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December 3, 2022

Officials ‘optimistic’ for Hawaii’s economy despite US projections | News, Sports, Jobs

A bustling business center in Kihei is seen in September 2021. Hawaii’s economic outlook remains unchanged despite a downturn in projections in the U.S. economy, which forecasters worry could see a recession in early 2023. The Maui News / MATTHEW THAYER photo

The likelihood of a recession for the U.S. economy in early 2023 hasn’t dimmed prospects for Hawaii’s economy, which is still buoyed by strong tourism recovery, an improving labor market and rising state tax collections.

The state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism kept its growth projections for Hawaii steady at 2.6 percent for 2022 and 1.7 percent for 2023, and the department’s director said officials “are optimistic” even as the top 50 economic forecasting organizations put U.S. economic growth at 1.8 percent in 2022 and a mere 0.2 percent in 2023.

“Since the last DBEDT economic forecast in August of this year, the state’s economy has remained firm, with improvements in major indicators,” DBEDT Director Mike McCartney said in a statement on Wednesday. “Our visitor industry performance, labor market conditions, and general excise tax revenue collections are all improving. We’ve seen the construction and real estate industries slowing down in the last few months, but they are likely to improve as we enter into the new year.”

Part of the reason Hawaii’s economy may weather a coming recession, the department says, is because of tourism recovery since the start of the pandemic. During the first 10 months of this year, Hawaii welcomed a total of 7.6 million visitors, representing an 88.6 percent recovery from the first 10 months of 2019.

Visitor arrivals to Maui, Kauai and Hawaii islands have recovered over 95 percent during the first 10 months of 2022, while Oahu’s recovery was below 80 percent. Historically, about 50 percent of Oahu visitors are international visitors, and recovery in this market remains low.

Maui’s busiest months were September, when it saw 104 percent recovery compared to the same month in 2019, and April, with 103 percent recovery.

Kauai has seen the highest recovery levels in the state, with five months of this year exceeding visitor counts from the same months in 2019.

A state economist warned in September that Maui and Kauai’s reliance on the U.S. market might mean these islands could feel the effects of a U.S. recession more so than other islands.

For the time being, however, Hawaii’s improving labor market is also a good sign to economic forecasters. The state’s unemployment rate for the first 10 months of 2022 is 4 percent when adjusted for seasonal hiring and layoff patterns. While this is still the 16th highest in the state, it’s an improvement over the 6.1 percent jobless rate during the first 10 months of 2021 that put Hawaii at 12th highest in the nation.

Hawaii County has recovered the most, with 95.5 percent of the non-agriculture payroll jobs it had in October 2019 and 3,200 jobs still lost. Oahu has recovered 94 percent but still has 28,500 jobs lost, followed by Maui County at 92.8 percent recovery and 5,800 jobs still lost and Kauai County at 92.5 percent recovery and 2,500 jobs still lost.

The hospitality industry in both Maui and Kauai counties is at 90.5 percent of the total payroll jobs in October 2019, 97.9 percent in Hawaii County and 94.7 percent in Honolulu County.

Another indicator that reflects Hawaii’s current business conditions, state general excise tax revenue, is also on the rise, which is one of the factors driving state economic forecasters’ optimism. During the first 10 months of 2022, state general excise tax revenue increased 19.3 percent from the same period a year ago. This was both because of the higher inflation rate and economic growth, DBEDT said.

Despite the recovery in tourism and jobs and increase in state tax collections, one sector is starting to reflect high inflation and borrowing rates. During the first nine months of 2022, there were 17,237 homes sold statewide, a 10.4 percent decrease from the same period in 2021. Average prices were up 4.1 percent to $1,087,736 for single-family homes and up 8.3 percent to $716,065 for condos.

Of the homes sold during the first nine months of 2022, 75 percent went to local buyers and 25 percent to out-of-state buyers, the same ratio seen from 2008 to 2021.

Construction activity, meanwhile, is expected to increase with record levels of contracts awarded.

“Inflation has been trending downward since March and is expected to decrease further in the coming months,” McCartney said. “Additionally, record levels of government construction projects have been awarded during the past 10 months, and this will help the construction industry in the months to come.

“We are optimistic for the future of our economy.”

* Colleen Uechi can be reached at cuechi@mauinews.com.

: A bustling business center in Kihei is seen in September 2021. Hawaii’s economic outlook remains unchanged despite a downturn in projections in the U.S. economy, which forecasters worry could see a recession in early 2023. The Maui News / MATTHEW THAYER photo

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November 19, 2022

Hurricane Ian barrels towards Florida as officials warn of looming catastrophe – live | Florida

Key events

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has laid out the predicted path of Hurricane Ian as it is expected to hit land this afternoon.

predicted path of Hurricane Ian

Hurricane preparations have been underway at the Big Cat Rescue, the animal sanctuary in Tampa famously featured on Netflix’s ‘Tiger King’ TV series.

Speaking to the Weather Channel, sanctuary head Carole Baskins laid out the measures BCR has taken to prepare for the hurricane.

“Unfortunately if a cat does escape, we have sedation drugs, we have a vet on call. But if a cat starts to exit the property, we have to shoot to kill,” she said.

Around a dozen staff will take shelter in the gift shop and also patrol the sanctuary grounds, the Weather Channel reports.

Additionally, fuel and generators are being kept readily available to ensure that the animals do not miss any mealtimes.

“Usually what happens after a storm is we start getting calls about wild animals running loose in Florida and so if it is an exotic cat that you see, do give us a call and we will help respond with the Florida Wildlife Commission to bring that cat into safety,” Baskins said.

Hurricane Ian’s eyewall ‘coming onshore’

It’s 11am eastern time, and the National Hurricane Center has just released its latest advisory on Hurricane Ian.

The category 4 storm’s “extremely dangerous eyewall” is “moving onshore”, the NHC says, and “will cause catastrophic storm surge, winds and flooding in the Florida peninsula soon”.

The official landfall is not declared until the center of the storm reaches land, which will happen in the coming few hours.

The cities of Fort Myers, Port Charlotte and Cape Coral lie directly in Ian’s path, with effects stretching for hundreds of miles along the Florida coast either side and inland.

“Ian is expected to make landfall in southwestern Florida in the next few hours as a catastrophic hurricane,” the NHC says, repeating its warnings of a storm surge up to 18ft, and winds of 155mph at landfall.

You can follow the latest storm track models and hurricane center’s predictions at their website here.

Hurricane #Ian Advisory 24: Extremely Dangerous Eyewall of Ian Moving Onshore. Ian Will Cause Catastrophic Storm Surge, Winds, and Flooding in The Florida Peninsula Soon. https://t.co/tW4KeFW0gB

— National Hurricane Center (@NHC_Atlantic) September 28, 2022

There’s been a briefing at the headquarters of the Federal Emergency Agency, where administrator Deanne Criswell has been warning Florida residents not to focus just on the areas of Hurricane Ian’s landfall.

“The majority of the state of Florida is in Ian’s crosshairs,” she said.

“We need everyone to heed the warnings of their local officials before during and after the storm.

“These are life saving messages that simply cannot be ignored. Water is dangerous, period, from coastal storm surge to inland flooding. Never drive through standing or moving water, as it takes only a few inches of water to carry away a vehicle.

“Second, if you are taking shelter in an area with rising water levels, quickly find higher ground. And third, never operate a generator in your home. Too many lives are lost each year due to carbon monoxide poisoning.”

Biden: Hurricane ‘no excuse’ for gas price gouging

Joe Biden is warning gas and oil companies not to use Hurricane Ian as an excuse for price gouging.

Speaking in Washington DC at the White House conference on hunger, nutrition and health, the president also said he’d spoken with Florida’s Republican governor Ron DeSantis and made “an absolute commitment” of federal resources to help the state during and after the storm:

I made it clear to the governor and the mayors that the federal government is ready to help in every single way possible.

When the storm passes, the federal government will be there to help you recover, we’ll be there to help you clean up and rebuild to help get Florida get moving. We’ll be there at every step of the way. That’s my absolute commitment to the people in the state of Florida.

Biden has approved DeSantis’s request for a federal emergency declaration and set aside, temporarily at least, bitter political differences between two men who could be rivals for the presidency in 2024.

He said hundreds of Fema (Federal Emergency Management Agency) personnel, thousands of National Guard members and teams of search and rescue teams had been deployed from federal agencies:

They’re already on the ground and ready to help as we speak. Fema has requisitioned literally millions of liters of water, millions of meals and hundreds of generators. We have a scheduled everything we can possibly do.

He closed his remarks with the warning to energy companies:

This warning is to the oil and gas industry executives. Do not, let me repeat, do not use this as an excuse to raise gasoline prices and gouge the American people.

Florida governor DeSantis: ‘Pray for people’

Florida’s governor Ron DeSantis says Hurricane Ian is an historic storm that’s going to leave “an indelible mark” on the state.

He’s just been speaking at a press conference in Lake City as the storm edged closer to Florida’s south west coastline:

Pray for people. This is a major, major storm.

There’s some storms that really leave an indelible impact… this is going to be one of those historic storms and it’s going to shape the communities in south west Florida and have a profound impact on our state.

So we just ask people for their thoughts and their prayers.

DeSantis said Florida had coped with numerous storms in the past, and would deal with this one and move on.

It’s never fun to have damage. It’s never fun to see flooding. It’s never fun to see power interrupted. But you kind of deal with it. And then you move forward.

About 30,000 electricity linemen, numerous urban search and rescue teams and 7,000 National Guard troops from Florida and elsewhere are ready to help once the weather clears, the governor said:

The assets we have are unprecedented in the state’s history and, unfortunately, they’ll need to be deployed.

Here’s the updated official storm surge projection from the National Hurricane Center in Miami, which says up to 18ft of water from the Gulf of Mexico can be expected in some areas close to Ian’s imminent landfall.

In addition, up to 2ft of rain is expected in the next 24 to 48 hours in the most heavily impacted areas.

Hurricane Ian won’t make landfall until this afternoon, but some areas of Florida have already suffered substantial damage from tornadoes spawned in the storm’s outer bands.

On Tuesday night in Broward county, on Florida’s south east coast, several small planes were overturned at North Perry airport, and numerous trees came crashing down.

Zuram Rodriguez surveys the damage around her mobile home in Davie, close to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on Wednesday morning. Photograph: Joe Cavaretta/AP

Florida Power and Light, the state’s largest energy provider, is warning that power could be out for “days” for those in Ian’s path.

In Tampa, hundreds of residents have been evacuated from several nursing homes and hospitals in anticipation of power loss.

Fema chief: ‘This is going to be a catastrophic impact’

One of the mantras of major hurricanes is that you can shelter from the wind – which is up to 155mph in the case of Hurricane Ian – but you can’t hide from the water. Officials fear the storm surge of up to 18ft, predicted by the National Hurricane Center in Florida, will be deadly.

Deanne Criswell, administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema) has just been on CNN to explain the risk:

This is going to be a catastrophic impact, and not just where we’re going to see the storm make landfall.

We’re really concerned about all of the inland flooding because it’s bringing with it a lot of rain and it’s going to move slowly, which means people in the path are going to experience the impacts for a long period of time.

My biggest concerns is the water, the storm surge and flooding. Water is one of the leading causes of death, direct fatalities, in these storms.

We know that a lot of people have evacuated but we also know there’s people that haven’t.

Criswell says a “robust search and rescue capability” of teams from several emergency response agencies including firefighters and the US coast guard has been assembled, and is stationed in Miami, on Florida’s south-east coast.

They will go in when it’s safe to do so, which might be before the storm has fully passed, she says:

As the storm moves, and as it’s safe for our search and rescue teams to go in, they’ll start searching those areas to see and assess damage, but most importantly look for people that may need help getting out of the area.

But just because they’re out doesn’t mean that individuals should be out. They need to stay put until the storm completely passes. And then when they do go out they need to be really cautious.

So many dangers that are going to be out there, with the flooding, the water, the downed power lines.

Good morning, it’s Richard Luscombe in Miami, Florida, welcoming you to our live blog covering the imminent landfall of Hurricane Ian, one of the most powerful storms ever to strike the US mainland.

Millions of Florida residents are in the path of the deadly monster storm, and officials are warning of a looming catastrophe after Ian strengthened overnight to just shy of maximum category 5 status, pushing out winds of 155mph at its center.

The hurricane claimed several lives as it tore through Cuba, wrecking western communities and knocking out power to the entire island.

Now Ian has its sights on an afternoon landfall on the south-west coast of Florida, where a predicted storm surge of up to 18ft is liable to cause substantial flooding.

The Florida governor, Ron DeSantis, told coastal residents in Ian’s path who haven’t already fled that it’s too late to do so now. “It’s no longer possible to safely evacuate,” he said, urging them to shelter in place.

We’ll bring you all the developments as they happen.

Meanwhile, please take a read of our news story here:

September 28, 2022

Russia-Ukraine war live: Kremlin-backed officials ask Putin to annex regions; EU announces new sanctions on Russia | Ukraine

EU proposes new sanctions package to ‘make Kremlin pay’

The head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, has announced a fresh round of proposed sanctions on Russia.

The new package of Russian sanctions is designed “to make the Kremlin pay” for escalating the conflict in Ukraine through mobilisation and “sham referenda that are an illegal attempt to grab land and change international borders by force”, she said.

The proposed eighth sanctions package includes further import bans on Russian products, expected to deprive Moscow of an additional €7bn in revenues.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen — The European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen. Photograph: Kenzo Tribouillard/AFP/Getty Images

The EU will also extend export bans on key technology used for the military such as aviation items, electronic components and specific chemical substances. This will “weaken its capacity to modernise” Russia’s military base, she said.

The sanctions package will lay the legal basis for an oil price cap and ban EU citizens from sitting on governing bodies of Russian state-owned companies, she said.

Speaking to reporters, von der Leyen said:

We do not accept the sham referenda and any kind of annexation in Ukraine, and we are determined to make the Kremlin pay for this further escalation.

Russia has escalated the invasion of Ukraine to a new level.

And we are determined to make the Kremlin pay the price for this further escalation.

Today, we are proposing a new package of biting sanctions against Russia ↓
https://t.co/MrirRm1m4l

— Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) September 28, 2022

Key events

Britain’s prime minister, Liz Truss, told President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in a phone call that the UK would never recognise Russian attempts to annexe parts of Ukraine, Downing Street said.

In a statement, a No 10 spokesperson said:

The Prime Minister spoke to President Zelenskiy this afternoon to underline the UK’s steadfast support in light of Russia’s sham referendums in Ukraine.

The Prime Minister made clear that the UK would never recognise Russian attempts to annexe sovereign territory. She reiterated that Ukraine could depend on the UK’s support until President Putin was defeated.

President Zelensky updated the Prime Minister on the current military situation and welcomed her strong backing, including at the UN General Assembly last week.

Truss also thanked the Ukrainian president for his work in securing the release of five British nationals held by Russian-backed proxies in eastern Ukraine, the spokesperson continued.

They added:

The leaders also discussed how the UK and Ukraine could work together to secure Ukraine’s gas supplies in the long term. Both agreed to stay in close touch in the coming days and weeks.

Zelenskiy also tweeted about the call and said he expected London’s leadership in response to what he called the “sham referenda” in occupied parts of Ukraine.

Had a phone conversation with 🇬🇧 PM @trussliz. The UK has always been among the leaders in supporting Ukraine. We expect London’s leadership in reaction to Russian sham referenda as well. Defense and financial aid to Ukraine must be enhanced in response.

— Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) September 28, 2022

Serbia’s president, Aleksandar Vučić, has said he will not recognise the results of the so-called referendums held in four regions of Ukraine partly occupied by Russian forces.

Speaking to reporters, Vučić said:

Serbia … will not recognise that (referendums) as it adheres to international law, the United Nations Charter and UN resolutions.

Belgrade normally has strong ties with Moscow; Serbia is solely reliant on Russia for its natural gas supplies and has refused to join western sanctions against Russia.

Vučić added:

We are protecting our own territorial integrity and it is in our best interest to protect the territorial integrity of other internationally recognised countries.

Isobel Koshiw

Ukrainian authorities say they have identified five Russian soldiers who allegedly shot at civilian cars in the Kyiv region during the first days of the war.

CCTV footage gathered by Ukrainian investigators shows Russian units shooting at civilian cars along roads just outside Hostomel, a town north-west of Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv.

In one of the clips, a car catches fire after being shot by troops stationed in the forest opposite. The driver of the car died, according to Ihor Klymenko, the head of Ukraine’s national police force.

A damaged car is seen in Hostomel, Kyiv region, Ukraine, in April. Photograph: Future Publishing/Getty Images

Klymenko said the Russian soldiers shot as if they were on “safari”. One of the cars examined as part of the case had 178 bullet holes, he said.

The Russian soldiers are charged with killing five people, and injuring a further six, who were trying to flee Hostomel on 25 February, a day after Russia invaded. A total of 11 people were killed and 14 injured on the stretch of road in question, say Ukraine’s authorities.

Ukraine’s security services alleged in a statement that the charged Russian soldiers had shot at 12 cars over a period of six hours. According to security services, three of the five men identified gave the orders to shoot at the vehicles.

Read the full story here:

Summary of the day so far

It’s just past 6pm in Kyiv. Here’s where we stand:

Moscow stands poised to formally annex Russian-occupied regions following so-called referendums that have already been denounced by the west. The Russian-installed leaders of Ukraine’s Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions have formally asked President Vladimir Putin to annex the occupied territories into Russia. Once annexed, Russia’s leadership has said it will consider attacks on the Russian-controlled areas as a direct attack on Russia.
Denis Pushilin and Leonid Pasechnik, the pro-Russian leaders of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) and Luhansk People’s Republic (LPR) have headed to Moscow, according to Russian state media. The pair have gone there to “complete the procedure for joining Russia”, Russian news agency RIA Novosti reported.
Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, says Ukraine will “defend” its citizens in Russian-occupied regions following what he described as ‘“an imitation of referendums”. “We will act to protect our people: both in the Kherson region, in the Zaporizhzhia region, in the Donbas, in the currently occupied areas of the Kharkiv region, and in the Crimea,” he said in a video posted on Telegram.
Ukraine’s foreign ministry has said the “propaganda show called ‘referendums’ in the temporarily occupied territories” is “yet another Russian crime”. Ukraine and its allies “condemn such actions of Russia and consider them null and worthless”, it said in a statement which also called on the west to increase pressure on Russia, including by imposing new sanctions, and significantly increase military aid to Ukraine.
The head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, has announced a fresh round of proposed sanctions on Russia designed “to make the Kremlin pay” for escalating the conflict in Ukraine. The proposed eighth package of “biting” sanctions includes further import bans on Russian products, expected to deprive Moscow of an additional €7bn in revenues, as well as extend export bans on key technology used for the military.
The EU’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, also denounced the holding of “illegal referenda and their falsified outcome” in occupied parts of Ukraine. He also promised “a robust and united response” from the EU over attacks on energy infrastructure, describing damage to the Nord Stream 1 and 2 as “not a coincidence and affect us all”.
Israel has strengthened its hitherto cautious stance on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, saying it will “not accept the results of the referendum in the eastern districts” of the occupied country. Tuesday night’s statement from the Israeli foreign ministry, which also said it “recognises the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine”, has been received as an unprecedented show of support for Ukraine, and a rare Israeli rebuke to Moscow.
Gas prices have risen on fears that Russia could halt supplies to Europe through Ukraine, adding to turmoil caused by damage to the Nord Stream pipelines under the Baltic Sea. The statement came after the discovery of leaks on the two Nord Stream gas pipelines under the Baltic Sea near the Danish island of Bornholm in a suspected act of sabotage, although exactly by whom or why remains unconfirmed.
European leaders have said sabotage is the most likely cause of leaks in two Nord Stream gas pipelines between Russia and Europe, after seismologists reported explosions around the Baltic Sea lines. German authorities reportedly fear the Nord Stream 1 could become “unusable forever” if leaks in the two lines are not repaired quickly. Sweden’s national police force has opened an investigation into leaks from the Nord Stream pipeline after authorities in Stockholm suggested the “blasts” were “probably a deliberate act”. Norway’s foreign minister Anniken Huitfeldt said “the explosions and gas leakage in the Baltic Sea are a matter of deep concern to the Norwegian government”.
The Kremlin dismissed claims that Russia was behind the attack on the Nord Stream gas pipeline, describing them as “quite predictable and also predictably stupid”. In a call with reporters, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said the incident needed to be investigated and that the timings for the repair of the damaged pipelines were not clear.
Authorities in the Russian region of North Ossetia, which borders Georgia, are reportedly putting in place travel restrictions to prevent people fleeing to Georgia to avoid conscription. The report by the Moscow Times cites the head of the region, Sergey Menyaylo, as saying that more than 20,000 people had entered Georgia through the section of the border in just the last two days alone.
The US embassy in Moscow has issued a security alert and urged American citizens to leave Russia immediately. In a statement on its website, the US embassy warned that dual Russian-US nationals may be called up as part of the Russian government’s mobilisation. US citizens “should not travel to Russia” and that those residing or travelling in the country “should depart Russia immediately while limited commercial travel options remain”, it said.
The governments of Bulgaria and Poland are urging any citizens that remain in the Russian Federation to leave urgently. That may be in anticipation of border crossings becoming much more difficult as routes out close, and more people flee forced mobilisation in Russia.
Russian authorities say they are establishing checkpoints at some of the country’s borders to forcibly mobilise Russian men who are seeking to avoid forced mobilisation by fleeing the country. Social media footage shows Russian military vehicles moving toward the border, reportedly to establish the mobilisation checkpoint.
Russia is mounting a more substantive defence than previously” as Ukraine attempts to press forward “on at least two axes east”, according to the UK’s Ministry of Defence. Heavy fighting also continues in the Kherson region where the Russian force on the right bank of the Dnipro remains vulnerable, it said in its latest intelligence update.

Hello everyone, it’s Léonie Chao-Fong still with you today with all the latest news from Ukraine. Feel free to get in touch on Twitter or via email.

EU proposes new sanctions package to ‘make Kremlin pay’

The head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, has announced a fresh round of proposed sanctions on Russia.

The proposed eighth sanctions package includes further import bans on Russian products, expected to deprive Moscow of an additional €7bn in revenues.

The sanctions package will lay the legal basis for an oil price cap and ban EU citizens from sitting on governing bodies of Russian state-owned companies, she said.

Speaking to reporters, von der Leyen said:

We do not accept the sham referenda and any kind of annexation in Ukraine, and we are determined to make the Kremlin pay for this further escalation.

Russia has escalated the invasion of Ukraine to a new level.

And we are determined to make the Kremlin pay the price for this further escalation.

Today, we are proposing a new package of biting sanctions against Russia ↓
https://t.co/MrirRm1m4l

— Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) September 28, 2022

Russia intends to call a UN security council meeting over damage to two Nord Stream undersea gas pipelines, according to the Russian foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova.

Russians who are managing to exit the country at the border with Georgia are being greeted by anti-war protesters with Ukrainian flags and protest banners.

Georgian activists protest against Russians crossing the Kazbegi / Verkhnii Lars border point between the two countries. Photograph: Vano Shlamov/AFP/Getty Images

Georgian activists with a sign in Ukrainian colours which reads ‘Glory to Ukraine! Glory to heroes!’ at the border of Georgia and Russia. Photograph: Vano Shlamov/AFP/Getty Images

Earlier, ITV news editor Emma Burrows, who has been at the border, tweeted a picture of one of the banners, which reads: “In surveys, most of you support the war. So why now are you leaving?”

Near the Georgia border crossing into Russia, protesters are playing the Ukrainian national anthem and trolling the Russians who are leaving.

‘In surveys, most of you support the war. So why now are you leaving?’ reads the sign carried by the man draped in the Ukraine flag. pic.twitter.com/909lrQeFxx

— Emma Burrows (@EJ_Burrows) September 28, 2022

The German chancellor, Olaf Scholz, told Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, in a call on Wednesday that Germany would never accept the results of “sham” referendums on joining Russia in occupied regions of Ukraine, a German government spokesperson said.

Scholz also said Germany’s financial, political and humanitarian support for Ukraine would not waver and it would continue to back Ukraine in defending its sovereignty and territorial integrity, including weapons deliveries, Reuters reports the spokesperson said in a statement.

North Ossetia introduces travel restrictions to stop people fleeing conscription entering Georgia – reports

The Moscow Times is reporting that authorities in the Russian region of North Ossetia, which borders Georgia, is putting in place travel restrictions to prevent people fleeing to Georgia to avoid conscription.

It cites a Telegram message from head of the region, Sergey Menyaylo. The message says:

Today I signed a decree on the introduction of a high alert regime on the territory of North Ossetia. The decree restricts the entry of passenger vehicles into the territory of the republic. The decision to introduce a high alert regime is a forced temporary measure: the situation cannot be left to chance.

A huge number of transit vehicles, many kilometres of queues at the Verkhnii Lars checkpoint. In the last two days alone, more than 20,000 people have entered Georgia through our section of the border. We will not be physically able to ensure order and security if this flow continues to grow.

At the entrances to the republic and at the checkpoint, mobile task forces are organised – they will check those entering the republic. If a citizen is subject to conscription, in accordance with the federal list, he will be handed a summons on the spot. This will apply to citizens who are registered with the military not only in North Ossetia, but also in other regions of the country.

Persons subject to mobilisation will be explained what consequences, in accordance with the law of the Russian Federation, await them in case of evasion from military service. This work will be carried out in strict accordance with the criteria prescribed in the decree of the president of the country.

Bethan McKernan

Israel has strengthened its hitherto cautious stance on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, saying it will “not accept the results of the referendum in the eastern districts” of the occupied country and that it “recognises the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine”.

Israel, which relies on Moscow to facilitate its operations against Iranian-linked actors in Syria, has refrained from providing military assistance to Kyiv. It has instead focused on providing humanitarian aid and absorbing the thousands of Ukrainian and Russian citizens with Jewish ancestry who have emigrated to Israel since the war broke out in February.

Tuesday night’s statement from the Israeli foreign ministry has been received as an unprecedented show of support for Ukraine, and a rare Israeli rebuke to Moscow.

Israel is also thought to be displeased by Russia’s new deployment of Iranian armed drones.

Some Iranian-made drones were on Tuesday fired towards the central Ukrainian city of Uman, one of the most important pilgrimage centres in Hasidic Judaism.

Despite pleas from officials to stay away from the conflict zone, this week thousands of Israeli citizens travelled to Uman for the town’s Rosh Hashanah celebrations, which are often described as an all-male, Ultra Orthodox version of Nevada’s Burning Man festival.

The Moscow-installed leader of the occupied part of Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia region has appealed to President Vladimir Putin to incorporate the region into Russia, state-owned media reported.

Yevgeny Balitsky, the head of the pro-Russia administration in the region, joined calls by the Russian-installed leaders of Ukraine’s Luhansk and Kherson regions to annex the occupied territories.

German authorities fear that the Nord Stream 1 could become “unusable forever” after major leaks into the Baltic Sea, according to reports.

Tagesspiegel has cited government sources as warning that large volumes of salt water will flow into the pipelines and cause corrosion if leaks in the two lines are not repaired quickly.

The paper writes that due to the complexity of the attack, experts and those in government circles believe that it could only be carried out by a state actor.

Germany’s defence minister, Christine Lambrecht has said the country’s navy is contributing to the investigation into the leaks, adding that the situation must be clarified and those responsible must be identified quickly.

In a statement, Lambrecht said:

The presumed sabotage of the Baltic Sea pipelines is yet another reminder that we are dependent on critical infrastructure, also underwater.

Russia’s defence ministry said training for newly mobilised reservists has started across the country, including the Rostov region on the Ukrainian border and the Crimean peninsula seized from Ukraine in 2014.

Training has also begun in the Kaliningrad exclave, which borders Nato members Poland and Lithuania, it said.

Around 2,000 reservists had already received weapons in Crimea, it said.

In a statement, the ministry said:

Citizens called up from the reserve are restoring their skills in the operation and maintenance of weapons, and military and special equipment.

Courses had been also held to improve firing skills and prepare military personnel for “confident actions on the battlefield”, it added.

September 28, 2022

Montana health officials call out hospitals for too little charity : Shots

Montana health officials are seeking to increase oversight of nonprofit hospitals amid debate about whether they pay their fair share. The proposal comes nine months after a KHN investigation found that some of Montana’s wealthiest hospitals, such as the Billings Clinic, lag behind state and national averages in community giving.

Lynn Donaldson/Bloomberg via Getty Images

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Lynn Donaldson/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Montana health officials are proposing to oversee and set standards for the charitable contributions that nonprofit hospitals make in their communities each year to justify their access to millions of dollars in tax exemptions.

The proposal is part of a package of legislation that the state Department of Public Health and Human Services will ask lawmakers to approve when they convene in January. It comes two years after a state audit called on the department to play more of a watchdog role and nine months after a KHN investigation found some of Montana’s wealthiest hospitals lag behind state and national averages in community giving.

A call for more transparency in what counts as charity

Montana state Sen. Bob Keenan, a Republican who has questioned whether nonprofit hospitals deserve their charity status, calls the proposal a start that could be expanded on later.

“Transparency is the name of the game here,” Keenan says.

The IRS requires nonprofit hospitals to tally what they spend to “promote health” to benefit “the community as a whole.” How hospitals count such contributions to justify their tax exemptions is opaque and varies widely. National researchers who study community benefits have called for tightening standards for what counts toward the requirement.

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Montana is one of the most recent states to consider imposing new rules or increasing oversight of nonprofit hospitals amid questions about whether they pay their fair share. Dr. Vikas Saini, president of the national health care think tank Lown Institute, says that both at a state and local level, people in California are exploring whether to monitor hospital community benefits and enforce new standards. Last year, Oregon initiated a minimum amount that nonprofit hospitals must spend on community benefits. And Massachusetts has updated its community benefits guidelines in recent years, pushing hospitals to give more detailed assessments of how the spending lines up with identified health needs.

Montana hospital industry officials say they want to work with the state to shape the proposed legislation, which they say the industry would support if it doesn’t conflict with federal rules. Saini says that to have an impact, any legislation would have to go beyond federal requirements.

Major tax breaks are at stake

In recent years, more people, like Keenan and Saini, have questioned whether nonprofit hospitals are contributing enough to their communities to deserve the major tax breaks they get while becoming some of the largest businesses in town.

“The hospitals are sort of the pillars of communities, but people are starting to ask these questions,” Saini says.

Saini’s institute reviews hospitals’ giving each year and has found that the majority of nonprofit systems nationwide spend less on what the institute calls “meaningful” benefits than the estimated value of their tax breaks. Actions the institute counts include financial aid to patients and community investments such as food assistance, health education or services offered at a loss, including addiction treatment.

The 2020 Montana audit found that hospitals in the state report benefits vaguely and inconsistently, making it difficult to determine whether their charity status is justified. However, state lawmakers didn’t address the issue in their 2021 biennial legislative session, and a Legislative Audit Division memorandum issued in June found the state health department had “made no meaningful progress” toward developing oversight of nonprofit hospitals’ charitable giving since then.

KHN found that Montana’s nearly 50 nonprofit hospitals directed roughly 8{515baef3fee8ea94d67a98a2b336e0215adf67d225b0e21a4f5c9b13e8fbd502} of their total annual expenses, on average, toward community benefits in the tax year that ended in 2019. The national average was 10{515baef3fee8ea94d67a98a2b336e0215adf67d225b0e21a4f5c9b13e8fbd502}.

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In some cases, hospitals’ giving percentages have declined since then. For example, in the tax year that ended in 2019, Logan Health-Whitefish — a small hospital that’s part of the larger Flathead Valley health system — reported that less than 2{515baef3fee8ea94d67a98a2b336e0215adf67d225b0e21a4f5c9b13e8fbd502} of its overall spending went toward community benefits. In its latest available documents, for the period ending in 2021, the hospital reported spending less than 1{515baef3fee8ea94d67a98a2b336e0215adf67d225b0e21a4f5c9b13e8fbd502} of its expenses on community benefits while it made $15 million more than it spent.

An alternative to oversight?

Logan Health spokesperson Mellody Sharpton says the medical system’s overall community benefit is equal to nearly 9{515baef3fee8ea94d67a98a2b336e0215adf67d225b0e21a4f5c9b13e8fbd502} of its spending, reaching across its six hospitals. It also has clinics throughout the valley. “It’s important to consider our organization’s community benefit as a whole,” Sharpton says, “as our facilities collaborate to ensure the appropriate care is provided at the appropriate facility to meet our patients’ health needs.”

State health officials asked lawmakers to allow the agency to draft a bill that would give the health department clear authority to require hospitals to submit annual reports that include data on community benefit and charity care. The measure also would allow the department to develop standards for that spending on community benefit, according to the department’s description of its proposal.

“We see a great need here to move the ball forward,” state health department leader Charlie Brereton told lawmakers in August.

Montana Hospital Association President Rich Rasmussen says his organization wants to work with the health department in honing the legislation but says the definition of what counts as benefits should remain broad so hospitals can respond to their area’s most pressing needs.

Furthermore, he says, hospitals are already working on their own reporting standards. This year, the association created a handbook for members and set a 2023 goal for hospitals to uniformly report their community benefits, Rasmussen says. The association declined to provide a copy of the handbook, saying it would be available to the public once hospitals are trained on how to use it later this fall.

The association also plans to create a website that will serve as a one-stop shop for people who want to know how hospitals are reporting community benefits and addressing local health concerns, among other things.

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Republican state Rep. Jane Gillette says she supports increased health department oversight and the idea behind the association’s website, but doesn’t think the hospital industry should produce that public resource alone. Gillette says she plans to introduce legislation to require hospitals to report community benefits data to a group outside the industry — such as the state — which would then post the information online.

Hospitals have resisted new rules like these in the past

In the past, hospitals have resisted attempts to impose new rules on community benefit spending. In an interview with KHN last year, Jason Smith, then Bozeman Health’s chief advancement officer, said the system supported efforts to improve reporting contributions “outside of new legislation,” adding that hospitals can do better work without “state oversight bodies being placed in the arena with us.”

Asked whether the health system still stands by that statement, Denise Juneau, Bozeman Health’s chief government and community affairs officer, says hospital officials hope any new legislation will align with existing federal guidelines. She says Bozeman Health will continue to work with the Montana Hospital Association to define and provide better information on community benefit, with or without new legislation.

A lawmaker would have to back the state’s proposal by mid-December to keep it alive.

KHN (Kaiser Health News) is a national, editorially independent project of the Kaiser Family Foundation.