The governor’s proposed budget now before the Legislature is an irresponsible collection of “take from this and cut from that.” “Living within our means” has been reduced to a hollow mantra unsupported by actions. Tragically, the administration’s proposed budget does
The governor’s proposed budget now before the Legislature is an irresponsible collection of “take from this and cut from that.” “Living within our means” has been reduced to a hollow mantra unsupported by actions.
Tragically, the administration’s proposed budget does not address ending “furlough Fridays.” There is no doubt that the state has blundered in denying our children critical school days, and yet there appears to be no urgency in the administration’s efforts to resolve the issue. Apparently, the fifth floor leadership is not persuaded that our children are the future. Their goal seems to be simply to shrink the size of government without adequately considering the human or societal impacts.
“Living within our means” should prompt us to first determine what our priorities and minimum essential services are, and then establish a tax base to pay for that level of service. That may be difficult, but we were elected to do the right thing, even when it’s painful.
The plans emerging from the administration and gaining momentum around the capitol are to balance the state budget by taking from our friends and neighbors — including those most vulnerable. The proposal to take away the counties’ portion of the transient accommodations tax in order to balance the state budget is a bad idea. The counties depend on this money to balance their budgets and compensate for the impacts of tourism on county facilities and services. Raiding county TAT funds only pushes the responsibility and political liability of raising taxes down to the counties from what should be the state’s kuleana.
At a recent budget briefing, Big Island Mayor Billie Kenoi rightly pointed out that in tough times the federal government does not take money away from the states. Instead, they offer a helping hand. That is not the case here. The governor’s proposal to take money away from the counties now is indeed hard to fathom. Living within our means challenges us to either trim our expenses and/or raise taxes to pay for the services we believe are critical and necessary. Some have suggested that the state should take the TAT away and give the counties the right to levy their own sales tax. I do not support a plan that could result in four different new taxes.
Here’s what I hope we can bring ourselves to do: Our state has over a quarter of a billion dollars simply sitting in special funds, waiting for a disaster or a rainy day. We should invest a significant portion of these funds into supporting essential services now.
Interest rates are at an all time low. Construction bids are also at the lowest level that they have been in years. Our state should invest aggressively now in new CIP infrastructure development and renewable energy projects. We need the infrastructure, we need the jobs, and now is the most affordable time to make that investment.
If, and this is a big “if,” our state needs to raise taxes to pay for essential services, then we should use this as an opportunity to reform the General Excise Tax system. For starters we need to remove the GET from fresh food, medical charges and rents below $1,000. Then we dedicate any net increase to education.
If we really mean what we say about our children being the future, then we need to get our kids back to school. We must to be willing to pay teachers and provide the support they need at the school level. Then, and only then, will we have a fighting chance of ensuring that the future is as full of promise as our kids deserve.
• Sen. Gary Hooser, a Democrat, represents Kaua‘i and Ni‘ihau in the state Legislature.
