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Things are becoming clearer.

As the Hawaii Legislature moves ever closer to its May 2 finish line, the pieces — of the budget and key legislation — are starting to fall into place.

Lawmakers will have one more week of conference committees next week and then four days of floor sessions before ending for the year. Resolution of many issues seems to have gone much more smoothly this year. The budget, for instance, is expected to be finalized early next week rather then it being left nearly until the final gavel falls on the last day of session.

Early childhood education proposals seemed to come into sharper perspective this week when lawmakers agreed to put a constitutional amendment on the ballot and ask voters whether it’s OK to use public money to pay for private preschools.

Lawmakers also seem pretty clear they want to spend more than $200 million to begin to pay down Hawaii’s so-called unfunded liabilities — money the state will need to pay for pensions and retiree health care in the future.

Reopening a prison seems on the horizon for the Big Island and judges will likely get pay raises.

Some things remain contentious including the Hawaii shield law that protects journalists from having to reveal sources, development of public school lands and how much money to put toward the state’s major technology initiative.

Across the country, in Washington, D.C., the major federal initiatives also are coming into focus. Stricter gun control appears unlikely to happen, given the Senate’s inability to muster needed votes. The Gang of Eight, a bipartisan group, released its long-awaited immigration reform package which held some good news for Hawaii but left some who have been waiting decades to be reunited with family members disappointed.

That’s plenty to keep us busy. But here are 10 more stories you won’t want to have missed:

• Hawaii Universities Pile on the Fees, Bumping Up Students’ Bills

• New Immigration Proposal Is Mixed Bag For Hawaii Families

• FEC Reports: Schatz Has More Than $800k So Far For Primary Election Bid

• The Last Campaign

• Hawaii Snapshot – Kauai Activist Finds A Way To Make The Streets Safer

• It’s Your Money: Rapist Wins $35k From Honolulu After Cops Beat Him Up

• Kauai Chief: ‘Officers We Know Should Not Be Here Are Coming Back’

• Hawaii Monitor: Safeway Overcharges – The Sequel

• Federal Agent On Trial For Murder Boosts Defense Fund Via Internet

• The Rising East: A Fight With Rifles Is More Likely Than a Nuclear Attack