Mayor Mufi Hannemann called a proposal to balance the state's budget by dipping into tax revenue for the city's rail system a “;harebrained idea”; yesterday.

The proposal, made by Senate President Colleen Hanabusa, has no support, he said.

In her speech on the opening day of the Legislature Wednesday, Hanabusa urged lawmakers to consider taking the city's transit tax and using it to reduce the state's projected deficit or give the money back to taxpayers.

In 2005 the Legislature and City Council passed legislation to increase the general excise tax by half a percentage point on Oahu and use the money for the proposed $5 billion mass transit system.

“;Is it really fair for the people of Oahu, who have been paying this tax into a special fund, now to have to balance the budget on behalf of the whole state of Hawaii?”; Hannemann asked.

The mayor predicted Gov. Linda Lingle will also oppose the proposal to raid the transit tax fund because rail is a “;ready to go”; project that can bring in federal money and boost the state's economy.

“;It's going to go,”; he said. “;It'll create jobs right now and that's what everybody wants.”;

He said legislators would have to change the law to tap the transit tax fund for another purpose.

“;It's a harebrained idea, and it ain't going to go very far,”; he said. “;It ain't going nowhere.”;