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IN AND AROUND THE LEGISLATURE
Business owners debate
wage-hike billWaikiki improvement district
By Pat Omandam
Briefly ...
Star-BulletinThe state's minimum wage would be set at 50 cents an hour higher than the federal minimum wage under a bill moving in the state Senate.
The measure was among a handful of minimum wage and living wage bills heard by House and Senate committees, but it was the only one that lawmakers voted on yesterday.
Senate Bill 2893, a Cayetano administration bill, would set the state's $5.25 minimum wage 50 cents higher than the federal wage as of July 1, 2001. Currently, the federal wage is $5.15, but the U.S. Senate has recently proposed a $1 an hour increase in that amount.
Gov. Ben Cayetano wants to raise the minimum wage to help those who will be forced off the state's welfare program next year earn a more livable income.
Much of the testimony heard yesterday focused on another bill that would have raised the state minimum wage to $7.50 an hour. Unions, social agencies and low-income workers supported the measure, while small businesses, the restaurant and hotel industries and retailers said it would be an economic burden that many would not be able to absorb or would have to pass on to consumers.
Victor Lim, who owns several McDonald's restaurants in Honolulu and employs 160 people, said raising the state's minimum wage 50 cents over the federal wage makes sense for the majority of the country -- but not for Hawaii.
Lim said in written testimony that two-thirds of minimum wage workers are between the ages of 16 and 24, live at home and work part-time. Any mandatory wage increases will go to these young people and not to those at the poverty level. He said he would have to postpone hiring, reduce his work force and cut the number of hours for those still working to handle any wage increase.
"Small-business owners like me, whether in restaurant or general retail, will have an impossible task of trying to survive such a proposal because our consumers cannot and will not be able to afford it," Lim said.
But Tim Lyons, executive vice president of the Hawaii Business League, said given today's economy there is no extra money for most companies to pay more wages and any mandatory increases will mean layoffs so other employees can be paid at a higher rate.
"This is not a cruelty act on the part of the employer but it is life in the real world," Lyons said.
State labor officials said there were 534,140 people working in Hawaii in 1998, but they don't have any recent data showing how many are now working at the minimum wage. A 1989 survey showed about 8.9 percent of Hawaii's work force earned minimum wage.
Labor officials estimate only 3.5 percent of the work force now earns $5.25 an hour.
State Sen. Sam Slom (R, Kalama Valley) was the only senator to vote against Senate Bill 2893. Instead, Slom believes the state needs to revitalize the economy by cutting taxes and reducing the size of government
The bill now goes to the Senate Ways and Means Committee for consideration.
Waikiki improvement
By Gordon Y.K. Pang
district proposed
Star-BulletinLook at Times Square in New York City or Los Angeles' Fashion District. The method that revitalized those tourist areas could be used to spruce up Waikiki.
Property owners and businesses would dole out some $1.7 million for projects and services each year under a proposed Waikiki Business Improvement District.
If approved by the City Council, the property owners within the district's boundaries would pay assessments for safety patrols, sidewalk cleaning, landscaping and other "supplemental services and improvements."
A Waikiki improvement district would be a first in Hawaii.
The assessments would be imposed on commercial properties in the district only. The amount would be based on a percentage of each property's assessed values. Owners of property outside of a proposed "primary area" would pay less.
A nonprofit board made up of owners, lessees and tenants of commercial space in the district would be tasked with coming up with a budget for the services and improvements to be made. The board could also borrow money through bonds but would need approval from the City Council.
A bill introduced in the Council sets up the mechanism to create business improvement districts.
That means supporters of creating such a district in Waikiki would then need to petition the Council for one and that those in other districts could do the same.
A business district designation could be stopped if those owning 51 percent of the property in a district's boundaries oppose it.
But Rick Egged, president of the Waikiki Improvement Association, said that is not likely to happen.
The roughly 250 members of the association, which spearheaded the campaign for a business improvement district, own collectively a majority of commercial property in Waikiki, Egged said. And the association's board voted unanimously to support creation of the district, he said.
He estimated there are roughly 1,600 commercial properties within the proposed district.
While the assessment rates have yet to be determined, Egged said, "we think that the price will be viewed to be affordable given the services to be provided."
Most landowners and merchants, he said, understand the improvements are necessary because "it's really important we provide an environment that is attractive to our visitors."
Briefly ...
CYBER TERROR:
The state Legislature is going where it has never gone before by proposing legislation to regulate certain information people put up on Internet Web sites.The House Public Safety Committee has passed a bill establishing the offenses of "cyber terrorism of a law enforcement officer" and "cyber terrorism."
As proposed, House Bill 2132, House Draft 1, would make it a Class B felony to post on a Web site without consent personal information about a law enforcement officer -- such as a Social Security number, financial account numbers, birth date or driver's license information -- as a way to threaten, annoy or alarm the officer or anyone else.
It would be a Class C cyber-terrorism felony if a person obtains the personal information of another individual, including e-mail, and uses it on the Internet to threaten, harass, annoy or alarm another person.
Also, Internet service providers would be guilty of both offenses if they did not remove the personal information from the Web site after repeated warnings.
House Public Safety Chairman Nestor Garcia (D, Waikele) said the committee passed the measure hoping lawmakers will take a much broader look at Internet privacy issues.
The measure goes to the House Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs Committee for consideration.
REAL REFORM:
A coalition of government-reform groups -- including the League of Women Voters, Common Cause and the Clean Elections Project -- says this year's Legislature can make important changes to state government.The coalition wants to decrease special-interest money at the Legislature, keep government business away from campaign donors and political insiders, and increase government openness.
Larry Meacham, Common Cause executive director, said proposed bills would, among other things, prohibit awarding contracts to political contributors, forbid public worker unions from having partisan rallies during working hours and prohibit political activities at Washington Place because it is a state-owned building.
You can track bills, hearings and other Legislature action via: Get involved
Neighbor islanders, call toll-free and enter ext. 70478 after the number:
Big Island, 974-4000; Maui,
984-2400; Kauai, 274-3141;
Molokai and Lanai, 468-4644.
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