Thursday, March 28, 2024
Hawai'i Free Press

Current Articles | Archives

Saturday, August 1, 2020
161,000 Hawaii Unemployed Fall off Cliff at Midnight?
By Rep Gene Ward @ 5:20 AM :: 3237 Views :: Economy, Labor

161,000 HAWAII WORKERS FALLING OFF AT MIDNIGHT?

Is UHERO’s Bonham Bluffing? Crying Wolf?  Or are Hawaii’s Leader’s Asleep?

House Republican Gene Ward Warns of “Unemployment Cliff” Looming at Midnight Tonight

News Release from Office of Rep Gene Ward, (R-Hawaii Kai) July 31, 2020

HONOLULU—"At the stroke of midnight tonight (July 31) there will be over 161,000 Hawaii residents about to fall off the federal unemployment cliff and there appears to be no solution at hand. Congress is equivocating and the Governor vetoed the Legislature’s suggestion for a small replacement in UI benefits, schools aren’t sure to open, bars may close, and tourism is twisting in the wind, so there appears to be no real solution in sight” says Representative Gene Ward (R-17 Hawaii Kai, Kalama Valley) on eve of the cliff hanger.

Following the UHERO report by Professor Carl Bonham and the Council of Revenues’ projected forecast that incomes will drop, tourism will barely start up and the ending of the “plus up” of $2,400 per month of federal UI benefits by August 1, Ward felt compelled to speak out to the leaders of Hawaii and issue a warning to the people of Hawaii to get ready for a hard landing.

“I think we have kicked the can down the road fearing more for our public health than our economic health because we always assumed the federal government was going to save us. So, in the short run, the government will continue to run our economy, that is until it runs out of money, or can borrow no more, and then what?  Basically, we don’t know,” Ward said, “unless we open up the economy.”

“The problem is we haven’t been good at walking and chewing gum at the same time. We need to focus on people’s lives as well as their livelihoods, and the government doesn’t have enough money to keep postponing decisions on how to flatten the poverty curve that is about to spike when the UI support dwindles or ceases.

“Likewise, our State’s $2-3 billion deficit is still an unreal number to most people, and no one seems to be too worried about it. We’re in the quiet before the storm and we’re basically behaving pretty calmly before falling off a cliff. But, if and when our numbers reach over 200,000 workers on the bench in the next few weeks without paychecks big enough to pay the rent and put food on the table, there will be an hue and cry never before heard in Hawaii,” Ward observed. 

“Bottom line, there is a fiscal crisis ahead of us and we are not prepared to face it,” he concluded.

###

Links

TEXT "follow HawaiiFreePress" to 40404

Register to Vote

2aHawaii

808 Silent Majority

Aloha Pregnancy Care Center

AntiPlanner

Antonio Gramsci Reading List

A Place for Women in Waipio

Ballotpedia Hawaii

Broken Trust

Build More Hawaiian Homes Working Group

Christian Homeschoolers of Hawaii

Cliff Slater's Second Opinion

DVids Hawaii

FIRE

Fix Oahu!

Frontline: The Fixers

Genetic Literacy Project

Grassroot Institute

Habele.org

Hawaii Aquarium Fish Report

Hawaii Aviation Preservation Society

Hawaii Catholic TV

Hawaii Christian Coalition

Hawaii Cigar Association

Hawaii ConCon Info

Hawaii Debt Clock

Hawaii Defense Foundation

Hawaii Family Forum

Hawaii Farmers and Ranchers United

Hawaii Farmer's Daughter

Hawaii Federalist Society

Hawaii Federation of Republican Women

Hawaii History Blog

Hawaii Homeschool Association

Hawaii Jihadi Trial

Hawaii Legal News

Hawaii Legal Short-Term Rental Alliance

Hawaii Matters

Hawaii's Partnership for Appropriate & Compassionate Care

Hawaii Public Charter School Network

Hawaii Rifle Association

Hawaii Shippers Council

Hawaii Smokers Alliance

Hawaii State Data Lab

Hawaii Together

HIEC.Coop

HiFiCo

Hiram Fong Papers

Homeschool Legal Defense Hawaii

Honolulu Moms for Liberty

Honolulu Navy League

Honolulu Traffic

House Minority Blog

Imua TMT

Inouye-Kwock, NYT 1992

Inside the Nature Conservancy

Inverse Condemnation

Investigative Project on Terrorism

July 4 in Hawaii

Kakaako Cares

Keep Hawaii's Heroes

Land and Power in Hawaii

Legislative Committee Analysis Tool

Lessons in Firearm Education

Lingle Years

Managed Care Matters -- Hawaii

Malama Pregnancy Center of Maui

MentalIllnessPolicy.org

Military Home Educators' Network Oahu

Missile Defense Advocacy

MIS Veterans Hawaii

NAMI Hawaii

Natatorium.org

National Christian Foundation Hawaii

National Parents Org Hawaii

NFIB Hawaii News

No GMO Means No Aloha

Not Dead Yet, Hawaii

NRA-ILA Hawaii

Oahu Alternative Transport

Obookiah

OHA Lies

Opt Out Today

OurFutureHawaii.com

Patients Rights Council Hawaii

PEACE Hawaii

People vs Machine

Practical Policy Institute of Hawaii

Pritchett Cartoons

Pro-GMO Hawaii

P.U.E.O.

RailRipoff.com

Rental by Owner Awareness Assn

ReRoute the Rail

Research Institute for Hawaii USA

Rick Hamada Show

RJ Rummel

Robotics Organizing Committee

School Choice in Hawaii

SenatorFong.com

Sink the Jones Act

Statehood for Guam

Talking Tax

Tax Foundation of Hawaii

The Real Hanabusa

Time Out Honolulu

Trustee Akina KWO Columns

UCC Truths

US Tax Foundation Hawaii Info

VAREP Honolulu

Waagey.org

West Maui Taxpayers Association

What Natalie Thinks

Whole Life Hawaii

Yes2TMT