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Entries for 'Grassroot Institute'
Wednesday, March 9, 2011 |
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$550M tax increases among 710 Crossover Bills
By Grassroot Institute @ 4:14 PM :: 5923 Views :: Energy, Environment
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The good news is with the first crossover of bills in the state Legislature, the number of bills remaining alive has been reduced from 3,224 to 710 bills....
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Friday, March 4, 2011 |
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HB1529 Government Planning? Leg considers bill asking Governor to convene task force to write report
By Grassroot Institute @ 11:34 AM :: 4999 Views :: Energy, Environment
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House Bill 1529 seems to give hope to the idea that there should be an overall plan for state government. Unfortunately, the idea is to set up a task force to be convened by the governor and made up of mostly lawmakers to review and report on what is going on with the state.
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Wednesday, March 2, 2011 |
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Jamie Story leaving Grassroot Institute
By Grassroot Institute @ 2:43 PM :: 7779 Views :: Energy, Environment
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The Grassroot Institute's outstanding board of directors, led by Dick Rowland, the man who started GRIH and allowed me to serve all these years, already has begun an extensive search for my successor. I trust they will find someone capable of carrying on this vital work....
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Monday, February 28, 2011 |
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SB120—Special Funds Repeal--amended after 800 pages of testimony
By Grassroot Institute @ 6:59 PM :: 5680 Views :: Energy, Environment
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Senate Bill 120 was originally written to repeal 148 special funds. Although there were 800 pages of testimony submitted on the original version of the bill, no action was taken at the public hearing on Feb. 10, 2011. Then, on Feb. 25, the Ways and Means Committee (WAM) rewrote the bill....
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Friday, February 25, 2011 |
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$3.48M sat for 9 years after photo enforcement law repealed
By Grassroot Institute @ 1:48 PM :: 6410 Views :: Energy, Environment
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...how is that 9 years have lapsed since the legislative directive to transfer the funds was given? Who is supposed to be overseeing these kinds of funds and how many more dormant funds from repealed laws exist?
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Tuesday, February 22, 2011 |
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HB1545 to be heard tomorrow: Hawaii Legislators’ frozen bread bill
By Grassroot Institute @ 2:19 PM :: 6225 Views :: Energy, Environment
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If you search the word “label” on the Hawaii state legislative Web site, 30 results show up, thus confirming the fact that our lawmakers are definitely in the “label” business.
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Friday, February 18, 2011 |
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Ban-Happy Legislators’ toy bills take aim at novelty lighters, sky lanterns, foie gras, and ‘light pollution’
By Grassroot Institute @ 11:02 AM :: 7483 Views :: Energy, Environment
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Our legislators have been busy this session introducing many bills that ban unusual items, or impose taxes, fees, restrictions and mandates on specific product choices for the people of Hawaii.
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Saturday, February 12, 2011 |
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SB1449 Hearing Saturday: Hawaii Sunset Advisory Commission to assess Government Agencies
By Grassroot Institute @ 1:33 AM :: 6950 Views :: Maui County, Education K-12, Energy, Environment
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The committee(s) on Public Safety, Government Operations, and Military Affairs has rescheduled its public hearing to Saturday, 2-12-2011 at 10 a.m. in conference room 229.
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Thursday, February 10, 2011 |
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SB1425: Legislative Committee to discuss banning all Oahu Landfills
By Grassroot Institute @ 12:53 PM :: 6856 Views :: Maui County, Education K-12, Energy, Environment
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According to Senate Bill 1425, relating to banning the acceptance of solid waste in landfills, no landfill in a county with a population greater than or less than 500,000 residents, will be allowed to accept deliveries of municipal solid waste - beginning July 1, 2012, for Honolulu, and for the smaller counties, a date to be determined by their councils.
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Wednesday, February 9, 2011 |
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House Bills would end Hawaii’s practice of Counting Blank Ballots as ‘no’ votes
By Grassroot Institute @ 12:32 PM :: 3714 Views :: Energy, Environment
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This session, 3 bills introduced by Republicans and Democrats, are seeking to not count blank votes, over votes or spoiled votes when it comes to the outcome of proposed amendments to the Hawaii constitution.
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Friday, February 4, 2011 |
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SB 197: Senate Committee to debate Dim Bulbs Feb 8
By Grassroot Institute @ 9:53 PM :: 5271 Views :: Energy, Environment
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With this energy efficiency bonus however comes the problem of disposing of fluorescent and CFL bulbs in landfills. Enter 2 more bills – which put mandates on disposing the CFL bulbs by retailers, wholesalers and manufacturers. Senate Bill 197 mandates companies that sell the CFL bulbs submit a plan to the Legislature by 1/1/2012 on how to manage the waste. And then there’s House Bill 1527 that requires retailers and wholesalers to accept used light bulbs for recycling from customers.
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Wednesday, February 2, 2011 |
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SB715: Repeal Ethanol Mandate to be heard Thursday
By Grassroot Institute @ 7:56 PM :: 6756 Views :: Energy, Environment
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Five years ago, Hawaii passed a law requiring that gasoline sold in the state must include 10 percent ethanol. The intent was “to provide energy independence from foreign oil, reduce statewide gasoline consumption, and establish industrial plants to produce ethanol locally.”
Fast forward to today and the intention of the law is shown to be a bust -- all of Hawaii’s ethanol comes from overseas and no ethanol plants have been built here. Because of this, Sen. Mike Gabbard has introduced a bill to repeal the 10 percent ethanol requirement for gasoline sold in Hawaii.
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Monday, January 31, 2011 |
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HB48: Mandatory Voter Registration bill deferred
By Grassroot Institute @ 9:44 PM :: 8796 Views :: Maui County, Education K-12, Energy, Environment
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The bill says that every qualified applicant “is required to authorize the attorney general to collect and transmit the necessary personal information required for registering the qualified applicant with the county clerk.”
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Monday, January 31, 2011 |
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Pension Report puts Hawaii in a Bad Moody
By Grassroot Institute @ 9:19 PM :: 9070 Views :: Energy, Environment
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Along with Massachusetts and Connecticut, Hawaii leads the country with the highest ratio of bonded debt to personal income as well as having some of the highest long-term debt as a percentage of the state gross domestic product.
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Friday, January 28, 2011 |
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Bills would spend $4B on roads, bridges
By Grassroot Institute @ 1:23 PM :: 5824 Views :: Energy, Environment
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The DOT has a bill in both the Senate (SB1131) and House (HB1531) that calls for $4 billion for a 6-year plan to provide safer and well maintained roads and bridges statewide. This is a far cry from the current $250 million funding per year the department gets to pay for the $7 billion in infrastructure and program needs it says currently exist.
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Thursday, January 27, 2011 |
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The Real State of the State: An Uncensored Look at the Fiscal Challenges Facing Hawaii
By Grassroot Institute @ 10:58 PM :: 6839 Views :: Energy, Environment
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Honolulu—Today the Grassroot Institute of Hawaii released the “The Real State of the State: An Uncensored Look at the Fiscal Challenges Facing Hawaii.” Responding to Governor Neil Abercrombie’s recent “State of the State” address which only scratched the surface, this illuminating expose dives deep into the evidence and causes of the state’s financial crisis.
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Wednesday, January 26, 2011 |
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SB819 would study Mileage Fee for Hawaii Motorists
By Grassroot Institute @ 6:58 PM :: 9348 Views :: Kauai County, DHHL, Energy, Environment
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Thanks to the high cost of motor vehicle fuel--which in Hawaii includes the second highest gasoline taxes in the country at 63.5 cents per gallon--people have started buying alternative cars and cars which get better fuel mileage. The unintended consequence of increasing the cost of motor vehicle fuel is that there is less money going into the state coffers....
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Monday, January 24, 2011 |
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Grassroot: “Disappointed by Abercrombie’s tax increases”
By Grassroot Institute @ 10:41 PM :: 4590 Views :: Energy, Environment
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Governor Abercrombie referred to Hawaii as an “under-resourced and often dysfunctional democracy”. In the coming days the Grassroot Institute will release a report we call “The Real State of the State” detailing how the state government is far from under-resourced and extremely inefficient in its use of those resources.
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Wednesday, January 19, 2011 |
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No Fiscal Notes: Hawaii Legislators shopping without price tags
By Grassroot Institute @ 9:59 PM :: 7520 Views :: Hawaii State Government, Republican Party
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...The Grassroot Institute applauds the House Minority Caucus for including fiscal note legislation in its 2011 legislative package....
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Wednesday, March 31, 2010 |
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FULL TEXT: Hawaii Pork Report finds $300M in waste, abuse, and mismanagement
By Grassroot Institute @ 9:57 PM :: 9616 Views :: Hawaii State Government, Hawaii Statistics, Taxes
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While Hawaii’s school children are subjected to Furlough Fridays and the state faces a record shortfall, the 2010 Hawaii Pork Report reveals that bureaucrats continue to spend taxpayer dollars in questionable ways. Co-authored by Hideo Hikida, Frances Nuar, and Jamie Story, the second annual report reveals more than $300 million in waste, abuse, and mismanagement of taxpayer dollars.
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