Hawaii State Government

...The Legislature will take up a limited number of bills, including budget matters and COVID-19-related legislation....

...Start working now to adopt a meaningful spending cap....

...Timesheets and leave requests are now transmitted electronically to payroll offices, replacing paper-based manual labor-intensive tracking methods in employee pay calculation....  

...how many times will Hawaii fall for phony High-Tech scamsters?....

...figuring out how to spend $1 billion of federal money that is being made available to Hawaii under the CARES Act....

...no details until after the June 2 deadline to file for election....

...attorney Scott Greenfield suggested proposals like these would raise “a great many curious issues” and “would appear to be outrageously unlawful sex discrimination with some serious likelihood of backfiring.”....

...More than $483 million in excess moneys may be available to be transferred from 57 special and revolving fund accounts to the General Fund without adversely affecting programs....

...the State Auditor has been busy at work trying to find options for legislators to consider for getting the state budget back on track....

...as of Sunday, May 17, Hawaii became Scattered Canary’s latest unemployment fraud victim....

...Bills passed during the past two weeks include....

...the State of Emergency is not justified by the numbers.... 

...The House also passed SB 3139 SD1 HD1 to transfer the remaining $635 million of the CARES Act money into the State’s Emergency Budget Reserve or “rainy day” fund to hold until decision can be made in June how to best use the funds....

...Hawaii’s economy has tanked and local tax revenues are plummeting, leaving the state and counties in danger of going bankrupt — starting with the state's public pension and health-benefits systems....

...state policymakers seem to believe that the answer to the worst economic crisis in decades is to borrow and spend — and very likely raise taxes....

...The bill calls for no increases until July 1, 2021....

...Keli'i Akina Challenges Lawmakers' Plan to Increase Borrowing and Spending....

...it isn’t the kind its leaders were counting on....

...Politician's Trick: Put off future raises rather than cancelling them outright and/or giving back past raises....

...the state deficit for fiscal year 2021 could grow to between $710 million and $1.8 billion....

...Grassroot testimony outlines the problem and suggests some reforms....

...significant deficiencies in internal control over financial reporting....

...if Hawaii’s lawmakers wish to save our state economy from its current freefall, they must not be afraid to reduce state spending....

... stopgap measures which could help prevent public employees from feeling the slightest suffering...for now....

... spending their time while social distancing daydreaming about how to restructure society into a progressive paradise ....

...Hawaii DoH is seeking 60 more contact tracers to total 90.  420 are needed ....

... Major reforms could help the pension system honor its promises ....

...Hawaii pension plan only 55% funded ranks 43rd among states....

...Representative Case says money from the CARES Act should be used for covering revenue losses....

... Department of Labor and Industrial Relations seem to have dropped the ball ....

...Single Audit of Federal Financial Assistance Programs of the State of Hawai‘i....

...The emergency proclamation suspends several laws, including chapters 89 and 89C, HRS, relating to collective bargaining....

...The Hawaii Legislature suspended its 2020 session in early March because of the coronavirus situation, but eventually it will get back to business....

...In this uncertain and anxious time, we already are seeing many questionable proposals being put forth....

...The handling of this COVID-19 pandemic has been utterly chaotic and there is mass confusion among the public....

...The memo recommends all Senate offices close until further notice....

...Ige, by Supplemental Emergency Proclamation dated March 16, 2020, waived many laws pertaining to transparency and accountability, specifically Hawaii Revised Statutes Chapter 92 dealing with open meetings, and Chapter 91 dealing with rulemaking....

...but the State government is the least dependent....

...On March 4, 2020 a Capitol employee was suspected of having been exposed to the virus, and the Public Access was subsequently shuttered....

...suspension of the legislative session indefinitely, starting on Tuesday, March 17....

...Sunshine doesn't cure Corona Virus -- but Corona Virus cures Sunshine....

...House Speaker Scott K. Saiki today announced the appointment of individuals to serve on the Select House Committee on COVID-19 Economic and Financial Preparedness adopted through House Resolution 54....

...Hawaii citizens can count on seeing a slew of bills introduced to raise taxes on somebody....

...Carbon Tax to become $15B Slush Fund for Developers....

...Senate Bill 3104, Senate Draft 2, relating to Land Development...and...Senate Bill 3103, Senate Draft 2, relating to a School Facilities Agency....

...hearing and floor session videos have been and continue to be archived, unedited....

...Convicted cocaine dealer and MMA fight promoter Chad Tsuneyoshi may not be satisfied with just having his wife on the Honolulu Council....

...A total of 355 bills have been sent from the House to the Senate for their consideration....

...During the recession of 2008, the state government was forced to reduce the school week to four days, cut millions of dollars from social programs, and reduce public employee salaries by 5 percent....

...A group of bills will be up for third reading in tomorrow’s crossover session in the Hawai‘i State Senate tomorrow, Tuesday, March 3, 2020, starting at 9:30 a.m....