TEA Party Rally Held at State Capitol

State Senator Sam Slom was among the dozen or so speakers who spoke before the small crowd of about 120 at the annual TEA Party Rally held at the State Capitol on Friday, April 15. More TEA Party photos can be found at this link: Hawaii Tea Party photos.

Added: Video Clip from Councilman Tom Berg.

The Budget, The Budget, The Budget

Senator Slom talks about the State Budget bill (HB 200) during the April 12 bill crossover voting session. Senator Slom voted against the State Budget because it proposed more spending and more taxes. Senator Slom always votes against tax increases.

Hawaii, Other States, Form Caucus to Oppose TSA Intrusions

By State Senator Sam Slom
Originally published in HawaiiReporter.com

Believing that the federal Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has gone too far in an assault on individual and states rights, a new, national, bipartisan legislative caucus is emerging to take action.

Dubbed tentatively the “United States for Travel Freedom” caucus, it officially convened on April 14, 2011 via teleconference and video live streaming (http//alaskalegislature.tv/).

The mission of the caucus is to, “establish a centralized location to share information regarding

· detailed information of federal security policies as they pertain to the right to travel freely;
· detailed information on how these policies affect the citizens of the United States of America;
· detailed information on methods of screening and the accumulative costs of these procedures.

Primary organizers are Alaska State Representative Sharon Cissna and Washington State Senator Val Stevens. Republican and Democrat legislators from Alaska, Hawaii, Michigan, Montana, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Texas and Washington have pledged to work together for common goals to oppose what is perceived as an ever growing threat to liberty by the TSA. Additional state legislative participation is anticipated.

Each of the lawmakers involved to date has introduced legislation in their state to curb what they, and their state’s citizens, believe to be excessive power by the TSA.

Specific issues include constitutional rights, invasion of privacy and civil rights, child protection and fiscal issues. Many of the state bills call for individual state prohibitions on TSA procedures with the ultimate goal federal action against the operations of the TSA itself.

(a series of legislative lists regarding pending legislation may be found at www.akhealthcaucus.org/TSA.php)

In Hawaii, I introduced SB 1150 in January, 2011, “Relating to the use of Body Imaging Scanners at Airports.” The bill would make it illegal to use non-consensual full body imaging devices at Hawaii airports. There were four Democrat co-signatories. The bill was referred to three separate committees, but never given a hearing. It will be back in 2012.

The full imaging device was installed at Lihue, Kauai, in mid-2010. A second unit was placed in service in Honolulu in October 2010, and to date, two more of a planned six units are in operation in Honolulu.

For years, a growing number of people and organizations have raised red flags about the operations of the TSA, its costs and its effectiveness, or lack thereof, of ever identifying a single terrorist or crime, while inconveniencing and traumatizing hundreds of citizens. Now TSA will be unionized.

There are several national and local controversial issues involving TSA. Last week, a video surfaced on Drudge.com, showing (video and audio) the detailed “patting down” of a six year old child. Parents were horrified.

In March, 2011 in Honolulu, KITV-TV investigative reporter Keoki Kerr uncovered a series of incidents at Honolulu International Airport where more than two dozen TSA screeners were not in fact screening checked luggage. The lapse had gone on for months. At least 27 TSA Honolulu officers are currently under a federal probe for these actions.

Just this week, a former Honolulu TSA employee, Dawn Nicole Keka, is facing embezzling charges for allegedly stealing cash from wallets of Japanese visitors in Kona on the island of Hawaii. Keka was arrested last week and she resigned her job on April 11. The TSA initiated a sting operation after numerous allegations had arisen during the past several months.

It should be remembered that Alaska Representative Cissna made headlines previously, when she, a breast surgery survivor, refused invasive TSA handling and was denied aircraft boarding to return home to Anchorage. She was forced to use several other forms of alternate transportation.

In Hawaii, there are no other alternate forms of transportation.

The next caucus meeting is set for late May or early June. Individuals or organizations in Hawaii who would like more information may contact me directly at SBH@lava.net or 808-349-5438.

Senate Minority Report – “No Alternative” Budget

Senator Slom held a press conference on April 8 to go over the Senate Minority “No Alternative” budget. This budget proposes several program and department cuts, offers no raids on special funds or tax increases. Watch the video below:

Video lasts approximately 29 minutes.

GE Tax Hike Deleted From HB 793

April 8, 2011.

The Senate Ways & Means Committee struck out the section pertaining to the 25% General Excise Tax hike yesterday (April 7). The motion to amend HB 793 and take out the tax increase passed in a rare motion where members of the committee voted against the recommendation of the the committee chairman. The bill still retains other components that make it less than perfect, which Senator Slom voted against.

The bill description for the SD 1 now reads “Suspends from 1/1/2012, to 6/30/2015, the exemptions for certain persons and certain amounts of gross income or proceeds from the general excise and use tax and requires the payment of the tax at a rate of 4%. Appropriates funds to expedite implementation. ” You can get the full text of the bill from this link.

Testimony against the GE tax increase was plentiful. Some examples of testimony submitted against the tax increase included:

“The legislative branch should be working toward reducing spending through elimination of redundant services or de-funding programs which are nice to have but not necessary to operate an effective government… I dare you to take a stand against over expenditure and eliminate unnecessary programs or excessive government agencies. I am not asking you to do the impossible but I am expecting you to do the difficult. Do your job.”

- Marc Grandmaison

“You have a SPENDING problem, not an INCOME problem.”

-David Verret

“Why raising taxes is always the first thing the legislature thinks of as the solution is not fiscally responsible. You are very very close to the tipping point on what individuals and small business can handle… CUT THE SPENDING.”

- Adrienne King

“In tough economic times, everyone tightens up and eliminates unneeded or wasteful expenses. That is, everyone EXCEPT the government. Instead the government continues to spend and increase spending, all on the backs of the hard-working, taxpaying Hawaii residents. This trend needs to stop immediately.”

- Lisa A. M. Miller

Additional Links on the Defeat of the GE Tax

Rebellion in the Senate Kills GE Tax Hike Proposal, HawaiiReporter.com
Senators Kill Excise Tax Increase, KITV 4 News
G.E.T. hike shelved by senate committee, KHON Channel 2 News

The GE tax increase could resurface again during the conference committee process despite legislators saying that the proposal is off the table for now.

Photo: Senate Ways & Means Committee hearing on April 7.