Five Questions with Senator Slom

Senator Slom discusses the issues with KHVH radio’s Rick Hamada on HawaiiReporter.com’s “5 Questions” podcast.

The 2012 Legislature is in Session

Check this slideshow for the latest updated photos taken from the 2012 session. The legislature is in session from January 18 to May 5. Thousands of new bills were introduced this session. Senator Slom introduced more than 25 new bills. A bill list link will be posted to this site soon.

Senator Slom’s Opening Day Speech

Hawaii State Senate – January 18, 2012.

Opening Day Remarks by Senate Minority Leader Sam Slom

Senate President Tsutsui, Governor Abercrombie, distinguished guests and overburdened taxpayers of Hawaii, on behalf of the entire Senate Minority, Aloha!

Hawaii still enjoys two competitive political philosophies within our government, not dependent on the number of senators. The majority philosophy stresses more government, taxation and control of individuals. Our philosophy rewards individual risk and accomplishment, encourages lower taxes on families and small businesses, promotes transparency in government, and advocates additional economic options for all of our residents and a strong belief in our people and the future of Hawaii.

Here’s what we’re going to do: we’re going to oppose bad programs. We are going to oppose bad bills. We will bring attention to irresponsible spending. And we will do our best to offer fresh ideas and new solutions.

Let me say right upfront we acknowledge the majority’s unilateral decision to once again suspend, as was done in 2010, our tradition of making Hawaii’s opening day colorful, special and unique, in order to appear more serious and business like. But we respectfully disagree. This lack of Aloha diminishes the citizens’ role and ownership of our government. It is their chance to be here and we have marginalized that.

Expenses must be cut back in the legislature – just as individuals, families, and small business have been doing for years – but not just for opening day.

I sincerely believe our nation and our state have reached a political, economic and cultural tipping point. Never before in history have our decisions been as critical as they are now.

We have the awesome responsibility to help determine whether our nation and state will advance and prosper, or whether we allow or facilitate further interference with individual choice and rights, slipping back into a lesser standard of living.

In neighboring states and a growing number of countries, bad government decisions – overspending, burdensome taxation and debt – are bringing misery and economic despair to countless millions. We have been taught to think globally but accept that all politics is local.

While there are many actions outside of our control, still, there are changes we can make to control and improve Hawaii’s destiny. We in this body, have an opportunity to think and act outside the constraints of past failed government policy.

We must require our government school bureaucracy to be accountable for the tremendous amount of resources they consume annually. We still wrestle with a balanced budget and will vote on supplemental expenditures this year.

Our recent bond issue resulted in savings and that is positive but borrowing is still added debt and a further burden on our families and children.

Last month, the state administration was cheering over a budget surplus that enabled it to spend more money. Look at the factors that caused this “surplus.” It came from Hawaii’s hard working families and businesses who had to shoulder an estimated $600 million in additional taxes over these two years, due to the tax increases passed last year by this legislature.

More than $400 million came from increased General Excise Taxes on contractors, businesses that sublease, airlines and others – most of which that was passed on to Hawaii’s consumers and businesses as increased costs. Now we are facing a new deficit in fiscal year 2014 and beyond.

The impact of the tax increases on the state budget was acknowledged by the Hawaii Council On Revenues at its meeting on September 6, 2011. The Council increased its forecast for state general fund tax revenue growth for the current fiscal year from 11.0 percent to 14.5 percent, noting “the increases in the forecasts for tax revenue growth in fiscal year 2012 and 2013 were mostly due to new tax laws that have gone into effect this fiscal year. Without the expected revenue increase of the new tax laws, the forecast for fiscal year 2012 would have been lowered to 9.5 percent due to uncertainties about the economy and about the number of visitors.”

A few weeks ago, the Council reduced its revenue forecast to 11. 5 percent; most rational private sector businesses and economists believe that estimate is still far to optimistic.

In this weak national and state economy, working families and small businesses are struggling to make ends meet or to make payroll.

Homelessness grows at an alarming rate because government creates more poverty through increased taxes, fees and regulations.

If the goal today was to show the public we understand their pain and tough financial straights, we should pledge that we will reduce taxes. We invite job-creating employers to this big square building to testify to what they believe should be done, then we ignore them.

We are all aware of our state’s severe economic challenges, many of which have been created by this very legislature. Some are still in economic denial of our actions and consequences.

Without systemic changes, we cannot improve Hawaii’s economy. Without holding ourselves to the same laws we pass, we cannot make what we do behind closed doors in this building more transparent.

The era of government free spending of other people’s income is over.

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Opening Day to Be Scaled Back

State Senate and House leadership have decided to scale back the annual opening day activities of the Hawaii State Legislature. Instead of the large ceremony filled with speeches and entertainment, the leadership decided to “diligently address the problems confronting this state” by reverting to a “working” opening day that “would be consistent with this expectation.” In other words, just a normal “business session” where the formalities of opening the session with the introduction of formal resolutions will be on the order of the day.

As the Senate Minority Leader, I expect that I will be able to deliver my opening day speech as I have in the past, addressing the most pressing problems (budget, education, economy, energy, environment and more) in search of solutions for the coming year. The 2012 Legislature will commence on Wednesday, January 18 starting at 10:00 a.m. in both the Senate and House chambers.

Because of the scaled back opening, there will be no invitations sent out to family or guests. No one from the public will be seated on the Senate or House floors and gallery seating will be on a “first come first serve” basis. Tickets will not be distributed.

My Senate office will be holding an “after session” get together complete with soft drinks, snacks, entertainment and conversation. You are invited to our office on opening day in Room 214.

The scaled back opening day will be very much like the one done during the 2010 session.

Stop the Spending: Hawaii’s Finances Need To Be Controlled

By State Senator Sam Slom
Originally published in HawaiiReporter.com
November 8, 2011

The 2010 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR) showing the financial condition of the state government was just published, and it showed a substantial cost increase for medical services for state employees.

As Hawaii Reporter recently reported, “the 2009 CAFR shows an unfunded liability for the Employees Union Trust Fund of $7.2 billion and for the Hawaii State Teachers Association’s Voluntary Employees’ Beneficiary Association (VEBA) of $1.6 billion for a total of $8.8 billion (for July 1, 2007, even though the CAFR is for June 30, 2009). Whereas the 2010 CAFR details unfunded liability for the EUTF of $11.5 billion and for the Hawaii State Teachers Association’s VEBA of $2.5 billion for a total of $14.0 billion. (These numbers are for July 1, 2009.).”

This is an increase of 60 percent or $5.2 billion in just two years, largely because Hawaii has among the most generous health benefits in the nation, but we have to do what we can to get these growing costs under control.

Every year at the Hawaii State Legislature, I sponsored senate legislation to establish fiscal notes, alternative budgeting, reform for health care and changes for the public Employee Retirement System.

The Administration is content with lame efforts to ‘slow the growth of the deficit,’ and the lop-sided Democrat Legislature has thus far been unwilling to seriously confront this problem.

We are running out of time and we must act aggressively and decisively to change direction to save what is left of economic security for the taxpaying families we represent.

If you are diagnosed with terminal cancer, you can’t settle for slowing the growth; you must get rid of the cancer.

We have had several options to deal with this problem but have not had the political back bone to do it. It is clear that the trend is devastating.

The 2011 CAFR will be worse than 2010 and so on until we are unable to act.

Taxpayers must hold the 2012 legislature’s feet to the fire and be directly involved in next November’s election to remove those elected officials unwilling or unable to stop this fiscal cancer.