State officials are in for a healthy raise over the next six years after a state Commission on Salaries’ recommendation to boost pay for legislators, judges and department executives unanimously passed on March 13. These salary boosts arrive against a backdrop of economic strife for the people of Hawaii, punctuated by high grocery and gas prices, rising homelessness and unattainable housing costs. With pocketbook issues weighing heavy on many, and federal-level upheaval destabilizing state programs, now is no time to adjust salaries higher. State legislators must do the right thing and decline the hefty raises.
The recommended pay package incorporates staggered increases for each branch of government through 2030, with the largest chunks due on the first day of the effective fiscal year, annually on July 1. Unless the entire package is voted down, Gov. Josh Green and Lt. Gov. Sylvia Luke in three months will see their pay rise 15%, as will “Tier 1” and “Tier 2” agency directors and their deputies, while state judge salaries will increase 10% to 12%. After another 10% jump for judges in 2026, all executive and judicial raises will see single-digit hikes.
It’s a different story for the Legislature, which is not due a pay increase this fiscal year. Come Jan. 1, 2027, however, salaries for all state senators and representatives will skyrocket 32%, to be followed by annual 4% bumps culminating with a final 8% in 2030. The salary commission’s recommendation is calculated with compound increases — so to clarify recent reports, which had noted legislators’ 44% pay raise over three years, lawmakers will make $114,348 starting Jan. 1, 2030, up a whopping 60% from today’s $71,460 salary.
That’s dangerous territory considering public outrage over a 64% City Council pay increase in 2023. A similar upward trajectory for legislators, though spread across four years, is equally galling.
The Legislature can and should reject the recommendation for now with a continuing resolution — though that seems unlikely, as senior lawmakers and jurists had urged the commission to increase salaries citing low recruitment. Senate President Ron Kouchi in November argued lawmakers should be paid a “living wage,” adding that service as an elected official is tantamount to a full-time job. If the commission had followed that line, though, a “living wage” translates to about 120% of Honolulu’s median income — so Kouchi’s characterization is out of touch, as many residents make do with much less. And remember, legislators are free to hold regular jobs alongside their elected one.
With the ball now squarely in the Legislature’s court, focus should be turned toward the salary commission itself. There’s a fundamental disconnect between the commission and the will of the people. Setting fair government wages is an undoubtedly onerous task, one that involves ingesting a multitude of data points and variables, and many hands should share that burden. At present, however, the commission’s composition is concerning. Whereas previous commissions included business leaders and community members, the group now consists solely of current and former government officials, some of whom have active dealings with major state or city agencies. Commission Chair Colleen Hanabusa, for example, is also chair of the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation, now building Oahu’s rail. Member Pankaj Bhanot is CEO of an IT firm serving seven local government clients led by “Tier 1” or “Tier 2” directors. When it comes to the purse strings of Hawaii’s leaders, even the possible whiff of conflicts of interest must be snuffed out — if only to bolster public trust.
There exists a confluence of shortcomings in the commission and how it operates. Instead of one big all-or-nothing recommendation, bifurcate proposed increases into separate judiciary and legislative packages. More community voices must be heard in the recommendation process, and pay raise determinations must be equitable while reflecting local economic realities. That simply is not happening. Reform should be on the docket at the Legislature, not raises.
