Gov says rail tax
should be counties’ call
The decision whether taxes should be raised for rail transit or other transportation projects should lie with the counties and not the state, Gov. Linda Lingle said yesterday.
"(The counties) shouldn't be told what the tax is for. It should be their decision to make," Lingle said.
The governor's continued support for county home rule came in response to a proposal by Senate Transportation Chairman Cal Kawamoto (D, Waipahu) to hike the state general excise tax by one-half of a percent, to 4.5 percent, to raise $1.3 billion dedicated to cover part of the $2.6 billion rail project proposed by the governor in October.
Kawamoto said his proposal would enable the state to seek federal funding more quickly and not miss federal deadlines that could come as early as February.
But Kawamoto also said his proposal would take the pressure off the City Council on how the local government would pay for rail.
In 1992 more than $600 million in federal funding was lost after the City Council voted down a tax increase to pay for a proposed rail project.
U.S. Rep. Neil Abercrombie says that time is running short on the state getting in the door for federal funding.
In a letter to state Transportation Director Rodney Haraga this week, Abercrombie complained that since "the photo-ops in October" and "aside from a random drawing," he has not seen any movement ahead on rail by the Lingle administration.
"A good start might be actually having a meeting this month where a local funding tax proposal is on the table for discussion," Abercrombie said.
Senate President Robert Bunda said he does not think the Lingle administration and the Legislature agree, and he believes that Kawamoto's proposal could be the vehicle to get them there.
"If we're not going to be on the same page ... we're not going to have anything," said Bunda, who fights traffic each day from Wahiawa.
State Sen. Russell Kokubun (D, Hilo-Naalehu), a former county councilman, said that if the excise tax proposal has no benefits for the neighbor islands, he likely will not support it. "For the neighbor islands, I don't think transit is the most critical element."
Lingle said she will support the counties' legislative package, which includes giving them more taxing authority. "I certainly don't believe that the neighbor islands should be paying for a transit system here in Honolulu."
But City Councilman Gary Okino, the Council's leading rail proponent, said action should be taken soon because "I'm sure (the congressional delegation) want some kind of commitment before they go stick their neck out again, and the only commitment is money."
Sen. Sam Slom (R, Diamond Head to Hawaii Kai), who opposes both the tax increase and the proposed rail transit, said he does not see the proposal passing the Legislature because "it's an election year, and I think people are going to have to think about that."