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Government

It Pays To Check Your Checks

Thursday, April 15th, 2010

Say you are owed a check, from a business or from the State, and it never arrived. You may have forgotten about it, moved with no forwarding address, or the amount was too small to check up on.

Well, in as much time as it takes to fill out a Census form, you can have that money. The State of Hawaii, Department of Budget and Finance has a program that receives all those undelivered checks and holds on to them – currently around $150 million in unclaimed funds, according to Colleen C. Ajifu, Program Specialist.

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Count You In

Wednesday, April 14th, 2010

Have you mailed in your census information yet? Molokai is lagging behind state averages for response rates, and Census 2010 workers are doing extra work on the island to raise participation. Census information is important because it plays a key role in determining where more than $400 billion of federal funding goes to such services as hospitals, schools, bridges and roads and emergency services. Many use the data on an everyday basis to improve people’s quality of life. It also affects the numbers of seats Hawaii occupies in the U.S. House of Representatives.

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Road Less Traveled

Wednesday, April 14th, 2010

Sometimes, the destination does not seem worth the journey. Such is the case with Frances and Bill Feeter, whose transient vacation rental (TVR) just became the second such establishment to operate legally on Molokai. Nine years after they filed their first application, the Maui County Council’s Land Use Committee unanimously approved the Feeter’s permit last week.
 
“It’s a great relief,” Frances Feeter said of finally receiving the permit to operate legally. But if she could do it again, Feeter said they probably would not go through the process.

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Molokai DHS Closing in June

Wednesday, April 7th, 2010

In a move that will allegedly save the taxpayers $8 million annually, the Department of Human Services (DHS) announced last week it is closing and consolidating 31 eligibility offices statewide, and implementing a new Eligibility Processing and Operations Division (EPOD) from offices in Honolulu and Hilo. Molokai’s office, with four staff members, is one of the closing locations, with its last day scheduled for June 30.

“It’s hard to say right now what will happen [to Molokai staff],” said Toni Schwartz, communications officer for DHS.

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Tax Tips for Last Minute Filers

Wednesday, April 7th, 2010

IRS News Release

With the tax filing deadline of April 15 close at hand, the IRS wants taxpayers to know several excellent tips to consider if they are still working on their federal tax return.

“It’s important the taxpayers carefully review their tax returns before filing,” said IRS spokesman David A. Tucker II. “Accuracy is always important. There may also be credits taxpayers are eligible for that will help reduce their tax responsibility or increase their refunds.”

Last year’s American Recovery and Reinvestment Act created a full slate of tax breaks, which can be claimed on tax returns right now. These include the

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Women of Maui County Honored

Saturday, April 3rd, 2010

Women of Maui County Honored

Mayor Charmaine Tavares News Release

Mayor Charmaine Tavares proclaimed March as Women’s History Month and commended the accomplishments of 55 Maui County women at a reception last week celebrating Women’s History Month.

The ceremony, organized by the County’s Committee on the Status of Women (CSW) and held last week in Kihei, honored a total of 55 women from Maui, Molokai and Lanai. The women were nominated by the public through the CSW.

Molokai honorees included Barbara Haliniak and Donna Haytko-Paoa, among several other women as well as Governor Linda Lingle and Mayor Charmaine Tavares. The Maui County Committee on the Status of Women was established by state statute in 1970. Current members include Lois Prey, Chair; Margaret Bruck, Vice-Chair; and members Suzanne Hobbs, Barbara Potopowitz, Jenilynne Salvador and Carol Summers.

In her remarks, Mayor Tavares noted that “women have played major roles in the history of Maui County, and the women being honored today have each played an important role in shaping the future of our community. These inspiring women have provided countless hours of volunteerism, and have made many contributions to  education, business, culture, the arts, politics, non-profits and faith-based organizations.”

This year’s national theme, “Writing Women Back into History,” reflects the 30th anniversary of the Women’s History movement in the U.S. The County’s Committee on the Status of Women, with the financial support from the State of Hawaii’s CSW, created a booklet honoring each of the nominees and their contributions to Maui County. Each honoree received a copy of the booklet and was presented with a certificate of achievement from Mayor Tavares. The committee plans to distribute copies of the booklet within the community; a digital version will be available soon on the County’s website, www.mauicounty.gov

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IRS Refund for Tax Credits

Saturday, April 3rd, 2010

By Karen Holt

If you earned any income in 2009, you might qualify to get money from the IRS, even if you don’t owe any taxes.  If your income is low enough, you could qualify for “Earned Income Tax Credits.”  If you are eligible, the IRS could send you a cash refund – even if you don’t owe any taxes at all!  The amount of the credit depends on your family size, and you have to be between the ages of 25 and 65.  Here are some examples of tax credit amounts for families with three children, and people with no children:

Married with at least three children: Joint income less than $48,279; Potential tax credit = $5,657
Single with at least three children: Income less than $43,279; Potential tax credit = $5,657

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Road Maintenance Hitting Barriers

Thursday, April 1st, 2010

Road Maintenance Hitting Barriers

As the only road that leads to her home and business, Maunaloa Highway is an essential link for realtor Jill McGowan and other area residents. But in the past few years, part of the highway has started to deteriorate at mile marker 13.

The problem is erosion, said Tammy Mori of the state Department of Transportation Community Affairs office. Drainage, or lack thereof, and soil erosion on both sides of the road are causing it to sink into the ravine.

soils are more prone to erosion than most areas of Hawaii, use of other measures would be needed.  To be cost-effective, methods to re-establish grass cover would be favored over more traditional engineering solutions,” she added.

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Molokai’s Affordable Housing to Expand

Thursday, March 25th, 2010

Molokai’s Affordable Housing to Expand

Molokai Habitat for Humanity News Release, with Artice Swingle and John Wordin

Emillia Noordhoek recently attended the annual advocacy conference for Habitat for Humanity International, ‘Habitat on the Hill,’ in Washington D.C.  At this important conference, training is given on advocating regarding issues dealing with affordable housing.  Post-conference interviews allowed Noordhoek to advocate for affordable housing on Molokai with Senator Daniel Inouye and Representative Mazie Hirono. 

Issues concerning Federal dollars allocated to affordable housing and mortgage regulation related to the SAFE Act have a direct bearing on the operation of Molokai Habitat for Humanity.  Noordhoek was able to present a clear picture of the needs of the community to our lawmakers who were very receptive and helped to stress the importance of continued funding and support. 

Molokai Habitat for Humanity is expanding its operation to support both affordable housing on Hawaiian Homelands and other properties as well.  Critical to this expansion is tapping into federal programs which will support this effort.   Sustainable building and achieving high level efficiency in terms of energy use is key in working toward a sustainable Molokai.  Noordhoek’s contact will be critical in uncovering and maintaining federal funding for our community.

Supporting Molokai’s position in the conference with Inouye was Jonathan Reckford, CEO for Habitat of Humanity International.   Inouye as Housing Appropriations Committee is critical to the success of Habitat for Humanity and continued funding for affordable housing.

Hirono’s support  was welcomed.  Suggestion was made that we request funds from Housing L.A. which funds affordable housing projects.  This will be Noordhoek’s challenge upon returning to Molokai. 

As community members concerned with providing affordable energy efficient housing for all qualified applicants, we are indeed delighted that Noordhoek had this opportunity to represent Molokai and her needs.


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Avoiding Contaminated Drinking Water

Thursday, March 25th, 2010

Avoiding Contaminated Drinking Water

Finding out what threatens Molokai’s water sources is mandated by federal law through the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). But implementing a protection plan is not.

Therefore, the County of Maui Department of Water Supply, working with the University of Hawaii and the state Department of Health, has volunteered for the task. The Wellhead Protection Project, now in its ninth year, acts to protect the groundwater around public-use wells. Eva Blumenstein, a water resource planner, said they are still looking for public feedback on this issue.

an upgrade.”

There are three county wells and nine private wells on Molokai, but the Wellhead Protection Project is looking at wells that serve 25 or more people, said Robert Whittier, a hydrogeologist with UH-Manoa working with the County of Maui. Private areas that fall within public well-source water are Molokai Ranch and Kawela Plantation, as well as the Department of Hawaiian Homelands, Kalaupapa, and residents served by Maui County.

“Molokai has a sole source aquifer, there’s not alternative source to go to,” Blumenstein said.

She said her department will be coming back in May for more public feedback, especially those served by the wells and the Molokai Water Advisory Committee.

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