Newswatch
State's fiscal crisis worsens as revenue project drops
Declaring the state in a fiscal emergency, a key Senate committee has passed a measure that would cut salaries, reduce vacation benefits, authorize furloughs and eliminate three holidays for the state's more than 42,000 workers.The bill approved Friday night by the Ways and Means Committee is meant to keep various options alive as senators look for ways to balance the state budget with dwindling revenue and without having to raise the 4 percent general excise tax.
The committee also passed bills that would eliminate half the state's 2,000-plus vacant positions and provide early-retirement incentives to certain workers so many of those jobs can be abolished.
Midnight Friday night was the deadline for having bills in their final form in preparation for floor votes next week.
The scramble to meet the deadline came on a day when the state got yet more bad news about its fiscal outlook.
Over the next nearly year and a half, the Council on Revenue predicted, the state will collect $24 million less than the panel forecasted in December, meaning even more cuts ahead for the budget.
Legislators are required to pass a balanced budget based on the council's forecast.
The $24 million roughly equals the salaries and benefits for about 600 state workers.
Symphony 'thrown out of its home'
A major theatrical production company's plans to bring Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical "Miss Saigon" to the Blaisdell Concert Hall next year could spell the end of the Honolulu Symphony, symphony officials say.The city and the theatrical producers are "close to an agreement" that would tie up the concert hall for 8 to 12 weeks, starting in late September 1999, said Alvin Au, director of the city's Auditoriums Department.
That would conflict with the symphony's opening of its 1999-2000 classical season, when it makes much of its revenue, said symphony treasurer Pat McFadden. It is particularly ironic in that in 1999 the symphony will celebrate its 100th anniversary.
"The Honolulu Symphony is being thrown out of the hall that is its home," an angry Michael Tiknis, the symphony's executive director, said Friday. "This deeply imperils the symphony's existence because we have no other adequate place to perform."
Finance Factors will lay off 10% of workers
Four Finance Factors branch offices will close, and 34 positions - about 10 percent of the company's total work force - will be eliminated within the next nine months, the company said.Branch offices affected are in Waianae, Lahaina and Eleele on Kauai, and Kailua-Kona on the Big Island.
Former U.S. Sen. Hiram Fong, chairman and chief executive officer of Finance Enterprises Ltd., announced the cuts Friday.
Russell Lau, president of Finance Enterprises Ltd. and chief executive officer of the Financial Services Group, said the changes are needed to make "the Finance Factors family of companies a top performer."
"Like many other businesses in Hawaii, the continued poor economy has forced us to find innovative ways to do more with less," Lau said. "However, these changes will not impact our customers or our ability to provide them the highest quality service."
The announcement also said Finance Enterprises has restructured its management team.
Kauai candidate's apology for ethnic remarks rejected
LIHUE -- Members of Kauai's Filipino and Jewish communities are not accepting an apology made by mayoral candidate Mary Thronas for ethnic remarks she made last week.About 50 people held protest signs outside a campaign party for Thronas Friday night.
Protesters said the only sincere apology would be for Thronas to bow out of the race.
"We think it's absolutely inappropriate for this person to run for mayor," said Sandy Meyers. "There was nothing in her apology in which she acknowledged that she made racist comments."
Oscar Portugal said Filipinos have worked hard to overcome discrimination and that what Thronas said "breeds hatred and anger in our community. This is not good for us, for our kids."
In an interview with a reporter for the Garden Island newspaper last week, Thronas claimed Mayor Maryanne Kusaka was trying to court Filipinos for the upcoming election by recently hiring several part-time Filipinos, and was quoted saying the county building "looks like a Manila taxicab."
In referring to how much her campaign would cost, Thronas was quoted as saying "I'm going to Jew it down to $80,000."
Thronas initially defended her statements, calling them "culturally correct" and "complimentary."
She said she was complimenting Kusaka on her political strategy, and Jewish people for their ability to "handle finances."