Block offered
on gas price cap

Key Democrats are proposing
that Lingle be required to put
the law into effect, or not

For years, state senators vowed to put a cap on rising gasoline prices. Gov. Linda Lingle has opposed the law, saying it won't work and will make things worse.

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Now, on the eve of implementation of the gas cap law, key senators are talking about letting their opponent decide whether the law should go into effect.

The reason? Politics, says Republican Sen. Fred Hemmings.

"Why should the governor clean up the mess they made?" Hemmings said, adding that he thinks the Democrats should say the law is a mistake.

Lingle says if the amendment offered by Sen. Donna Kim passes, she might use it to kill the gas cap.

At a Senate Ways and Means Committee meeting yesterday, Senate Vice President Kim called for amending House Bill 863 to let the governor make the call on implementing the controversial law.

Kim (D, Kalihi Valley-Halawa) is asking that the law be changed so Lingle would have to announce her intention to implement it, or the price regulation would not start.

The law as written allows Lingle to stop the regulation from going into effect if she feels it would hurt the state's economy. The proposal would give her the burden for starting the law.

"This would say she needs to publish in a newspaper her intention to implement it ... saying that it would be in the best interest of the state," Kim said.

Lingle told a reporter, "If this is simply 'You don't have to do it if you don't want to,' obviously I wouldn't implement it."

The price cap law, passed in 2002 and revised last year, is scheduled to go into effect Sept. 1.

Lingle has opposed the gas cap law, saying it will lead to higher prices as gas stations close because they cannot make a profit selling government-regulated gasoline.

Yesterday she said that while she understands lawmakers' concerns about high gasoline prices, she still opposes the price cap.

The governor, who met with Senate Democratic leaders this week, said: "This gas cap has been an expression of wanting to do something, but it may make things worse."

Sen. Shan Tsutsui (D, Wailuku-Kahului) agrees with Kim's idea, calling it a safety valve.

"It gives her (Lingle) some flexibility as to whether or not we should implement it.

"If there are any unforeseen emergencies, the governor has the ability to either implement it or cease the gas cap," Tsutsui said.

Sen. Ron Menor, who sponsored the gas cap bill, opposed Kim's amendment, calling it "a major blow against consumers."

"I just don't think that doing nothing offers any meaningful alternative to consumers," Menor said.

Tsutsui and Kim said they were not changing their position that Hawaii's gasoline prices, which have reached more than $3 a gallon in some small neighbor island locations such as Lanai, should be controlled.