Hawaii State Government

... Hawaii isn’t doing so well ....

... two bills advance, five deferred ....

... will the Senate kill these bills? ....

... Grassroot Institute of Hawaii so far has submitted more than 20 pieces of testimony on bills relating to issues ranging from housing to healthcare ....

... Our Legislature’s 2023 session is definitely cranked up now ....

... bureaucracy and red tape have become a major barrier to affordable housing in Hawaii ....

... we have high hopes for a few ideas that could make a real difference for our state ....

... Hawaii lawmakers introducing consumer privacy bills and biometric privacy bills ....

... Most compelling was the governor's proposal to increase tax deductions and support open records, but all the talk about spending was worrisome ....

... Gov Josh Green, State of the State address, January 23, 2023 ....

... About 16,300 members of the COFA lived in Hawaii, according to numbers from fiscal year 2022 ....

... The only question is whether they have the political will ....

... Wednesday, January 18, 2023 at 10:00 a.m. ....

... 156 bills are on the current docket to be introduced in the House of Representatives and Senate ....

... Luke Meyers is joining the Office of Governor Josh Green, M.D., as the State Disaster Management Advisor (SDMA), with Col. (Ret.) James D.S. Barros named as the new Administrator for the Hawai‘i Emergency Management Agency (HI-EMA) ....

... On Wednesday, January 18, 2023, the Hawaiʻi State Legislature will convene ....

... two dozen community and media organizations suggest changes that could be implemented by executive order ....

... The list is directly from the HGEA’s email to members earlier this week, January 9, 2023 ....

... Grassroot Institute of Hawaii’s “wins” over the past year ....

... the important thing isn’t money for the sake of money, but whether it’s being used wisely to make our lives better ....

... TikTok is known to be mining and storing in China the identities and private information of up to 200 million Americans ....

... Reps. James Tokioka of Kauai and Ryan Yamane of Mililani will resign their seats in the Legislature and start in their new positions next week ....

... fireworks auditing, cigarette tax stamps, ranked choice voting ....

... more than 20 briefings to be held between Jan. 10 and 24 ....  

... Applications are due by 5:00 p.m. on Friday, January 20, 2023 ....

... Hawaii is the fourth-worst state in the country when it comes to requiring occupational licenses ....

... revenue will continue to fall short of spending absent policy changes ....

... Governor Josh Green, M.D., First Lady Jaime Green and the Washington Place Foundation will carry on a 164-year tradition by hosting a Christmas Open House at Washington Place from 5:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. on Friday, December 16, 2022 ....

... With these selections, Gov. Green has now identified a Director for every state department ....

... finalized committee assignments ahead of the 32nd Legislature ....

... Governor Green recently announced the appointments of key cabinet and executive staff leadership roles, signaling the most expeditious assembling of a gubernatorial administration in the state’s history (behind a Carpenters Union chief of Staff) ....

... A total of 606,674 Act 115 refunds were issued, totaling $307.9 million. That includes 288,590 direct deposits and 318,084 paper checks ....

... Hawaii, pension liabilities totaled an estimated $32.7 billion in 2020. Meanwhile, the state's pension assets totaled $17.4 billion. Considering both assets and liabilities, Hawaii's pension funding ratio is 53.2%, the seventh lowest in the country ....

... Green today announced nominees to serve as Director and/or Deputy Director for fourteen state departments in his cabinet ....

... Hawaii has the highest average burdens across the occupations it licenses ....

... Hawaii Department of Transportation will be holding virtual public meetings on the update of the Hawaii Statewide Transportation Plan on Dec. 5, 6, 14, & 15 ....

... chief of staff, Brooke Wilson, (former political and education director for the Hawaii Regional Council of Carpenters) who had served in the same position when he was Hawaiʻi’s lieutenant governor ....

... Hawaii leveraged $290.0 million in federal highway and bridge formula funds in FY 2022 to help jumpstart 95 new improvement projects ....

... If we don’t demand action, followup on our demands and show the consequences at the ballot box, then we have failed in our civic duty ....

... Senate announces new Committee Chairs and Vice-Chairs for 2023 .... 

"...higher inflation will pressure pension liabilities via rising employee wages, which raise projected benefits, and automatic cost of living adjustment mechanisms...."

... click here to apply ....

... Hawaii’s unemployment insurance (UI) program is funded exclusively by employers via state and federal payroll taxes on wages ....

... Hawaii spent $1 million on a sea urchin hatchery and $300,000 for an engineering assessment of the now-condemned Aloha Stadium. …

... the “dedication” of the funding source is often porous ....

... ​Yost vs Wakai over Hu Honua ....

... We found that OLA has done little of consequence ....

... $37,000 of shortfall per taxpayer ....

... The report examines the tax and spending choices made by the governors and discusses recent policy trends ....

... the state's sound financial position and strong governance, offset by economic concentration in tourism, elevated leverage (combined debt, pension, OPEB and other liabilities) and associated fixed costs ....