Isle executive, judicial
branches targeted
for pay raises

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By Pat Omandam
pomandam@starbulletin.com

Less than a month after a salary commission granted pay raises to legislators in future sessions, state lawmakers are near passage of two bills to grant similar salary reviews -- with binding recommendations -- for the executive and judiciary branches of government.

Legislature Directory Legislature Bills & Hawaii Revised Statutes

The state House is expected today to approve Senate Bill 1332 SD2, HD2, which creates a state panel to review the salary of the governor, lieutenant governor and other executive officials.

And Senate Bill 1333, SD1, HD2, would conduct a similar study for the salaries of Supreme Court justices, judges appointed to the intermediate Court of Appeals, Circuit Court and District Court, as well as for appointed administrative officers within the state Judiciary.

The Office of Hawaiian Affairs noted it also will be time this fall for a governor-appointed OHA Salary Commission to review the pay of trustees, said Haunani Apoliona, board chairwoman.

The last OHA salary commission, which convenes every four years, denied pay raises to trustees in 1999. "Well, in view of other public policy makers, I think trustees of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs work all-year-round and are probably the lowest compensated at this time," Apoliona said of their $32,000-a-year pay.

"And I think in the context of parity ... I think due consideration is necessary," she said yesterday.

Gov. Linda Lingle said in December that the salary cap on top state positions has hindered recruitment, while positions exempt from it, like the University of Hawaii president and the Hawaii Tourism Authority, are paid many times that of Cabinet members. The UH president makes $442,000 a year, and the HTA head $240,000, while department heads earn $85,302 a year each. The governor's pay is $94,780.

The salary of executive officials has remained the same since 1990 and are "grossly outdated" when compared to other states and the private sector, said Rep. Marcus Oshiro (D, Wahiawa), House Labor Committee chairman, in his committee report of SB 1332.

Oshiro noted the inequity has caused difficulties in attracting highly qualified candidates and that many subordinates of executive branch officials who are in public worker unions are paid more than their bosses.

The last time Judiciary officials received pay hikes was in 1999, when then-Gov. Ben Cayetano approved a two-year, 13 percent pay increase. It was the first raise for state judges since 1990, and it followed resignations by judges who cited low pay as a reason for leaving the bench, including then-circuit judge and now Lt. Gov. James "Duke" Aiona. The chief justice makes $116,779, and circuit judges earn $106,922.

Any pay raises recommended would take effect on July 1, 2004.

Last month, the 2002 Legislative Salary Commission raised legislators' pay to $34,200 in 2005, followed by annual incremental increases of no more than 2.5 percent until 2012, from the current $32,000 a year.