LIHU‘E — The Kaua‘i County Council will lend its voice to the chorus of Hawai‘i counties pleading to Gov. Linda Lingle and state lawmakers to keep their hands off the counties’ portion of the hotel tax. “Just as much as
LIHU‘E — The Kaua‘i County Council will lend its voice to the chorus of Hawai‘i counties pleading to Gov. Linda Lingle and state lawmakers to keep their hands off the counties’ portion of the hotel tax.
“Just as much as we rely on property taxes coming in, we rely on our fair share of the TAT tax, considering that we are the ones hosting the tourists. They’re using county roads and county parks,” said first-term Councilman Derek Kawakami, also president of the Hawai‘i State Association of Counties.
“We’re coming in trying to get a unified voice from all the counties,” he said Tuesday. “It composes a big part of our budget. We account for it while we’re budgeting for the upcoming fiscal year. … To have it not show up all of a sudden puts us in a predicament.”
The resolution urging Lingle and the Legislature to maintain the county shares was one of three HSAC legislative proposals approved by the Kaua‘i County Council on Feb. 3, two weeks after the HSAC Executive Committee approved the proposals.
Kawakami said the City and County of Honolulu is “ready to go” with the package and HSAC is now waiting on the Big Island and Maui county councils to sign off.
Aside from the Transient Accommodations Tax, HSAC’s other two recommendations pertain to county representation on the Hawai‘i State Employer-Union Health Benefits Trust Fund Board of Trustees and the State of Hawai‘i Employees Retirement Board of Trustees.
The Kaua‘i council granted approval to consolidate its proposals for EUTF bills with the Hawai‘i Council of Mayors legislative package, and also threw its support behind the HCOM package for ERS legislation.
Nearly $129 million of the $552 million contributed to the EUTF for health benefit plans in the 2008 fiscal year came from the counties, according to an HSAC resolution last year. Of the remaining contributions, $307 million came from the state and $116 million from employees.
In 2008, there were 74,300 state workers and 18,550 county workers, HSAC says, referring to the State of Hawai‘i Data Book provided by the state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism.
The 10-member board currently has five employer trustees, all of whom are state administration representatives.
“Counties contribute significantly to the fund” and should have representation, Kawakami said.
HSAC originally proposed adding a county representative to the mix, but recently endorsed an HCOM proposal to simply replace one state trustee with one county trustee.
The appointment process would be similar to the appointment of county commissioners — the HCOM would nominate an appointee and the HSAC would have the authority to confirm him or her, Kawakami said. The ERS proposal would employ the same mechanism, he said.
Kawakami said HSAC has to be as flexible as the Legislature, which operates at the “speed of light,” as issues may pop up throughout the session that demand a response from county governments.
“That is a challenge, and that’s what makes the job exciting,” he said of his role with HSAC. “It’s like herding wild cats. Four different counties, four very different structures and four different priorities, but I’m pleased; the group has moved forward.”
He said the counties biggest concern is the budget, which is “what’s on everybody’s mind right now.” If the TAT is yanked from the counties — Kaua‘i’s share has been estimated in the $10 million to $12 million range annually — Kawakami said they will have to do what the private sector has done: re-evaluate their core functions, build from the foundation and “go back to the drawing board.”
“In spite of everything, I find it extremely exciting that I’m in this situation because it forces you to perform,” he said.
Asked if he believes the counties need the TAT money more than the state does or that county programs are more important than state programs, Kawakami said “the counties have done their darndest to be fiscally responsible by maintaining a budget.”
“I’m not going to say the state doesn’t need it. They obviously need it, they’re furloughing schoolteachers. State employees are being furloughed,” Kawakami said, acknowledging the need to maintain working relationships with lawmakers. “But the counties, we have our fair share. … I don’t know if there is a right answer.”
Kawakami said the counties’ core functions are police, fire and civil defense, while the state government is responsible for schools and hospitals.
“We both have operations that are critical to maintaining public health and safety and education. … It’s hard to prioritize one duty over another,” he said. “At the end of the day, we serve one people, and that’s the people of Kaua‘i and the people of Hawai‘i.”
• Michael Levine, assistant news editor, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 252) or mlevine@kauaipubco.com.
