lowered its fiscal year 2021 forecast from four per cent to zero per cent, meaning that the State will have about $225,000,000 less in revenues than expected.”

The City and County of Honolulu's Department of Transportation Services (DTS) will extend the restriction of parking in Lanikai until June 30th in an effort to restrict non-essential gatherings along the Lanikai-Kaʻōhao shoreline. This extension is concurrent with Mayor Caldwell’s stay-at-home order extending out until June 30th. No parking will be allowed on all streets and shoulders in Lanikai, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. DTS has placed temporary “sawhorse” type signs on streets in Lanikai to warn drivers of the parking restriction. The City and County of Honolulu is asking everyone to remain at home and only leave for essential travel. This includes going to work for essential employees, picking up groceries, or visiting your doctor. Please respect the stay at home order so we may flatten the curve, put an end to COVID-19, and keep our ʻohana safe.

Today marks seven weeks since the state’s mandatory 14-day self-quarantine started for all passengers arriving in Hawaii from out of state. Yesterday, 881 people arrived in Hawaii including 246 visitors and 329 residents. During this same time last year, nearly 30,000 passengers arrived in Hawaii daily, including residents and visitors. The quarantine order was expanded on April 1st to include interisland travelers. This table shows the number of people who arrived by air from out of state yesterday and does not include interisland travel. Majority of the people who flew to Hawaii yesterday arrived on Oahu. The following tables show what the Oahu visitors indicated as the purpose of their trip and their type of accommodation, and they can choose more than one. This data was collected from the HTA survey on the back of the Hawaii Agriculture Declaration Form. People are not mandated by law to fill out the survey so some are left blank. For Hawaii Tourism Authority and state updates regarding COVID-19 visit: https://www.hawaiitourismauthority.org/news/alerts/covid-19-novel-coronavirus/