[ OUR OPINION ]

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Polarized politics
hurts war on drugs

THE ISSUE The Lingle administration has released $7.3 million for drug treatment, law enforcement and prevention programs after a delay of more than six months.

LONG delays by the Lingle administration in the release of millions of dollars for programs to fight drug abuse is likely to assure a partisan battle in the next legislative session over the governor's anti-drug abuse agenda. Democrats alleged that Lingle withheld the money for political purposes, while drug-treatment providers expressed relief, dodging political questions. Bipartisan cooperation is needed to battle this major problem.

The administration was fairly swift in releasing $3.17 million to expand drug courts on Oahu and bring them to neighbor islands. Lt. Gov. Duke Aiona is a former drug court judge who has extolled their effectiveness.

However, the administration took more than six months to release $7.3 million for substance-abuse treatment and prevention programs and for expansion of the community Weed & Seed programs. Still remaining to be released are $4 million appropriated by the Legislature for adolescent drug treatment programs.

Aiona says the money released this week had been withheld because of the administration's "due diligence" in examining whether the money would be "used efficiently and effectively." He is now "confident the money will be utilized as effectively as possible" in the battle against illicit drugs. The administration is finishing work on anti-drug measures it will propose for the next Legislature, he says.

Administrators of recipient agencies expressed gratitude about release of the money, perhaps fearful of questioning Aiona's explanation for the delay. Further "diligence" could have caused layoffs of substance-abuse counselors at some schools.

The Lingle administration has favored tougher law enforcement and prevention, while the Democrats in control of the Legislature place a greater emphasis than Lingle on treatment of drug addicts. Rep. Blake Oshiro, vice chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, notes "a philosophical difference" between the Legislature and the administration.

The package approved by this year's Legislature emanated from a House and Senate task force that focused on the growing problem of crystal methamphetamine. Aiona conducted a drug seminar a year ago that he says will result in a legislative "action plan" for the coming session.

Unfortunately, the delays in funding programs approved by the last session could further polarize the Legislature and administration in dealing with what has been called an "ice" epidemic. Both sides should look for common ground to combat this devastating disease.

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Hawaii must compete
amid librarian shortage

THE ISSUE Six-day-a-week hours are being restored at public libraries in Kailua, Manoa and Waimea but not at most other libraries.

FORCED to trim public hours last year because of budget cuts, the state library system now lacks the staff to restore hours throughout the system. The difficulty in finding people to hire is not likely to improve, as Hawaii's system must compete for librarians with mainland libraries experiencing an increasing shortage of human search engines. Accelerated recruitment efforts are needed to provide adequate library hours.

In March 2003, the library system was forced to reduce public access to no more than 40 hours over five days because of reductions in the budget. The system returned to six-day service this week at its Kailua, Manoa and Waimea libraries. The new Kapolei branch is open for 39 hours six days a week, but most other libraries, including the downtown depository, remain closed two days a week.

America's libraries are projected to lose 58 percent of their professional librarians to retirement by 2019. President Bush's 2003 budget included $10 million and this year's budget provides $20 million for recruitment and training the next generation of librarians, but the problem remains.

Librarians are required to have master's degrees, and deans and directors of graduate programs estimate that more than half, and in some programs as many as 80 percent, of their students are recruited from full-time library employees. That may be doable in many states, but Hawaii's shortage is staff-wide. The 135 job vacancies extend throughout the system's 553 full-time positions.

Hawaii has the nation's lowest unemployment rate at 2.9 percent, a level considered to be full employment, making all vacancies hard to fill. Many of those at Hawaii's libraries have been filled by transfers from other branches.

"We fill one and another one crops up," Keith Fujio, administrative services director for the state's libraries, told the Star-Bulletin's Susan Essoyan. "We are continuing efforts to fill the vacancies as fast as possible. It's not like we're not trying."

While part of the difficulty in recruiting librarians has been attributed to their schoolmarmish image, low wages are a major cause of the shortage. Starting salaries at Hawaii librarians' two levels are $39,464 and $42,180, significantly more than the national average but not much for a person with a master's degree.