What did you think about Abercrombie’s State of the State Address?
HONOLULU—On Monday, January 24, Gov. Neil Abercrombie highlighted a number of problems facing the islands in his State of the State Address: Hawaii’s school children do not have the tools they need to learn; the tourism industry is directly affected by public facilities in “disgraceful disrepair”; State services already in dire straights are worsened by demoralized public employees; and Hawaii’s dependence on imported food, oil, and goods and services is unnecessary.
In order to solve these problems and balance the budget, the Governor plans to focus on the most important government priorities and introduce new ways to generate revenue, including a number of tax increases.
To read the full text of the State of the State Address, click here
Abercrombie stated he will:
* End State funded reimbursement for federal Medicare Part B benefits for Hawaii government employees.
* Fix the tax code by repealing the State tax deduction for State taxes and having the Tax Review Commission treat pension income like all other income for tax purposes, as is done when preparing federal taxes—he will include a provision so that those who are most dependent on their pensions will not be taxed.
* Propose an increase on the alcohol tax and a fee on soda and other “unhealthy” drinks.
* Raise fees paid by timeshare occupants into alignment with hotel room occupants who pay the transient accommodations tax.
* Reallocate funds from the Hawaii Tourism Authority to basic government services such as environmental protection, improvements to public facilities, and advancing culture and the arts.
* Scale back on social services for which funding no longer exists.
* Cut back on benefits provided to Medicaid patients.
* Set the goal of increasing the number of University of Hawaii graduates 25 percent by 2015.
* Organize a Hawaiian language university-within-a-university.
* Create a leadership position in the Governor’s office for early education.
* Form an independent Hawaii Energy Authority to move the clean energy agenda.
* Restructure the Public Utilities Commission to be more self- sufficient.
* Increase Hawaii’s broadband capacity.
The Governor also described a series of capitol improvement projects as part of his New Day Work Projects geared toward long-range cost savings. One example included diverting money away from Aloha Stadium to other projects.
Abercrombie also described Lt. Gov. Brian Schatz’s Hawaii Fair Share Initiative to bring in federal dollars by upgrading military and veterans facilities.
The Governor reminded the public that these proposals come as a package for consideration. “I am wide open to other ideas from the Legislature and the community,” he said.