Hawaiian City Garden

StopMoskowitz :: The Coalition for Justice in Hawaiian Gardens and Jerusalem Support the Coalition with your Donation Donation Amount $25.00 $50.00 $100.00 $250.00 $500.00 $1000.00 thank you The Coalition for Justice in Hawaiian Gardens and Jerusalem P.O. 67903, Los Angeles CA 90067 310 553-1146 email -- Tri-City Hospital's Tax-Exempt Status - An Abuse of Public Trust? An organization is not a non-profit simply because it says so. There are state and federal standards that non-profit entities must meet in order to maintain their legal status -- and to qualify for tax-exemption. A review of California state health care data, Internal Revenue Service non-profit guidelines as well as Tri-City Regional Medical Center's lease with owner Irving Moskowitz all strongly suggest that rather than serving the health needs of Hawaiian Gardens and the surrounding community, the hospital is mainly operating as a private surgical facility for a wealthy physician's stomach stapling practice. Meeting the Community Benefit Standard Providing health care is not enough to qualify as a non-profit. According to IRS guidelines, a hospital may qualify for tax-exemption only if it is organized and operated exclusively for charitable purposes and if it meets the community benefit standards. 1 Tri-City fails on both scores. The IRS defines community benefit as the operation of a hospital in a way that helps the community as a whole. For the IRS, Tri-City's failure to provide charity care to poor patients should be a red flag. The IRS gives points to organizations that have a formal policy to provide free care to patients who are too poor to pay. 2 Tri-City has such a policy - it just doesn't follow it. When it applied for 501c(3) status, the hospital's application declared, "With regard to charity cases, the Hospital's policy is simple. The Hospital will not turn away any patient for financial reasons. When a charity patient is admitted, the case is handled individually on a case by case basis. In some cases, the Hospital absorbs costs associated with providing services to charity patients." 3 But in 2000 and 2001 the hospital provided zero charity care, despite net income of over $2 million in 2001 alone. Tri-City also reneged on another policy it presented to the IRS when it filed for tax-exempt status - its commitment to pre-natal care. The hospital's administration promised that, "Prenatal Services will provide care for the female patient during pregnancy, labor, delivery and the post-partum period." 4 There were no babies delivered in Hawaiian Gardens in 2000 and 2001. 5 Tri-City's administration might argue that its failure to provide obstetric services is the result of a lack of demand from the community. But by the IRS' lights, it would be hard for the hospital to know what the health care needs of the surrounding area are unless it consults with the community. As part of its review, the IRS looks for a governing or community board composed of civic leaders rather than ones dominated by hospital administrators, physicians and other professionals connected to the hospital. 6 Again, Tri-City looks good on paper but failed to live up to its promises. In its application for 501c(3) status, the hospital touted its 25 member community advisory board which consisted of "school officials, clergymen, business owners, city government and community organizations. The board assesses and determines the prevalent health care problems in the community." 7 According to one former city official who sat on the hospital's community board, the advisory board ceased meeting soon after it was formed. Citing the high cost of treatment at Tri-City and the lack of charity care, he said few residents of Hawaiian Gardens use the hospital now. State health care data backs that assertion up - despite its proximity only 13.7% of all Hawaiian Gardens residents who were hospitalized in Los Angeles County last year were admitted to Tri-City Regional Medical Center. Hawaiian Garden residents admitted to the hospital represented an even smaller percentage of Tri-City's total patient census - just 5.4% (Less than a fifth of the patients treated by Tri-City lived within a five-mile radius of the hospital). 8 Hospital charges were also higher than the norm - no one from Hawaiian Gardens was discharged with less than $2,900 in charges, less than one in ten left with charges under $5,000. 9 This includes patients who used the emergency room for relatively simple complaints such as a cut, chest pains or a child's broken bone. On average - Tri-City patients from Hawaiian Gardens were charged well over $10,000. 10 Many of the residents of Hawaiian Gardens are immigrants without insurance to cover their health care costs, so for them, Tri-City's high charges are all but unaffordable. Beyond the degree to which a hospital serves the community, the IRS also considers whether or not the majority of its activities promotes a tax-exempt purpose. 11 Arguably, Tri-City is doing more to advance the business of Dr. Mathias Fobi than it is to promote the health of the surrounding community. The for-profit Center for the Surgical Treatment of Obesity is located within the Tri-City Hospital campus. The center, which provides surgical stomach shrinking services to the morbidly obese, generates at least one quarter of the hospital's surgical cases and probably a good deal more. Last year, 439 of Tri-City's patients underwent the stomach stapling procedure and on average, they racked up $50,000 in hospital charges each. Total charges for those patients totaled $21,936,400 - representing close to a third of the hospital's gross charges for the year. 12 Another 15 patients received "tummy tucks," their total charges ranged $24,000 to $100,344. 13 And more than 200 of the hospital's other patient discharges involved some sort of abdominal procedure such as an abdominal CAT-Scan, a procedure which is often associated with stomach stapling. 14 The hospital discharge data strongly suggests that perhaps as much as half of Tri-City's surgical practice is tied to the Obesity Center. Insiders, Disqualified Persons and Private Benefit While Fobi charges for the surgeries he performs, the hospital also would typically bill patients for the use of its operating and recovery rooms and other medical services it provides. Tri-City's IRS form 990 from 2001 (the most recent one that is publicly available) indicates that year it paid Fobi's private firm, FOCA Management Company, $2,293,044 -- more than its next four highest paid contractors combined. 15 Stomach stapling accounts for a large part of Tri-City Hospital's tiny patient census. Whether the firm is managing all or just part of the hospital's patient care - $2.3 million is an extraordinarily large amount for a non-profit of Tri-City's size (the hospital has less than 130 licensed beds) to pay for an administrative service. At minimum, it suggests the potential for a conflict of interest on Fobi's part, particularly if the firm's fees are based on revenues. 16 At worst, it could represent a violation of federal anti-kickback laws governing doctor-hospital relationships. The payment to the management firm also has the potential to put Tri-City's tax-exempt status in jeopardy. IRS guidelines expressly forbid those having an interest in the hospital from benefiting from its net earnings. 17 A public trust? The same rule that draws into question the large payment Fobi received also applies to the hospital's former for-profit owner, Irving Moskowitz. Moskowitz is neither a board member nor a Tri-City executive and, at least technically, he does not maintain ownership of the hospital. But Cerritos Gardens General Hospital Company, a private firm run by Moskowitz, has received more than a million dollars in annual rent from Tri-City since it spun off the hospital as a non-profit in late 1996. 18 The rental agreement alone does not necessarily jeopardize the hospital's tax-exempt status. However, both members of Tri-City's two-person governing board and the hospital's president (who is also one of the two board members) are long-time Moskowitz associates. And, a review of Tri-City's financial circumstances indicates that Moskowitz retains a level of de facto control over Tri-City. Immediately after Tri-City Regional Medical Center was converted into a non-profit, the Irving I. Moskowitz Foundation 19 donated $4.9 million in tax-free proceeds from its Hawaiian Gardens bingo to the hospital. 20 California state financing records show that in 2000 the foundation made an additional transfer of funds to Tri-City. The state financing statement does not record the amount of the loan but it does indicate that the hospital pledged its accounts receivable as collateral. 21 Two additional state financing records, dated February 2, 1999 and January 25, 2001, show the hospital also is indebted to its landlord - Cerritos Gardens General Hospital Company. What's more, a clause in the lease signed between Tri-City and Cerritos Gardens grants Moskowitz's private firm the right to resume control of the property at any time, regardless of whether the lease remains in effect or not. It states that the "Lessor may re-enter or resume possession of the Hospital, and remove Lessee and Lessee's property there from, and at its option either terminate this lease, or without terminating it, lease the Hospital for the account of the Lessee for the remainder of the term or terms as Lessor shall see fit." 22 The social contract of tax exemption for charitable organizations is based on the assets of those organizations being held in trust for the public - not for the benefit of an individual or a group that controls a charity. A case could be made for Moskowitz and his firm making a calculated decision to rid themselves of the inconvenience of paying state and federal tax on the facility while continuing to reap a profit through sizable rent payments (subsidized first by a grant from his own foundation and later, from the net earnings derived from business generated by the for-profit obesity center). All the while he and his firm would be able to maintain control through the hospital's financial obligations to the company and his foundation. And, if that did not work or was no longer the optimal business model, the for-profit firm could resume possession of the land and the building at any time. It is a classic case of having one's cake and eating it too. It is also an affront to the basic tenets of public trust and hardly what the federal government had in mind when it established tax-exempt status for non-profits. 1 J.E. Gitterman and M. Friedlander, "Health Care Provider Reference Guide," Internal Revenue Service, 2003, p. 2, "The promotion of health for the benefit of the community is a charitable purpose. Engaging in health care activities alone does not necessarily further charitable purposes." and p. 9 "The test used fro determining if a health care provider satisfies the IRC 501c(3) operational test is the "community benefit standard" enunciated in Revenue Ruling 68-545, 1969-2 C.B. 117, and court cases that apply Rev. Rul. 69-545. The community benefit standard is the test used to determine whether a hospital, clinic or other health care provider is operated to promote health in a way that accomplishes a charitable purpose." 2 J.E. Gitterman and M. Friedlander, "Health Care Provider Reference Guide," Internal Revenue Service, 2003. p. 9, "Prior to Rev. Rule 69-545, tax-exempt hospitals were required by rev. Rul 56-185, 1956-1 C.B. 202 to admit and treat patients who were unable to payAlthough a formal policy to provide charity care is still relevant, the new standard also takes into account a number of additional factors indicating that the operation of the hospital benefits the community as a whole." 3 Gardens Regional Hospital and Medical Center, Inc. 1023 IRS application for Recognition of Exemption Under Section 501c3 of the Internal Revenue Code Addendum to Schedule C - Hospital and Medical Research Organizations, November 25, 1997. 4 Gardens Regional Hospital and Medical Center, Inc. 1023 IRS application for Recognition of Exemption Under Section 501c(3) of the Internal Revenue Code -Exhibit B "Statement of Activities," November 25, 1997. 5 California Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development (OSHPD), Patient Discharge Database, 2000 and OSHPD Annual Utilization Report of Hospitals, 2001. 6 J.E. Gitterman and M. Friedlander, "Health Care Provider Reference Guide," Internal Revenue Service, 2003, p. 10, "As used with regard to a hospital, the "Community benefit standard" in Rev. Rul. 69-545 includes the following factors: Does the hospital have a governing board, community board, board of trustees, or board of directors composed of prominent civic leaders rather than exclusively members who are hospital administrators, physicians or other professionally connected to the hospital?" 7 Gardens Regional Hospital and Medical Center, Inc. 1023 IRS application for Recognition of Exemption, Exhibit B, November 25, 1997. 8 According to the 2002 OSHPD Public Patient Discharge Data, 136 Tri-City discharges came from the Hawaiian Gardens zip code (90716) and Tri-City Regional Medical Center discharged a total of 2519 patients that year. Less than 500 patients discharged from Tri-City lived in zip codes that were within a five-mile radius of the hospital. 9 2002 OSHPD Public Patient Discharge Data 10 Ibid. 11 J.E. Gitterman and M. Friedlander, "Health Care Provider Reference Guide," Internal Revenue Service, 2003, p. 33, "Each director, principal officer and member of a committee with board delegated powers shall annually sign a statement which affirms that such person understands that the Corporation is a charitable organization and that in order to maintain its federal tax exemption it must engage primarily in activities which accomplish one or more of its tax-exempt purposes." 12 2002 OSHPD Public Patient Discharge Data and OSHPD Annual Utilization Report of Hospitals and 2001 OSHPD financial data. and The International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-9-CM), National Center for Health Statistics, 2002. 13 2002 OSHPD Patient Discharge Data and The International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-9-CM), National Center for Health Statistics, 2002. 14 Ibid. 15 Gardens Regional Hospital - DBA Tri-City Regional Medical - 2001 federal tax return. 16 J.E. Gitterman and M. Friedlander, "Health Care Provider Reference Guide," Internal Revenue Service, 2003, p. 18, "If compensation is based on revenues, the potential for unreasonable compensation warrants a close review." 17 J.E. Gitterman and M. Friedlander, "Health Care Provider Reference Guide," Internal Revenue Service, 2003, p. 4, "IRC 501 c(3) expressly provides that to qualify for exemption, no part of an organization's net earnings shall to the benefit of private shareholders or individualsin practice the inurement prohibition applies to insidersIn the health care setting physicians may be insiders depending upon whether they exercise control." p. 8 also notes that insider status is not necessarily a pre-requisite for a violation of the inurement prohibition, "if the charity confers a private benefit on non-insiders, the charity is nor operating exclusively in the public interest and its exemption may be jeopardized if the private benefit is substantial." 18 According to Los Angeles County property records Cerritos Gardens Hospital Company currently owns the property at the hospital's address. Irving Moskowitz is identified as the company's managing general partner in his casino application submitted to the city of Hawaiian Gardens. Hawaiian Gardens Card Club, Inc., Information in Support of Application for Card Club License, January 25, 1995. 19 Moskowitz and his wife Cherna have presided over the Foundation as President and Secretary Treasurer since at least as far back as 1988. Irving I. Moskowitz Foundation 990s, 1987-2001. 20 The Irving I. Moskowitz Foundation 1997 990, Statement 7, p. 28 (On p. 23 the Foundation notes that, "Concerning grants and allocations to Gardens Regional Hospital and American Friends of Mercaz Harav which are listed on statement 7: the donees have agreed under specified circumstances to return a portion of the grant to the Irving Moskowitz Foundation."). 21 UCC Record, California Secretary of State, May 15, 2000, debtors: Gardens Regional Hospital and Medical Center, Inc. and Tri-City Regional Medical Center, Secured Parties: Irving I. Moskowitz Foundation. 22 Gardens Regional Hospital and Medical Center, Inc. 1997 1023 IRS application for Recognition of Exemption Under Section 501c3 of the Internal Revenue Code - Exhibit E, "Lease by and Between Cerritos Gardens General Hospital Company, a CA limited partnership and Gardens Regional Hospital and Medical Center," November 25, 1997. The lease agreement notes that the hospital's dba (doing business as) name is Tri-City Regional Medical Center. p. 36, Para 25.1. J.E. Gitterman and M. Friedlander, "Health Care Provider Reference Guide," Internal Revenue Service, 2003, p.17 - Retained Rights - A review of the underlying docs is necessary to determine if there is retained authority by the seller and on p. 11 it states, "Financial control may include the right to approve annual operating and capital budgets, strategic planning initiatives, and significant sales, leases, mortgages, or other transfers of encumbrances of real estate or personal property." It is worth noting that the lease between and Between Cerritos Gardens General Hospital Company and Tri-City includes a demand for an annual review of the non-profits financial statements. View all news reports 2003 the Coalition for Justice in Hawaiian Gardens and Jerusalem

Hawaii Volcano

Hawaii's Volcano Quake And Tsunami Man- MidWeek Cover 01-19-2005 | Midweek.com Hawaii's Volcano, Quake &Tsunami Man Brian Yanagi By Alice Keesing Volcanoes, earthquakes and tsunamis. Thats quite an explosive trio and its up to Brian Yanagi at state Civil Defense to prepare Hawaii for the trio of natural disasters. The dynamic nature of his charges has earned the former naval intelligence officer the nickname of Mr. Shake n Bake. On the serious side, its his job to make sure they dont become massive killers. Yanagi would never say it, but there have been frustrating times in recent years trying to keep the public alert and prepared for such devastating disasters. While tsunamis are the No. 1 natural disaster killer in the Islands, a whole generation has grown up without experiencing one. The it wont happen to us mindset has taken hold. But oh, how things have changed since Dec. 26. After the Indian Ocean earthquake and South Asia tsunami, Yanagi and other tsunami experts have been in hot demand. I have been getting multitudes of international, national and local media calls about Hawaiis tsunami preparedness program, Yanagi says. The focus may be on another part of the world right now, but its also time to shake up Hawaiis attitude to the killer waves. Tsunamis killed 221 people and injured hundreds more in Hawaii in the 20th century compared to seven people killed by hurricanes. And Yanagi worries that with todays densely populated coastlines, the potential for death and destruction is even greater. There has been an unusual period of quiet in recent times, but the oft-repeated line in tsunami circles is that its not a matter of if, but when. I would say that Hawaii is more susceptible to destructive tsunamis than the Indian Ocean countries, Yanagi says. Thats because Hawaii sits in the middle of the Pacific Ring of Fire, a geologically volatile circle ripe for the earthquakes and underwater landslides that can shift the huge amounts of water that trigger tsunamis. The location that most worries Yanagi is the Aleutian Islands off the coast of Alaska an earthquake there could spawn a tsunami that races south across the Pacific at 500 mph and reaches Hawaii in just five hours. Other areas the experts keep an anxious eye on are Chile and Japan. And then theres the potential danger of locally produced tsunamis. An earthquake on the Big Island could spawn a tsunami that sweeps ashore and through the islands in a matter of minutes. The real sleeper is Mauna Loa, Yanagi says. When it erupts, the strong earthquake shaking could generate a tsunami. Thats the one we need to keep an eye out for. Experts predict Mauna Loa will probably erupt in the next five years. The good news is that Hawaii is the most tsunami-prepared state in the nation and many are turning here for a role model in the wake of the recent tragedy. But given that, experts still agree there is a lot more that could be done even here. Yanagi and others hope the South Asia tragedy will provide the impetus for more resources to keep improving the system. In particular, Yanagi would like to see the number of tsunami detection buoys in the Pacific increased from six to as many as 30. Its those eyes in the ocean that help the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center predict the arrival of killer waves. Civil Defense also has spent years producing detailed checklists and developing response plans. When Civil Defense needs to spring into action, its hobbit-hole type bunker burrowed into the wall of Diamond Head Crater is full of ceiling-to-floor charts and maps, communication systems, an emergency radio broadcast facility, a generator and even bunks and supplies so the operation can continue 24 hours a day. Its part of Yanagis job to keep all that information up to date with the latest scientific information and to drill and drill and redrill the response plans. This is what Yanagi wants you to know:When the sirens sound, turn on your radio for the Civil Defense message. If its a tsunami warning, check your phone book to see if you are in a tsunami evacuation zone. If you are, get to higher ground. In the case of Waikiki, where an en masse evacuation would only result in traffic gridlock, the advice is to evacuate vertically get above at least three stories. People outside of the tsunami evacuation zones should just stay put, Yanagi says. Dont get in your car because youll just contribute to the traffic. Parents should also know that DOE schools are prepared to walk their students out. They practice and drill this. So parents dont need to rush down to pick them up. The situation becomes more urgent in the case of a locally produced tsunami. Things will happen so fast that there may not be time for a warning siren. If the ground shakes severely, or the ocean recedes or you hear the sound of a freight train coming for you, says Yanagi, thats Mother Natures way of warning you to get to higher ground. One of the nightmare scenarios for people like Yanagi and one that tragically occurred in South Asia is when people go down to look at the seabed that can be laid bare by the strong undertow-type forces that can precede the wave train. Animals sense danger and they run away, but when humans sense something unusual, even dangerous, they tend to wander down in harms way, Yanagi says. Now (after all the footage from South Asia) theres really no excuse for people to be wandering down to the ocean in the event of a tsunami. Hawaii tsunami expert Walter Dudley credits Yanagi and Civil Defense with efforts to educate the public on the dangers of tsunamis. The division teamed up with the Pacific Tsunami Museum and the Center for the Study of Active Volcanoes to distribute thousands of DVDs trying to debunk the myth that a tsunami is a surfable wave. Theyve been very, very proactive in that sense, says Dudley, author of Tsunami! and an oceanography professor at the University of Hawaii at Hilo. Worrying about impending threats has been the story of Yanagis career. Although to start with, he used to worry about manmade threats rather than those from Mother Nature. Yanagi grew up in Kaimuki, a childhood that he wryly says was spent trying to stay out of trouble and earn good grades to please his parents. His dad was Stanley Maui Yanagi, who was head of the Carpenters Union for 25 years in the 40s and 50s when Hawaii was becoming unionized. After graduating from Kalani High (where he was class president), Yanagi received a Congressional nomination to the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis, Md., from U.S. Sen. Spark Matsunaga. He earned his oceanography degree before going on to serve as a naval intelligence officer aboard the aircraft carrier USS Midway . Yes, it was real spy stuff, he says. Yanagi lived with Top Gun aviators and briefed them on Soviet Union and Middle Eastern intelligence operations. This was during the edgy times of the Iranian hostage crisis, the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan and the outbreak of the Iran-Iraq war. Yanagi had top-secret security clearance a real eye-opener to the world. The news only reports the tip of the iceberg, he says. I got to see the whole iceberg, what was really happening with politics and the military in the world. After retiring from the Naval Reserves, Yanagi went on to teach algebra and trigonometry at Hawaii Pacific College in the mid-80s. He then worked as a public relations consultant to Turtle Bay Resort promoting golf tournaments, including the inaugural Senior Skins Legends of Golf Tournament featuring Arnold Palmer, Gary Player, Chi Chi Rodriguez and Sam Snead. (Yanagi is a keen weekend chaser of the little white ball himself.) He joined the state Civil Defense Division in 1990. Last year he won the state defense departments employee of the year award. Thats pretty impressive when you consider the size of this department; thats thousands of people, says Civil Defense spokesman Ray Lovell. Hes very dedicated to what hes doing, Lovell adds. He realizes that the work he does, that were dealing with real life-and-death stuff. That has been driven home by what we saw in the Indian Ocean. We cant let down. When you spend your day thinking about killer waves that could descend within a matter of hours, it probably pays to have some light relief in your life. For this self-described middle-aged DINK (double income no kids), that relief came with an adventure into acting that started in the mid-90s. He got the bug when The Phantom of the Opera appeared at the Blaisdell. You just see how much fun these people are having on stage, Yanagi says. Its one of the great escapes you can have in life. Youre being another person for a while in your life. Its very invigorating. So he sings? Well, yes, badly, but I do sing. And Im trying to dance without falling over myself, he laughs. Yanagi has performed in half a dozen musicals, starring in Flower Drum Song with KHNL-8 anchor Jodi Leong, South Pacific with American Idol s Jordan Segundo and My Fair Lady with KHON-2s Tina Shelton. But these days, Yanagi is more involved with events on the world stage, organizing a visit to South Asia with an international team of scientists. They will be analyzing the damage caused by the tsunami. That information will help prepare Hawaii better for the next destructive tsunami, he says. Like others, Yanagi has been touched by the human tragedy. Even he is floored by the magnitude of the event. It just personally commits me more to this cause of saving lives and reducing property damage. To do that, he says, he needs people to pay attention and be smart too. MidWeek Home Page

Hawaii International Film Festival's

Hawaii International Film Festival OSCAR FACT! In a first for New York City, this year’s crop of Oscar statuettes – newly minted and to be presented to the winners of the 78th Academy Awards on March 5 in Hollywood – will be showcased in the window of Times Square Studios in New York City from Monday, January 23 through Wednesday, February 1. The exhibition, “Meet the Oscars: The 50 Golden Statuettes,” will be open for window viewing at Broadway and West 44th Street from 7 a.m. to midnight daily. After the close of the display the Oscars will be flown from New York to Los Angeles on "Oscar One," the United Airlines' special "Flight of the Oscars," where they again will be displayed in a public exhibition at the Hollywood and Highland® entertainment complex beginning on February 10. After the close of the display the Oscars will be flown from New York to Los Angeles on "Oscar One," the United Airlines' special "Flight of the Oscars," where they again will be displayed in a public exhibition at the Hollywood and Highland® entertainment complex beginning on February 10. After the close of the display the Oscars will be flown from New York to Los Angeles on "Oscar One," the United Airlines' special "Flight of the Oscars," where they again will be displayed in a public exhibition at the Hollywood and Highland® entertainment complex beginning on February 10. The exhibition, “Meet the Oscars: The 50 Golden Statuettes,” will be open for window viewing at Broadway and West 44th Street from 7 a.m. to midnight daily. After the close of the display the Oscars will be flown from New York to Los Angeles on "Oscar One," the United Airlines' special "Flight of the Oscars," where they again will be displayed in a public exhibition at the Hollywood and Highland® entertainment complex beginning on February 10. OSCAR NIGHT® AMERICA MARCH 5, 2006 Once again, we are excited to combine the Hawaii International Film Festival's annual fundraiser with an official Oscar Night® America Party, sanctioned by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences! Please encourage friends, family and colleagues to support the Festival through a fun and fabulous event with dinner, a silent auction and an advanced telecast of the Academy Awards. Monies raised from ticket sales and the silent auction will help sustain HIFF throughout 2006. WHEN - March 5, 2006, doors open at 3:00 p.m. WHERE - An exclusive downtown location! COST - $100 (members), $150 (non-members), $1,000 (10 person table). TICKETS - Contact Andrea by e-mail or at 528 3456 x11. SPRING FESTIVAL IS COMING! Save the date! The Festival's Spring Showcase No. 9 is coming to Honolulu from March 31 to April 6, 2006! 2005 FALL FESTIVAL AWARD WINNERS First Hawaiian Bank Golden Maile Award for Best Feature CAVITE and for Best Documentary SISTERS IN LAW . Hawaiian Airlines Audience Choice Awards: Favorite Feature AMERICAN FUSION - Favorite Documentary KEEPERS OF THE FLAME - Favorite Short SAND ISLAND DRIVE INN ANTHEM Hawai'i Film & Videomaker Award FISHBOWL Honorable Mention WAHINE O KE KAI Cause & f(x) Dream Digital Award LATE BLOOMER NETPAC Award SEASON OF THE HORSE Honolulu Magazine Best Short Film ($2500 awarded per film) CRICKETS and VALTOR THE GREAT VS. THE UNIVERSE RENT A DECK HIFF's DigiBeta Deck is available for rent! It's a Sony J-30SDI Compact Player, compatible with Betacam, Betacam SP, Betacam SX, MPEG IMX and Digital Betacam formats. Reduced rates available for nonprofit and educational organizations. Vendor-to-vendor rates are available. For information, please contact email Trevor Tavares, Festival Coordinator, or give him a call at 808-528-3456, ext. 21 GET UPDATES BY SIGNING UP FOR HIFF eNEWS Get in the latest updates on the Hawaii International Film Festival bysigning up for our free e-newsletter! From film festival updates to special event bulletins throughout the year, HIFF eNews is your main resource for all things HIFF! "Must attend." Entertainment Weekly "One of the world's ten most important film festivals." Shanghai Daily News "One of the ten best film festivals around the world." Travel & Leisure Magazine "A premiere showcase for films of the Pacific Rim." Roger Ebert "Mo' bettah" Honolulu Weekly

OahuNAWQA Home Whatis NAWQA?

USGS Oahu NAWQA Homepage Water Quality - NAWQA;Data National Water-Quality Assessment Program Oahu NAWQA OahuNAWQA Home Whatis NAWQA? StudyUnit Description SurfaceWater BedSediment and Tissue AquaticEcology GroundWater LiaisonCommittee Publications RelatedLinks: U.S.Geological Survey USGSWater Resources Division USGS:Water Resources of Hawaii USGSNAWQA Program Onlinesearchable database of national NAWQA Data In 1991 the U.S. GeologicalSurvey initiated the National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Programto assess the status and trends in the quality of freshwater streams andaquifers, and to provide a sound understanding of the natural and humanfactors that affect the quality of these resources. As part of the program,investigations were conducted in 51 areas-- called "study units" --throughout the Nation to provide a framework for national and regionalwater-quality assessment. Together, these areas account for 60 to 70 percentof the Nation's water use and population served by public water supplies,and cover about one-half of the land area of the Nation. NAWQA study units As part of the NAWQA Program,the USGS has been evaluating water-quality conditions on the island of Oahu,Hawaii. Water resources are of significant economic and ecological importanceto the island. Ground water provides essentially all municipal and domesticwater for a large and expanding population, while streams provide importantriparian and instream habitats for many threatened and endangered species.In addition, streams affect the physical, chemical, and aesthetic qualityof receiving waters, such as estuaries, bays, and nearshore waters whichare critical to the tourism-based economy of the island. Ala Wai Canal -- view of Diamond Head and Waikiki (photo by Douglas Peebles). Beginning in October 1998,and continuing for a period of 3 years, the NAWQA Program intensivelyinvestigated the quality of water resources on the island of Oahu, Hawaii.The largest and most important component of the intensive-study phase wasan "Occurrence and Distribution Assessment". The goal of this assessment was to characterize, in a nationally consistent manner, the broad-scalegeographic and seasonal variations of water quality related to major contaminantsources and background conditions. If you have questions andcomments related to the Oahu NAWQA study, contact: Stephen Anthony, ( santhony@usgs.gov ) or write: Stephen Anthony Oahu NAWQA Project Chief U.S. Geological Survey 677 Ala Moana Blvd., Suite415 Honolulu, HI 96813 Submita request for data Untitled Document USGS Water Biology Geology Geography U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Geological Survey Pacific Islands Water Science Center 677 Ala Moana Blvd. Ste. 415, Honolulu, HI 96813 Privacy Statement || Disclaimer || FOIA || Accessibility Maintainer: gs-w-hi_webmaster@usgs.gov Last Modified: 06.01.2004 09:58 flk URL: http://hi.water.usgs.gov/ nawqa/index.html

HAWAIIAN GIFTS CHILDREN &

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