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This week ended with a nail-biter — lawmakers were still struggling to finalize a budget late Friday. And dozens of bills were hanging in the balance, too, living or dying depending on what agreements were reached on the budget.

Much of our coverage this week centered on the events and politics that led up to the Legislature’s frenzied activity, including a committee appearance by Dog the Bounty Hunter and his wife to testify against a major justice system reform measure.

Questions about conflicts of interest surfaced in the Legislature and in state government, the Honolulu City Council made a decision on what to do about plastic bags and campaign finances were in the news, too.

Civil Beat also published a series of stories about salaries paid to Honolulu city and county workers. There’s a searchable database of salaries at the end of each story.

Here are 10 stories you shouldn’t miss:

• Is Calvin Say Holding the Budget Hostage?

• Dog the Bounty Hunter, Wife Lobby Against Hawaii Justice Reform Initiative

• New Hearing Officer in UH Telescope Case is Also UH President’s Attorney

• Hawaii Lawmaker Voted on Bills Backed by His Employer, Oceanic Cable

• Kahuku Now Top Site for Landfill After ‘Data Error’ Corrected

• One Techie’s Push to Open Up Hawaii Campaign Finance Data

• Civil Beat Poll — Voters Prefer Bag Ban to Fee

• Honolulu Passes Ban on Plastic Bags

• Hawaii’s U.S. Senate Candidates Raise Big Bucks But Are Sepnding Frugally

• Honolulu Salaries 2012 — The Full Employee List