Once upon a time there were some property developers on Oahu. They thought that agricultural development would be a good thing. There were lots of tax incentives associated with agricultural development. Then they got the idea that putting some solar … Read More
You might not know this, but our tax workers enjoy all kinds of special privileges. Suppose, for example, a tax auditor told all your customers you were a tax cheat, rifled through your garbage, asked embarrassing questions of your friends … Read More
On November 4, the Supreme Court of Hawaii released its decision in League of Women Voters v. State. That decision involved a bill enacted by the 2018 Legislature that went through some different incarnations before finally becoming law. The bill … Read More
The Honolulu City Council wants to raise money for the Honolulu Police Department by adding a surcharge to traffic fines. As KHON2 reports, they say that the money can and should be used to recruit, retain, and equip police officers. … Read More
The story you are about to read is true. The names have not been changed to protect the innocent. This is the city: Honolulu, Hawaii. I live here. I’m a doggie. This is the Case of the Persecuted Watchdog. A … Read More
On October 13th, the Grassroot Institute of Hawaii published the result of a poll of about 1,000 Hawaii residents. They found, not surprisingly, that people don’t like our high state taxes: Maybe I’m too cynical after being at the Tax … Read More
In recent weeks, it’s been no secret that the Hawaii State Teachers Association (HSTA) has had some concerns about their working conditions. Schools are about to start up again with in-person instruction. Teachers are then supposed to be teaching a … Read More
If at first you don’t succeed because of the rules, do you redouble your efforts to meet the rules? Or do you change the rules so you can meet them? HART, the Honolulu transportation agency, has just done the latter. … Read More
What do you think of when you hear the name “Nebraska”? Steaks? Corn? Warren Buffett? As it turns out, they have a few things in common with us. They pride themselves on their quality of life (but for different reasons … Read More
Occasionally, all of us wonder what it’s like to be rich and famous, or at least act like it. “Those people,” you might think, “have at their disposal so many ways to flummox the tax authorities if they want to. … Read More