Here are some signs that the state's reliance on creative accounting just might not work anymore.

For years Hawaii's governors and the legislators sounded like the innkeeper Thenardier from “;Les Miserables,”; who boasted that he was: “;Servant to the poor, Butler to the great, Comforter, philosopher, And lifelong mate!”;

In the musical, Thenardier actually admits, “;Won't I bleed 'em in the end.”;

Likewise, for years the Legislature borrowed from special accounts, nibbled away at funds set aside from raids and eyed the Hurricane Relief Fund.

Now the money just isn't there. The red ink will amount to nearly $2 billion unless something is done.

Help is coming from some unusual places.

While his idea to raise taxes to fund education was a nonstarter, Sen. Norman Sakamoto actual said last week that Hawaii's state taxes are regressive. That's true, they are unfair to the poor. Helping the working poor would go a long way toward helping Hawaii.

Next up was Sen. Donna Kim, the new head of the Ways and Means Committee.

When asked about declining revenue projections, she said the “;G”; word - gaming. While Kim didn't endorse legalization of gambling, she said some form of gaming should be looked at as a way to boost state revenue.

The state's anti-gaming lobby is legend. Hawaii and Utah are the only states that have no state-sanctioned gaming. And yes, it is true that gambling has not been the same sort of treasury-builder that it once was.

But gaming generates $23 billion for the 48 other states. The growth rate has started to slow. The independent Rockefeller Institute calls gaming “;a blue chip stock - reliably generating large amounts of cash, but no longer promising dramatic growth in revenue.”;

Last week's Council on Revenues meeting ended with the council saying that state revenues would decrease 3 percent - so how blue is Hawaii's stock?

Finally, here's some good news: a veteran legislative worker who is saving money. Patricia Mau-Shimizu, the House Clerk, was told to cut the House budget.

She renegotiated contracts with vendors, cut back on new capital expenses, told House workers to take vacation time if they wanted Christmas and New Year's Eve off. She decided the state House didn't need so many workers and just generally sucked it up.

The end result was a 10 percent reduction in the House budget. Total savings: $1.2 million.

So it can be done and without the Enron accounting schemes.