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Five are ‘guardians
of small business’

Five members of the state Legislature are the "guardians of small business," according to the Hawaii chapter of the National Federation of Independent Business.

Reps. Bob Herkes, David Stegmaier and Colleen Meyer, plus Sens. Sam Slom and Norman Sakamoto were honored by the association.

They are all members of the Legislature's small business caucus, which is designed to support legislation to help small business.

Hawaii's latest political party is the Constitution Party. It has undergone a name change since four years ago, when it was called the U.S. Taxpayers Party.

State elections officials put the Constitution Party on the ballot after local chairman Ron Neff filed a petition with the required signatures.

The party's candidate for president is Howard Phillips, who in 1996 in Hawaii garnered 358 votes.

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WINNERS

Barbara Richardson: She wins a promotion from part-time to full-time district court judge and picks up Senate confirmation. Bruce Coppa also is confirmed to the Land Use Commission.

Ray Kamikawa: The state tax director wins agreement from Aloha Airlines to pay estimated back state taxes. Kamikawa assessed Aloha and Hawaiian Airlines a combined total of more than $20 million in taxes.

Al Gore: The vice president takes 11 of the 14 available Hawaii Democratic delegates.

& LOSERS

Randy Iwase: The state senator's nomination to the Labor and Industrial Relations Board loses the support of Sen. Colleen Hanabusa, who says Iwase doesn't know enough about labor law.

Marshall Ige: The state senator gives in to citizens groups and the governor urging him not to vote on Earl Anzai's confirmation as attorney general because Ige has a conflict of interest.

Kenneth Mortimer: The University of Hawaii president loses in his bid to bolster the UH budget by raising tuition. He warns students, however, that he'll be back.

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Winners & Losers by Richard Borreca runs Mondays throughout the legislative session.

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