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The Legislature may be over but politics never ends.

As the 2013 legislative sessions fades from our public consciousness, the Honolulu City Council and Mayor Kirk Caldwell are making news. The city budget is squarely on the table as local elected officials wrestle with how to pay for millions of dollars in salary increases as union contracts are finalized and other programs and projects take shape.

Civil Beat has begun looking into the numbers, particularly when it comes to salaries. Caldwell has raised the pay for his executive staff above what predecessor Peter Carlisle paid. Check out a few of those stories listed below.

But we couldn’t let lawmakers leave town without one last look — or two — at some of the trends that emerged from the State Capitol. That included a review of much-ballyhooed good government, ethics and transparency measures. It turns out most of them died, their fate basically tied to one powerful lawmaker, Sen. Clayton Hee.

Here are 10 stories that you may want to catch up on:

• Off The Beat: Why Won’t Kirk Caldwell Say Who Works For Him?

• Change Of Heart: Mayor’s Office Releases Names Of Executive Staff

• Honolulu City Council Pushes Back Against Mayor’s Proposed Budget

• A ‘Desperate’ Search For More Money Inside The Walls Of Honolulu Hale

• War In Waikiki? The Fight Over The Natatorium Is Far From Over

• How Lobbyist Dollars Helped Save The Pearl Harbor Tower

• Who’s Got The Edge In Hawaii’s Senate Race?

• How One Lawmaker Blocks Hawaii’s Ethics Reform Year After Year

• Is Hawaii Doing Enough To Engage Kids In Science, Tech And Math?

• Kaneohe Lab Gives Forgotten Texts Second Life Online