Entries for 'Keli'i Akina PhD'

... Few ideas are as tenacious as the myth that we can make tourists pay for major programs without affecting locals ....

... the governor’s state income tax cut — approved unanimously last year by the Legislature — will reduce our taxes by as much as 71% for some families ....

... over the past year, we’ve seen how bureaucratic hurdles can make it difficult to rebuild homes and businesses ....

... Hawaii lawmakers might undermine some of the benefits of the tax cut by raising taxes elsewhere, “just kind of surreptitiously” ....

... You might have noticed something a little different about your most recent paycheck ....

... trustees of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs (OHA) were sworn in by Hawaiʻi Supreme Court Justice Todd Eddins ....

... a modest but workable list of policy resolutions for 2025 ....

... The Aloha State is finally facing the problem ....

... a few requests for the people of Hawaii ....

... the credit for this win goes to you, the people who got involved and made their voices heard ....

... 70% of 1,500 local workers interviewed are either planning to move away or considering it ....

... Kafkaesque issues that so far have been unresolvable ....

... the third time won’t be the charm ....

... it could get worse ....

... these roadblocks hinder homebuilding, which fuels the ongoing housing crisis that impacts us all ....

... The Board of Trustees voted not to pursue the exemption ....

... Hawaii’s lawmakers listened to the people and did the most effective thing they could to significantly lower our incredibly high cost of living ....

... Gov. Green steps in where Legislature faltered ....

"That's not possible.  If the building permit doesn’t have a final, you would not have issued me a remodeling permit.”

... just as Hawai‘i County lawmakers were working on freeing the bees, the Honolulu County Council began making an unexpected beeline in the opposite direction ....

... Price control will always have the same effect: scarcity, a distorted market and higher prices ....

... a new legal theory against the Jones Act ....

... the largest personal income tax cut in state history ....

... Maui County’s extremely long wait times and high fees to obtain water meters and add fixtures ....

... Let the people who have lost their properties and are bravely committed to rebuilding do just that — and enable them to do it quickly ....

... legislative victories this year in the areas of taxation, housing, healthcare and other issues ....

... it’s important to differentiate between good intentions and good policy ....

... supporting policies that could speed up homebuilding and lighten the financial burden for the thousands of residents who lost their homes to the fires ....

... How much do Hawaii lawmakers really want to help businesses thrive? ....

... take a light-handed approach with occupational licensing ....

“ ... Hawaii goes from being the second worst to one of the best states in terms of taxation .... ”

... All of these bills show that the Maui Council is making progress toward helping county residents find housing and rebuild their lives and businesses ....

... a scholarly contradiction of the myth that population growth must lead to scarcity ....

... Hawaii Council of Revenues recently estimated it expects state tax revenues to total about $9.5 billion this year ....

... severe restrictions on homebuilding have resulted in too few homes and some of the nation’s highest housing prices ....

... This year our freedoms were expanded with the passage by our state lawmakers of important legislation. Those expansions covered taxes, housing and healthcare ....

... we don’t know what we don’t know ....

... Hawaii taxpayers are expected to save about $1.2 billion in 2030 ....

... staffers from the Grassroot Institute of Hawaii in attendance at Gov. Josh Green's recent bill-signing ceremonies for historic tax cuts and housing reform ....

... In a deep-blue bastion where seldom is heard a peep of pushback against tax hikes, Hawaii legislators surprised everybody last month by unanimously approving a bill that is being heralded as the biggest tax cut in state history ....

... passing the biggest income tax cut in state history ....

... One of the most persistent myths in Hawaii politics is that you can target a single group with a tax hike and not affect anyone else ....

... This year, the Legislature finally listened to their pleas and passed SB1035 ....

... helping to defeat many measures that would have harmed Hawaii’s economy and added to our already high cost of living ....

... Akina said “the tax cuts are gonna be huge in terms of keeping money in the pockets of people starting next year” .... 

... The best news to come out of it was that our lawmakers passed a major income tax-relief bill, HB2404, which Gov. Josh Green is almost certain to sign because it was part of his much-touted "Green Affordability Plan." ....

“I am concerned that the amicus brief will be perceived as an attempt by OHA to evade accountability to state ethics laws and oversight. Courts have ruled that the Office of Hawaiian Affairs is a state agency whose leadership and employees are subject to the standards of conduct and behavior expected of all state personnel.” --- OHA Trustee Keli'i Akina

... at least five bills strongly supported by my colleagues and I at the Grassroot Institute of Hawaii were passed out of conference committees and now will go for final votes at the House and Senate floor sessions ....

... All registered voters in Hawaii are eligible to vote for OHA Trustees ....

... the GET makes practicing in Hawaii so financially challenging, causing many Hawaii doctors to retire or move away ....