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Kady Pascual

Hawaiʻi Scene on Social

[{"type":"text","text":"Has TheBus ever thrown a shaka at you?"}]

The Wild Kai Shaka Bus

<title>Hawai‘i Scene on Social: Shaka Smiles</title>

Today’s Social Media Find comes from @the_wild_kai, showing us that special moment when TheBus says mahalo.

Hawai‘i Scene on Social: Shaka Smiles

Has TheBus ever thrown a shaka at you?  Make sure to follow @The_Wild_Kai on Instagram!

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Michael Brestovansky

Government & Politics

A Hawai‘i senator has introduced a federal bill that would require AI-generated content to be clearly labeled as such.

Sen. Brian Schatz co-introduced last week the 

 as an effort to improve transparency as AI-generated content becomes more and more common in everyday life.

The measure that requires any AI-generated digital content — whether an image, video, audio or chatbot — include clear disclosures embedded within the content itself identifying it as AI-generated.

Those disclosures must also include a machine-readable disclosure, an invisible “stamp” embedded within the file’s metadata, that also describes the system that generated the content, and when it was generated.

All providers of generative AI systems would be required to ensure that their outputs’ disclosures are detectable by widely available AI-detection tools. Social media platforms would also be required to ensure that the disclosures are still visible when AI-generated content is viewed on their sites, and would be prohibited from obscuring or removing them.

The measure also includes a host of prohibitions against distributing AI content that doesn’t include the disclosures, or against adding disclosures to non-AI-generated content. People or entities who violate those prohibitions could be sued for up to $2,500 per violation.

“People deserve to know whether or not the videos, photos, and content they see and read online is real or original,” 

said Senator Schatz in a statement Tuesday.

 “Our bill is simple – if any digital content is made by artificial intelligence, it should be labeled so that people are aware and aren’t fooled or scammed.”

When introducing the bill, Schatz’ office specifically referenced a 2023 AI-generated photo of an explosion near the Pentagon, which triggered a dip in the stock market.

This wasn’t the only AI bill introduced last week. The 

 would require AI developers to report to the Secretary of Commerce any potentially harmful action autonomously taken by an AI model.

For instance, the bill requires that developers notify authorities if there is any sign that an AI model “is attempting to evade human oversight, deceive evaluators or operators … resist shutdown or modification … enable or accelerate the development, acquisition, or use of chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear or explosive weapons,” or other behaviors.

Neither bill has been voted on in Congress so far.

Meanwhile, the House voted last week to pass the 

Small Business Administration Artificial Intelligence Utilization Act

, a measure requiring the SBA to publish regular reports about how it uses AI. No representative voted against the measure’s passage.

Other bills the House passed last week include:

Native American Entrepreneurial Opportunity Act

, which establishes within the SBA an Office of Native American Affairs that would work to promote SBA programs with Native American tribes and Native Hawaiian organizations. The bill passed the House with no objections.

, which requires the SBA to report to Congress about the number of COVID loan fraud cases that have been reported and resolved. The bill passed the House with no objections.

Emergency Conservation Program Improvement Act

 would allow agricultural producers to receive reimbursements for up to 75% of the cost of replacing farm or conservation structures following a natural disaster through the Emergency Conservation Program and Emergency Forest Restoration Program. The bill passed 368-19, with Hawai‘i Reps. Jill Tokuda and Ed Case in support. The bill has been enrolled to President Donald Trump’s desk.

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Brian Schatz official portrait 113th Congress 2 16x9

<title>CONGRESS WATCH: Schatz introduces bill requiring labels on AI content</title>

U.S. Congress considered AI measures and other legislation last week.

CONGRESS WATCH: Schatz introduces bill requiring labels on AI content

Stephanie Salmons Headshot

Stephanie Salmons

Business & Tourism

A new center launched earlier this year by Bank of Hawai‘i aims to help business owners plan for growth, transition and the future.

The Center for Family Business & Entrepreneurs was created for family-owned and closely-held businesses, an announcement from BOH noted.

"Bank of Hawai‘i created the Center for Family Business and Entrepreneurs, as we've really come to discover that for business owners, particularly family business owners and our closely held business owners, at some point in their business-owning journey, their decisions become deeply interconnected for both the business, the family, their personal wealth," CFBE Director Agatha Viernes-LeGros told Aloha State Daily in June. "We really see that there's a need to support these business owners as they evaluate different milestones on their journey — particularly as they look toward succession and exit of their business."

The center formally launched in April, but Viernes-LeGros says the idea has been percolating for much longer.

"I give credit to our executives here at Bank of Hawai‘i for recognizing that our business owners have needs outside from core banking services," she says. "They have needs as it relates to their business succession and personal wealth strategy and planning, so it's taken a bit to get to this point. ... It's been probably a year-and-a-half, maybe even almost [a] two-year journey, and that's really been because we wanted to be thoughtful about how we're sharing with our community what we're doing."

Viernes-LeGros says CFBE aims to provide education, advice and hands-on execution of planning services to clients in a confidential manner, bringing together expertise in commercial banking with what the bank does in the wealth management space, "to really provide these comprehensive and connective services to our business-owning community."

The center finds that as clients start to evaluate major decisions, whether it's continuing to reinvest in their business or stepping away, they often times don't know how to do so, she told ASD.

"We find these business owners, they're the ones that built their business up from the ground up, and as much as they're skilled at running their business, they're not skilled at what comes next," Viernes-LeGros says. "... You oftentimes hear businesses closing their doors, and that's unfortunately becoming an all-too-common story these days, and that could be because they may not have a named or a known successor. We see that family businesses, they've done a great job of building wealth — not just for their own families, but also in their communities, reinvesting in their communities — and as their own children grow up, they find that they've got other interests, start other careers and they don't really have this ability to come back and run the family business. That leaves business owners with not really understanding what's the next step for them."

CFBE has resources to help those business owners look at and evaluate what options are available.

, research shows that as much as 70% or more of their personal wealth is tied up in their companies, which makes decisions about succession, transition and continuity "deeply personal as well as financial."

When asked what these business owners should know about or be mindful of during the succession planning process, Viernes-LeGros says the biggest pitfall they see business owners fall into is waiting until the last minute.

"I think that is a critical aspect of thinking through one's succession and transition is that you really should be doing it well in advance," she told ASD. "We're talking even up to years in advance of when you really intend on exiting a business because there's certain tax strategies, changes to the way your business is organized, gifting strategies ... that require planning in advance to make sure you can best take advantage of the different tax benefits out there. If they wait to the last minute and they make these changes say a year, six months out from when they plan to exit their business, they may not be able to get the full benefit of the tax strategies that they're trying to implement."

Additionally, Viernes-LeGros says it can sometimes take years to empower a successor and remove owner dependency from a business.

"That's another area where we can see some pitfalls for business owners as they think about exiting, is they're so critical to the day-to-day ... but if they get all of their ideas, get the secret sauce down on paper, so to speak, maybe locked away, but out of their head and onto paper, that really helps for a business to succeed and continue on, and well into the future."

Want to learn more? You can get more info at the 

Viernes Le Gros Agatha BOH 16x9

<title>Center for Family Business & Entrepreneurs helps businesses plan for growth, transition</title>

The new center was launched earlier this year by Bank of Hawai‘i, created for family-owned and closely-held businesses. CFBE Director Agatha Viernes-LeGros told Aloha State Daily that the center aims to provide education, advice and hands-on execution of planning services to clients in a confidential manner.

Center for Family Business & Entrepreneurs helps businesses plan for growth, transition

Christian Shimabuku Headshot

Christian Shimabuku

Sports

Last week, Roosevelt High School publicly unveiled its brand new, state-of-the art gymnasium for the first time. 

The $35 million facility spans 55,000 square feet and features amenities such as a video board, an upstairs mezzanine and all-purpose area for indoor sports. 

Roosevelt's new gym was the first part of a master plan to have its facilities up to Hawai‘i Department of Education standards. The school is currently constructing an $18 million music building, currently projected for a 2028 opening. 

Other features of Roosevelt's new gym include a weight room, mat room, first aid room, offices, locker rooms and a concession stand. 

The blessing of Roosevelt's new gym on Wednesday, June 24, began with Rev. Ryan Souza blowing into a conch shell, followed by a prayer. After Hawai‘i DOE superintendent Keith Hayashi, Roosevelt principal Sean Wong and Roosevelt athletic director John Chung participated in a ribbon cutting ceremony outside the gym, guests were allowed to enter and observe the gym for the first time. 

Hayashi, Wong and Chung all delivered speeches on the new gym floor. Wong and Chung both teared up when explaining what the project meant to them. 

Wong, who had been Roosevelt's principal for 11 years, is departing the school to become the DOE's secondary principal in residence on July 1. 

"Definitely mixed feelings," Wong told Aloha State Daily following the ceremony. "Obviously just seeing everybody's time and effort put into this, I'm just fortunate to have been a part of this project that students will enjoy for generations. Just thank you to the community, and thank you to everybody for their commitment and dedication to our school."

To Wong and Chung, a new gym at Roosevelt was decades in the making. Chung in particular remembers hearing those complaints back when his father, Stanley, was Roosevelt's athletic director. Stanley Chung, who retired as Roosevelt's AD in 1988, died at 94 in 2025. 

Despite graduating high school from Saint Louis, Roosevelt has always been near to John Chung's heart. In 2007, he got the job as Roosevelt's AD and has held the position ever since. 

John Chung expressed Wednesday that his father would have loved the school's new digs and is undoubtedly proud of the progress made over the years, which ramped up in intensity following the draft of a master plan in 2014 and the demolition of the old gym in 2023. 

When Roosevelt's student body steps into the gym for the first time, "they're gonna notice that the gym is a lot cooler than what they're used to," Chung said. "Our old gym, we'd just be sweating. Our old gym felt kind of tight, squeezed in. . ... I think they're gonna be excited. I hope they are, because this is for them. Not just for athletics, but for the whole school."

Roosevelt will host an open house for the public to peruse its gym on July 11 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. 

Roosevelt gym 063026

<title>Roosevelt High School unveils brand new gymnasium</title>

The $35 million project was part of a master plan to have the school's facilities up to DOE standards.

Roosevelt High School unveils brand new gymnasium

Food & Dining

A sign in Honolulu's Ala Moana neighborhood has been announcing for a while now that LongHorn Steakhouse is coming soon — but how soon?

[{"type":"text","text":"Aloha State Daily was curious, so we reached out to ask."}]

A spokesperson for parent company Darden Restaurants told ASD in an email last week that the company's Hawai‘i LongHorn franchisee, Union MAK Corp., was still in the permitting process, but did not share any other details.

Vince Espino, president of Union MAK Corp., said the same in a separate email to ASD.

"LongHorn is still in the permitting stage," he wrote. "We're targeting to open summer of 2026 should permits align."

Information from the City and County of Honolulu's Department of Planning and Permitting notes the plans review is in progress. 

 also show that the estimated value of the work is $1 million.

 employs 195,000 in more than 2,100 restaurants across the country. In addition to LongHorn, its family of restaurants include 

Olive Garden has two locations on O‘ahu — one in Ala Moana Center and a second in Kapolei at Ka Makana Ali‘i; Yard House can be found at Waikīkī Beach Walk; you can find Ruth's Chris Steak House in Honolulu and Wailea; and Capital Grille is expected to open in Līlia Waikīkī 

. Today, there are more than 500 locations.

Longhorn 071425

<title>What's up with LongHorn Steakhouse?</title>

A sign in Honolulu's Ala Moana neighborhood has been announcing for a while now that the restaurant is coming soon — but how soon? Aloha State Daily was curious, so we asked.

Hawai‘i Scene on Social: Shaka Smiles

Kady Pascual

Social Media & Marketing Manager

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Hawai‘i Scene on Social: Shaka Smiles

Authors

Kady Pascual

Social Media & Marketing Manager

More in Hawaiʻi Scene on Social

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