Tax increase will hurt the poor the most

Can someone explain to me the logic of raising the general excise tax from 4 percent to 5 percent, a 25 percent increase on poor people who do not have a car and have to pay a 5 percent tax on food, medicine and other essentials to live here in Hawaii? And don't talk to me about tax credits. These people do not pay income taxes. Many of them survive in the underground economy. A credit on zero tax is zero.

The general excise tax affects people with low income the most as they cannot avoid paying for food, medicine and other essential items to survive. The poor do not save. All of their income goes out and is subject to the dreaded general excise tax. The wealthy do not spend all of their income. Income that is saved is not subject to the general excise tax.

Legislators, when you vote for a general excise tax increase, keep in mind the poorest of your constituents and how this tax increase will affect them.

Tax increase will save money in long run

I vote 1.5 billion times to have the general excise tax increase of 1 percent. Compare the $300 million tax increase (a lot of it funded by visitor spending) vs. the $1.5 billion that every motorist, bus rider, truck, taxi and bus driver and their companies would save in efficiency. We will get five times our money back by reducing our 13-hour workdays. If there is a death on the highway, add another four to five hours. Rail will reduce the 19 million gallons of gas wasted every year in congestion. Remember, it's 25 minutes from Kapolei to town. One less car on the road and your traffic speeds up.

If it saves someone time, they will ride the rail. If you build it, they will ride. I guarantee it, with 1.5 billion big reasons.

It isn't easy being a substitute teacher

I am writing in support of substitute teachers. Being one myself and having a teaching degree, but due to circumstances beyond my control am not able to full-time teach, I have come to appreciate all they do. Some teach full time, like myself, for support. We have to pay our own medical. We don't know when our next job will be. Many of us work more than 20 hours per week, which the company is required by law to offer medical.

If there weren't subs, how would the teachers take off for workshops, sick days or personal leave? Summer vacation is a nightmare for a sub with no job, compensation or unemployment coming in for three months.

Insurance agents should pay their share

The state is seriously considering increasing the general excise tax to 5 percent for those already paying 4 percent. This would affect mostly retail businesses and services. The insurance industry, on the other hand, pays a GET rate of only .0015 on commissions (far less than 1 percent). Doesn't this seem unfair? Wouldn't raising the insurance industry's GET level to par with everyone else be a way to increase tax revenues?

All the government officials I asked don't even want to talk about this. Does the insurance industry have special treatment? Is this some kind of political taboo?

Kanno attacked while trying to find justice

It is unfortunate for Sen. Brian Kanno to face so much dilemma at this time for bringing justice for a citizen, Leon Rouse, who has no other means of defending himself ("GOP senators call for Kanno to step down," Star-Bulletin, April 13). Isn't it the elected officials' job to defend those who have no other alternative for representation? A common man's voice is often trumped against a large company.

On a related note, Rep. Rida Cabanilla is being attacked in the backwash for her hiring of Rouse. The fact is, Cabanilla did not know of the incident in the Philippines (where Rouse spent eight years in prison). She's been trying to help alleviate many of the social problems in her district and it was shocking for her to hear bad news regarding her former office manager.

With the legislative session coming to an end in a few weeks, let's focus on finishing what matters most -- the passage of bills that will benefit those living in Hawaii, not headlines about a person's past.

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