BILL NUMBER: SB 1474, SD-1
INTRODUCED BY: Senate Committees on Education and Higher Education
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Increases the general excise and use taxes by 0.5% and provides that the revenue generated by the increased rate will be used for department of education (DOE) and University of Hawaii (UH) operations, including salaries and maintenance costs. With a tax increase of this magnitude, economic ripple effects are likely to be enormous because of the all-encompassing nature of the tax. We also question why such a massive increase is being sought given that DOE and UH already have a gargantuan share of the State budget but are still beset with such issues as frustrated teachers, students roasting in our classrooms, and a massive maintenance backlog. It also should be kept in mind that the bill does not ensure that increased funding will be made available for DOE or UH, as the case may be.