Editorials
Monday, January 19, 1998WHEN the Legislature convenes this week, its members will once again be faced with a grim economic picture and the need to cut back state spending. This year, however, they have been handed a detailed plan to deal with the problem in the form of the recommendations of the Economic Revitalization Task Force assembled by Governor Cayetano. The fact that the recommendations have been endorsed, at least nominally, by House Speaker Joe Souki and Senate President Norman Mizuguchi, who joined the governor in convening the task force, ensures that they will not be ignored. Legislature faces a full plate of proposals
The recommendations are so comprehensive that they could take up the entire session, if not several sessions. Indeed, it is impossible to believe that they can all be enacted this year. It's a safe bet they will take up a great deal of the legislators' time.
In barest outline, the proposals would restructure the tax system, make structural improvements in the regulatory process, give the University of Hawaii autonomy, reorganize the public school system, strengthen tourism, make government more efficient, and resolve native Hawaiian issues.
By far the greatest attention has been given to the tax proposals. Despite the endorsement by the governor and the legislative leaders, they remain highly controversial, particularly the proposed increase in the general excise tax from the current 4 percent to 5.35 percent. Mayor Jeremy Harris in Honolulu and Mayor Linda Lingle on Maui are opposed and so are the House Republicans. Enough Democratic legislators might defect to defeat the proposal, and that could doom the entire tax package. The counties are also unhappy about the proposed reduction in their share of the hotel room tax revenues.
We aren't convinced that the goal of the tax recommendations - shifting more of the financial burden to tourists in order to permit personal and corporate income tax reductions - would work. The hope is to stimulate the economy, but small-business people see the excise tax increase as a killer.
Also sure to draw opposition is the proposal to abolish the Land Use Commission, a favorite of anti-development activists. The commission has been used to needlessly drag out the approval process for land use changes, thereby increasing the cost of development. It should be eliminated or restricted to setting policy.
One of the most far-seeing recommendations is autonomy for the University of Hawaii, which could help greatly in improving that vital institution. Again, that will be resisted, as will the proposed takeover of the East-West Center by the university.
The last session of the Legislature was dominated by the fight over same-sex marriage and so-called reciprocal beneficiaries. The resulting legislation has to be re-examined to tighten the benefits provisions, but we hope that this issue doesn't take over the session again.
Perhaps the best thing the Legislature could do this year would be to revise the civil service law to permit the state and county governments to privatize public services. Privatization has the potential to cut the cost of government, but it has been stalled by a state Supreme Court decision invalidating the privatization of a Hawaii County land fill operation.
Another urgent need is to provide money to build a new prison - in Hawaii, not on the mainland - to cope with overcrowding. To go with that should be a "truth in sentencing" law requiring that criminals serve most of their prison sentences.
To deal with the huge controversy over the Bishop Estate, the Legislature should provide the additional funding requested by the attorney general for her investigation and establish a ceiling on compensation of the Bishop Estate trustees at a reasonable level and end the current scandalous overpayment.
ALTHOUGH there was skepticism, the reaction was generally positive in this country when Iran's newly elected president, Mohammad Khatami, called for "dialogue and understanding" between Iran and the United States. A new era in the stormy relations between Washington and Tehran seemed about to begin. The ayatollah speaks
But Khatami, despite his high office, does not call the shots in the Islamic Republic of Iran. The fellow who does is Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the supreme religious figure. And Khamenei has just publicly rejected Khatami's call for dialogue, saying talks with the United States "have no benefit for us and are harmful to us." Not one to mince words, he called the U.S. Iran's enemy.
The plain meaning of Khamenei's verbal blast is that it is premature to declare the hostility between Iran and the U.S. ended. Whatever his wishes may be to improve relations, Khatami's freedom of action is severely limited - perhaps more so now that Khamenei has repudiated his overtures.
However, it is also clear that Iran is in a period of transition from the rigid theocratic state established after the overthrow of the shah in 1979. Khatami symbolizes a movement to end Iran's isolation by reaching out to the United States and other countries. At some point, the moderates are likely to prevail, but there is a danger of ascribing to them more power than they currently have. The Reagan administration made that mistake and came to grief in the Iran-contra scandal.
For the present the appropriate stance for the Clinton administration is to maintain sanctions against Iran and keep its guard up, while making sure the Iranians understand that it is willing to listen to any proposals to ease tensions. With a moderate as president, at least there are now grounds to hope that someday reason will prevail in Tehran.
Rupert E. Phillips, CEO
John M. Flanagan, Editor & Publisher
David Shapiro, Managing Editor
Diane Yukihiro Chang, Senior Editor & Editorial Page Editor
Frank Bridgewater & Michael Rovner, Assistant Managing Editors
A.A. Smyser, Contributing Editor
