ASD icon blue inverse lighter

ASD Staff

Daily Smile

[{"type":"text","text":"100 tennis balls and somehow none are right..."}]

Smile 26 4 30

<title>Daily Smile: Thursday, April 30, 2026</title>

100 tennis balls and somehow none are right...

Daily Smile: Thursday, April 30, 2026

 100 tennis balls and somehow none are right...

Christian Shimabuku Headshot

Christian Shimabuku

Sports

University of Hawai‘i women's volleyball head coach Robyn Ah Mow has resigned, announcing her decision with a statement on social media late Wednesday afternoon. 

"With a heavy heart, I want to share that I will be stepping away from my role as head coach of the Rainbow Wahine volleyball program," her statement read in part. 

Ah Mow coached the Rainbow Wahine from 2017 to 2025, accumulating a career record of 165-78 in eight full seasons. The Rainbow Wahine made the NCAA Tournament in her first seven seasons but 

Prior to becoming head coach for the Rainbow Wahine, Ah Mow was on the staff as an assistant coach from 2011 to 2015. 

Before her coaching career, Ah Mow was one of the best players in University of Hawai‘i history, as well as one of the world's best setters. She was a two-time All-American for the 'Bows in 1995 and 1996, as well as a setter for the U.S. national team, competing in the 2000, 2004 and 2008 Summer Olympics. 

Kaleo Baxter, Ah Mow's associate head coach, was named the program's interim head coach following her resignation. 

 is the epitome of what it means to be a Rainbow Wahine," UH athletics director 

 said in a statement. "She is a fierce competitor, a dedicated mentor, and an undeniable legend in the state of Hawai'i and the global volleyball community. We are incredibly grateful for the dedication and passion she poured into this program over the last nine years as the leader of Wahine Volleyball, and more than 30 years since she first stepped on campus. We will all miss her dearly as our head coach, and wish her the absolute best in her next chapter."

[{"type":"text","text":"UH says a national search for the program's next head coach has begun. "}]

For the latest news of Hawai‘i, sign up 

Robyn Ah Mow 082825

<title>Hawai‘i women's head volleyball coach Robyn Ah Mow resigns</title>

Ah Mow released a statement on late Wednesday afternoon to announce her decision.

Hawai‘i women's head volleyball coach Robyn Ah Mow resigns

Square Mike Brestovansky Headshot RGZ3736 Large

Michael Brestovansky

Government & Politics

[{"type":"text","text":"Some Hawai‘i residents will get their tax cuts after all."}]

 in January that a series of tax cuts scheduled to take effect from 2027 through 2029 would “pause” in order to make up for an alleged $3 billion budgetary shortfall.

Those tax cuts had been set by a 2024 law that would incrementally reduce the state tax on residents' income each year through 2029. A bill introduced this year, 

, would curtail the tax cuts yet to come, while preserving the cuts that have already been implemented.

By pausing the cuts, Green said in January that the state would have an additional $1.8 billion in revenue to work with.

As SB 3125 has progressed through the state Legislature, committees in the House and Senate have debated possible changes that might keep some or all of the previously scheduled tax cuts after all.

During a six-hour-long conference committee Tuesday evening, lawmakers hashed out a compromise that will retain the cuts for people in lower tax brackets.

The final version the committee agreed to will maintain the future cuts for single filers making under $175,000 per year, heads of household making under $262,500 and joint filers making under $350,000.

Meanwhile, the bill also includes a new income tax bracket for single filers making $500,000 or more, or households making $1 million or more. People in that bracket would face a 13% marginal tax rate; 

, the highest tax bracket is for single filers making more than $325,000 annually or joint filers making more than $650,000, and is subject to an 11% marginal tax rate.  

To pay for the bill, lawmakers agreed to phase out a series of tax credits as proposed earlier in the legislative session, including a renewable energy tax credit of up to $500,000 for solar- or wind-powered energy installations and a capital goods excise tax credit that has stood since 1987 and allows businesses to be reimbursed for the general excise tax costs of purchasing new property.

At the same time, a childcare tax credit — which previous versions of the bill would have increased — will also be reduced.

“With this additional tax relief, we believe the expansion of other tax credits … will not be needed,” said Sen. Donovan Dela Cruz, chair of the Senate Ways and Means Committee during the conference committee hearing. “The Senate position has consistently been putting money into working families’ pockets every pay period is better than until the end of the year.”

Dela Cruz added that, according to the Hawai‘i Department of Taxation, more than 140,000 people who were eligible for the childcare tax credit did not claim it.

A statement by the Senate Majority indicated that the feasibility of the bill is contingent upon discussions of 

, the state budget bill. A conference committee hearing on that measure began Wednesday afternoon.

The tax cut measure must be submitted for a final reading by both chambers by Friday. Aloha State Daily requested comment from the governor’s office regarding Green’s intention to sign the bill.

 For the latest news of Hawai‘i, sign up 

Image high 16x9

<title>Tax cuts still on the table</title>

A series of historic tax cuts Gov. Josh Green passed in 2024 were set to pause after this year. A bill that would preserve some of them is on the verge of passage.

Tax cuts still on the table

Panita Thanatharn was new to the Islands when she landed her first career head coaching job last summer, taking over as the 

new leader of the University of Hawai‘i softball program

Thanatharn joined the Rainbow Wahine after 16 seasons as an assistant coach at her alma mater, Long Beach State. Thanatharn and her inaugural staff, including assistant coaches 

Alyssa Gonzalez and Mariah Ramirez-Jones. 

The Rainbow Wahine went through the wringer at the start of the 2026 season, including a 1-8 stretch during a two-week road trip in Southern California in February. Despite the losses, the 'Bows exited the gauntlet bettered by the experience. 

This week, the 'Bows enter their final Big West regular season series at UC Riverside playing their best ball of the year — the Rainbow Wahine (26-18, 18-6 Big West) have won nine conference games in a row and six overall. 

"I can't complain," Thanatharn told Aloha State Daily following the team's 3-2 walk-off victory over Cal Poly on Saturday. "We just try to get better every single day, and I think we've been doing it. It's been fun to get everybody in and have a lot of contributors come a long way since our first practice in the fall."

Despite the team's adjustment to a new staff, Thanatharn says she appreciates the way the Rainbow Wahine accepted her and her staff from the very beginning. 

"For this group, not just me, but the coaching staff, we couldn't invest in a better group," Thanatharn said of the team's players. "They did everything the right way, their leadership, the way they set a new standard in everything they do, on and off the field, the way they carry themselves, the way they work, the way they compete in the community. Everything they do, they do it the right way. They were welcoming, they just earn the respect of their teammates, and they truly, truly enjoy each other."

The mutual trust between Hawai‘i's players and coaches have the 'Bows in an advantageous situation as far as the standings are concerned. If UH were to sweep UC Riverside (6-35, 4-20) this weekend, then the Rainbow Wahine would clinch the No. 2 seed in next week's Big West tournament in Fullerton, Calif. 

The top two seeds in the conference tournament earn a first round bye. Although the Big West tournament debuted in 2025, Thanatharn has experience coaching in it from her previous stop at Long Beach. She and her staff understand the advantages that would come with the bye if the Rainbow Wahine were able to clinch it. 

"Rest is always good, especially this point of the season," Thanatharn said. "rest is always good, and it gives us another day."

Because of the quick turnaround between the end of the regular season and conference tournament, the Rainbow Wahine will stay in Southern California. If the 'Bows were to win the conference tournament, the plan would be to stay on the Mainland for the NCAA Tournament. The Rainbow Wahine are hoping for a long trip and planning as such. 

"We bought a one-way ticket there," Thanatharn said. "I already told [the team] we're gonna bring all of our uniforms. We have to do a lot of laundry, so just pack a lot of socks and undergarments. ... I just couldn't be more proud of this group, and we still have a lot of game left in us."

Hawaii softball 042926

<title>After embracing new coaching staff, Hawai‘i softball team emerges as serious Big West…</title>

The Rainbow Wahine enter the final weekend of Big West regular season play with a chance to clinch a top 2 seed and bye in next week's conference tournament.

After embracing new coaching staff, Hawai‘i softball team emerges as serious Big West contenders

Higa headshot white shirt square

Sterling Higa

Columnists

 last week. In that suit, the former chief of staff to Maui Mayor Richard Bissen alleges that in March 2024 he found a $45,532.32 invoice in the County’s Office of Economic Development.

The invoice was dated August 16, 2023 — about one week after the Maui fires.

The company on the invoice was RTFEX Depot. The address listed was in Scottsdale, Arizona. Caires called the number on the invoice. An answering machine picked up. It did not say the company’s name. He called the Arizona Corporation Commission. It had no record of the company.

Caires was a former commercial banker. He suspected fraud. He asked Maui’s Corporation Counsel for advice, and they recommended a formal investigation.

During the investigation, Caires says he found that one of Bissen’s executive assistants was part of the deal. The assistant was Mayson “Pono” Asano. Asano said he picked up the equipment in the parking lot of the Kahului Target. He said he would delivere it to the grantee on Moloka‘i. But when Caires asked for receipts and bank records, Asano had none.

Caires also spoke with Cynthia Lallo. She supervised the mayor’s executive assistants at the time. Lallo said Asano had acted as an agent on other grants. That work had nothing to do with his job.

Caires believed Asano was breaking the terms of the grants. He believed it was fraud. A mayor’s office employee was defrauding the County of Maui.

When Caires gave the mayor an update, Bissen told him to back off. Bissen also told him to turn the investigation into an audit.

When Caires kept going, he was cut out of meetings, then demoted and finally fired. Lallo replaced him as chief of staff.

This is not the first time Bissen’s team has been in the news for alleged misuse of funds.

 marketing contract with the County. Both Lallos had worked on Bissen’s campaign, with Rachael building Bissen’s website and designing logos, lawn signs and digital ads. In 

, Rachael listed Bissen’s campaign chair, Charlene Schulenburg, as a reference. That contract was later 

Luana Mahi was the director of Maui’s Office of Economic Development. She was placed on paid leave after nonprofits tied to her family 

in county grants. Mahi’s former business associate also 

In February 2026, the County of Maui released a 

. The County Auditor had ordered it. Spire Hawai‘i LLP wrote it. The assessment found that the County’s controls against fraud are “not adequate to mitigate likely fraud risks.”

Spire surveyed the people who run the County. Ninety-five percent of department heads rated their own department’s fraud risk as low. None said it was high. The elected officials — the mayor and councilmembers — answered the other way. Eighty-six percent rated the County’s fraud risk as medium. Fourteen percent rated it high. None rated it low. The people closest to where fraud would happen were the most convinced it could not happen.

According to Caires’ complaint, he reported what he had found up the chain. The mayor first sent him to the OED director. When Caires pressed on, the mayor told him to stop the investigation and turn it into an audit. Corporation Counsel attorneys did not agree.

The Office of Economic Development is where Caires says he found the invoice. But the Office of Economic Development is not its own department. It is a program inside the Office of the Mayor.

The Spire report does not assess fraud risk in the Mayor’s office, though it ranks the risk for 20 other departments.

There is no single process in Maui County for reporting, investigating, or responding to fraud. Nine separate offices receive fraud reports. Each applies its own standards. They are the Department of Finance, the Department of Management, the Mayor, the Department of Personnel Services, Corporation Counsel, the Police, the Prosecuting Attorney, individual department heads, and the Ethics Commission.

The American founders separated powers and set up checks and balances. They were realists about human nature. Madison’s line about men not being angels was not rhetoric. Man is sinful. Executives asked to investigate themselves do not investigate themselves. A system that routes fraud reports through the people accused of fraud is not an oversight system.

Accountability happens in Hawaiʻi, sometimes. Earlier this month, Lieutenant Governor Sylvia Luke 

. She had received a target letter from the state attorney general’s office. Campaign finance questions remained. Last week, the state auditor took a rare step. He 

 problems with $40 million of emergency contracts to HomeAid Hawaiʻi. Both show a system that can check itself.

After Caires made his claims, Bissen issued a statement. “As Mayor,” he said, “I have a fiduciary responsibility to ensure our team delivers for the people of Maui County.”

Bissen should start with the recommendations in the Spire report.

This is not a progressive agenda or a conservative agenda. It is the limited-government agenda. Government power must be limited and held to account because government is made of fallen men and women.

The invoice was for $45,532.32. The county has 

 in legal fees to defend itself against Caires. The cost of a trial or settlement will likely run much higher. The people of Maui will foot the bill.

Maui seal 16x9

<title>"Fraud can't happen here"</title>

ASD opinion columnist Sterling Higa sees a pattern on Maui, where Mayor Bissen's former chief of staff has filed a whistleblower lawsuit over how he was allegedly treated after reporting what he considered fraud in county government and where a recent fraud risk assessment commissioned by the county found that controls were inadequate to prevent fraud.

"Fraud can't happen here"

Stephanie Salmons Headshot

Stephanie Salmons

Business & Tourism

[{"type":"text","text":"A Waikīkī resort is getting a $100 million refresh."}]

Outrigger Hospitality Group has started the overhaul of its Outrigger Waikīkī Beach Resort.

, the company says the resort is being "reimagined as a design-led, barefoot luxury destination more deeply connected to the ocean, surf culture and sense of place that defines Waikīkī."

Monica Salter, vice president of global communications and social responsibility for Outrigger Hospitality Group, told Aloha State Daily in an email that the renovation will touch "every aspect of the guest experience, from the moment of arrival through to the ocean's edge."

"Highlights include a dramatic new grand arrival staircase with design details inspired by the ʻĀpuakēhau Stream, a museum-quality art program developed in collaboration with leading local artists, a one-of-a-kind surfboard installation in the lobby and a fully reimagined Voyager 47 Club Lounge that will be more than three times its current size with expanded indoor-outdoor spaces," she says.

Meanwhile, Salter says guest rooms and suites are being redesigned with "soft palettes and textures drawn from the natural environment of Waikīkī including the surf, the sand and the light. Throughout, the design is rooted in the cultural history and surf legacy of this iconic shoreline."

Outrigger Waikīkī Beach Resort first opened in 1967 and its last major renovation was a "few decades ago," she noted. 

"Outrigger Waikīkī Beach Resort is where the Outrigger story began — on the historic grounds of the Outrigger Canoe Club, at the birthplace of modern surfing," Salter says. "After 60 years, the time felt right to honor that legacy in a way that reflects both where the brand has been and where it's going. This transformation will create an experience that is more elevated, more immersive and more authentically rooted in the culture and spirit of Waikīkī than ever before."

The resort will remain fully open throughout the renovations, including Duke's 

Waikīkī, Hula Grill Waikīkī and Blue Note Hawai‘i. Salter says the work is being "carried out thoughtfully" to minimize disruption.

The reimagined guest rooms are on track to debut later this year, while other elements of the transformation will be revealed in phases in the months that follow, she told ASD.

According to the announcement, several organizations are collaborating on the project, including DTL — a Hawaiian Strategy Studio, PowerStrip Studio and WCIT Architecture.

“To design in Hawaiʻi is to remember," Mālia Ka‘aihue, president of DTL, said in the announcement. "Our work at Outrigger Waikīkī Beach Resort was shaped by the ʻĀpuakēhau Stream, by the genealogy of the land, aliʻi and people of this place, and by the rhythm of the kahakai. For kamaʻāina and malihini alike, we wanted the generational abundance of Waikīkī to be felt in every material, every motif, every moment."

Outrigger got its start in 1947, when American architect Roy Kelley and his wife Estelle opened the 33-room Islander Hotel in Waikīkī, according to a 

, you'll find the Outrigger Reef Waikīkī Beach Resort, Waikīkī Beach Resort, Waikīkī Beachcomber Hotel and Waikīkī Paradise Hotel; on 

 there's Outrigger Kā‘anapali Beach Resort and Honua Kai Resort & Spa; the Outrigger Kona Resort & Spa is located on Hawai‘i Island; and the Outrigger Kaua‘i Beach Resort & Spa is on the 

 across the Islands, and owns and operates resorts in Fiji, Thailand, Maldives and Mauritius. Find its portfolio of properties 

(ICYMI: Several other Hawai‘i hotels have unveiled multi-million dollar renovations and updates in the last year, including 

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Waikīkī Beach

Honolulu hotels alone generate $12 billion in economic activity and support 63,912 jobs, according to an 

 released in February by the American Hotel & Lodging Association and the Hawai‘i Hotel Alliance. Hotel guests spend $6.5 billion throughout Honolulu each year, the report notes, which is equivalent to $760 per room night on lodging, retail, dining and other activities.

OUTRIGGER Stair Entry Floor

<title>Outrigger Hospitality Group starts $100M 'transformation' of Waikīkī Beach Resort</title>

The company says the resort is being "reimagined as a design-led, barefoot luxury destination more deeply connected to the ocean, surf culture and sense of place that defines Waikīkī."

Outrigger Hospitality Group starts $100M 'transformation' of Waikīkī Beach Resort

AKINA portrait 2

Keliʻi Akina

Viewpoints

Most of the attention this year at the state Legislature has been focused on the status of our historic income tax cuts from 2024 — whether they are going to be modified or repealed, effectively resulting in a tax hike.

But there’s another tax-hike bill still alive that has been quietly making its way through the legislative process: 

This bill would increase the state conveyance tax on higher-value properties to funnel revenue into certain special funds. Supporters believe owners of multimillion-dollar properties can be targeted without affecting the economy or the housing market as a whole. Reality says otherwise.

Studies on the effect of real estate transfer taxes in general have 

 they are associated with reductions in investment, income, jobs and economic activity. 

Even when a conveyance tax is limited to higher-value properties, it is likely to have unintended consequences. For example, the so-called mansion tax that went into effect in Los Angeles in 2023 not only has had the 

 of reducing all housing sales, it has also impeded the sales of commercial, multifamily and industrial properties, threatening housing growth and the economic health of the region.

SB3028 seeks to target higher-value residential properties with a conveyance tax hike by switching from flat rates to marginal rates. Marginal rates alone are not concerning — but substantial rate increases are.

Currently, a property sold for $3.5 million to a buyer who is eligible for a county property tax home exemption would generate a conveyance tax bill of $17,500. If the most recent draft of SB3028 were to become law, the conveyance tax for that property would jump to $46,300.  

A tax hike of that magnitude is sure to reduce local property turnover, which would affect local businesses and overall housing growth. Reduced sales could also wind up decreasing tax revenue.

Historically, the conveyance tax was never intended to be a major source of revenue for the state. In fact, it started off as a simple administrative tax. It’s unfortunate that now some lawmakers see it as a piggy bank they can break open without consequences. 

It can be tempting to fund services at the expense of wealthy property owners, but taxes do not operate in a vacuum. At its core, this proposed hike on conveyance taxes is yet another example of a seemingly well-intentioned policy that is sure to do unintended economic harm.

No matter how a conveyance tax is designed to operate, it will have a ripple effect throughout the economy, and any increase is likely to make the state’s housing crisis worse.

[{"type":"text","text":"Hawaiʻi needs more housing, not less."}]

Reprinted with permission from the April 27, 2026, "President's Corner" of 

Shutterstock 1439717039 scaled

<title>Community Voices: The unintended consequences of transfer taxes</title>

Studies on the effect of real estate transfer taxes in general have found they are associated with reductions in investment, income, jobs and economic activity. It's also likely to make the state’s housing crisis worse, per Grassroot Institute of Hawai‘i.

Daily Smile: Thursday, April 30, 2026

ASD Staff

More in Daily Smile

Daily Smile: Wednesday, April 29, 2026

Daily Smile: Tuesday, April 28, 2026

Daily Smile: Monday, April 27, 2026

Daily Smile: Sunday, April 26, 2026

Most read

Daily Smile: Thursday, April 30, 2026

Authors

ASD Staff

More in Daily Smile

Daily Smile: Wednesday, April 29, 2026

Daily Smile: Tuesday, April 28, 2026

Daily Smile: Monday, April 27, 2026

Daily Smile: Sunday, April 26, 2026

Most read