• Your 3 minutes are up • Biting the hands that feed them • PACE, politics, and the path to abysmal failure • No wonder Your 3 minutes are up So the budget process is about over. For those of
• Your 3 minutes are up • Biting the hands that feed them • PACE, politics, and the path to abysmal failure • No wonder
Your 3 minutes are up
So the budget process is about over. For those of you who have never attended any of these “exercise in futility” hearings, you have never missed a thing.
For the public, here is the procedure for viewing (in person) these hearings. Whenever the department having their session meets, John Public must be there at the beginning. At that time you will have 3 minutes to say whatever you want to as long as it is an agenda item.
Remember that the public has no idea what the dialogue will be between the department and the council. But you had your 3 minutes up front and from there on you can sit there all day if you want to and not get another chance to speak. Maybe you could add some words of wisdom to the back and forth but under the rules your voice is silenced.
These rules are set by the committee chair and they have been strictly enforced.
Think back over the years where these elected officials have stated (rhetorically, of course) over and over how they need community input in their decision making — how they need and want open government.
This is but one typical example of “wanting” public input and words remain a lot cheaper than actions.
Glenn Mickens, Kapa‘a
Biting the hands that feed them
I truly feel that public voices go in one ear of our lawmakers (Legislature) and right out the other.
They seem to think all of us who pay taxes must be stupid! Like we don’t notice a dime here and a nickel there tax increases.
The growing trend of nearly 40 percent of the people in this country who do not contribute a dime to the tax base for state and federal services must eventually come to an end.
Our lawmakers show us that the only way to continue the needed services for those who supposedly need it is to raise our taxes further.
My family is first to give to those who are handicapped, and who will always need the continual services provided by our state tax. It is unfortunate they must live in situations out of their control.
I’m continually watching people around me who have become a part of the growing trend of “I can do whatever I like and the government will take care of me at the expense of those who work their butts off on a daily basis.”
Our Legislature is busy raising taxes on those who make our economy run. Lawmakers, wake up! Do you really want to balance the budget? How about double taxes on cigarettes, alcohol, and while you’re at it double the fine for speeding.
Triple the fines for drunk driving! It’s time that our Legislature find other creative ways for the money and stop biting the hands that feed them.
Steven Martin, Kapa‘a
PACE, politics, and the path to abysmal failure
Right now wholesale changes need to take place with energy issues in Hawai‘i, but they are not happening.
Hawai‘i, the most isolated land in the world with one of the most tenuous energy situations, is failing to make the timely transition to a sustainable, economically viable energy environment.
Maybe one of the best policy initiatives introduced this legislative session, HB2643 HD2 SD1 a Property Assessed Clean Energy bond financing bill, is on the verge of dying an ignoble death, murdered by narrow-minded politicians not wanting the governor’s party to get credit for its implementation.
The kicker came just before Conference Committee when one bank not wanting the competition from PACE spoke up. The parties already had more than a legislative session to get this bill right. Some jurisdictions in the U.S. are setting up PACE programs in just a few months.
One would think that leadership in the Legislature would have long since come up with a more realistic legislative schedule conducive to actually solving problems. But no, it hasn’t happened. And as a result, Hawai‘i is on a path toward abysmal failure in the changing energy and economic environment going forward.
Brad Parsons, Hanalei
No wonder
The recent letter written by Will Okabe in regard to the school furloughs was quite enlightening.
It confirms everything that I believed, as to why the furlough issue has not been resolved. The HSTA leadership cares nothing about the children and only about union solidarity.
His attitude that all DOE employees are essential is disingenuous. He states that he is not interested in using any of the monies in the hurricane and rainy day funds and that this money is better spent on human services.
He also implies that the governor would open the schools on Fridays without supplying money for electricity, food and water. How ridiculous can that be?
With an attitude like this, what is there to negotiate? It’s no wonder our public education system is in trouble.
Keith Smith, Koloa
