K. Mark Takai hopes this is the year. The state lawmaker has tried six times to ban the use of personal fireworks in Hawaii, and each time he has been thwarted.

But as the explosive celebrations grow longer and louder - not confined to a few hours on New Year's Eve - Takai sees more support for a ban, rising in tandem with safety concerns over the proliferation of professional-grade aerial shows above densely populated urban areas and thundering concussive devices that rattle neighborhoods.

“;I think people are just getting fed up,”; said Takai, a Democrat who represents Pearl City and Aiea.

He'll introduce a bill this month to ban fireworks except in public displays or for religious and ceremonial occasions.

Takai, 42, an independent health and life insurance broker, also focuses heavily on military and education issues, serving on the House education, higher education, and economic revitalization, business and military affairs committees.

Born and raised on Oahu, he attended public schools, including the University of Hawaiii at Manoa, where he earned bachelor's and master's degrees; is married to a public school alum (Sami, a stay-at-home mom) and has two children, ages 6 and 8, in public school.

“;I've worked very hard over the past decade to improve the educational experience of all children, but more specifically for the children of military families,”; said Takai, who is a major in the Hawaii Army National Guard and was deployed to Kuwait last year. “;We're doing a much better job than we had in the past, but to have Furlough Fridays come in is almost like having the rug pulled out from under our feet.”;

QUESTION: Regarding personal fireworks, why an outright ban?

ANSWER: I think for quite a few years now, we've been trying to approach curbing the illegal fireworks usage with the permitting process, we've talked about stricter enforcement, harsher penalties, all that sort of stuff and none of it's worked. The only way to address it effectively is an outright ban.

Q: Your bill would allow public fireworks shows and also includes exceptions for religious or ceremonial occasions. Can you describe possible exceptions?

A: Wedding ceremonies, for example. A lot of people when they get married in Hawaii, especially those who have Chinese upbringing, celebrate major ceremonies, such as weddings, with fireworks. It's not an all-night affair, or days on end.

Q: A lot of fireworks are already illegal (aerials, for example), which raises the question of enforcement.

A: I only know what the police and the fire department chiefs are saying, and what they're saying is that the best way is to pass an outright ban and enforcement will be much easier. ... Most if not all of the illegal fireworks are coming in because there are legal fireworks available.

Q: What about the cultural aspects? Some people argue that this a deeply held tradition that sets Hawaii apart ... and should be preserved.

A: I can understand that. I think most people enjoy popping a few fireworks on New Year's Eve and I do believe it's a great tradition for Hawaii. However, I think that in light of the amount of illegal fireworks and the duration of the fireworks being set off this year, from even before Halloween to a few days after New Year's, I think people are just getting fed up. At a certain point, tradition and fun get overridden by health and safety concerns.

Q: Given the obvious popularity of personal fireworks, and the other pressing issues facing lawmakers, namely the budget crisis and Furlough Fridays, what do you think the chances of your bill or similar proposals passing this year?

A: I think the difference this year is the frequency of these what we call concussion bombs going off, and the increased frustration on the part of the general public and the duration of the illegals going off, from as early as before Halloween. And despite the challenges we face in terms of the budget, and the furloughs ... we also have many smaller issues that we focus on. We don't focus only on big issues. At the end of the session we'll have a couple of hundred bills passed, and hopefully we will have addressed this.

Q: Shifting to Furlough Fridays, there seems to be a movement among some public school parents to demand a full audit of the state Department of Education. They simply don't buy that a department with a nearly $2 billion budget doesn't have enough money to properly serve 175,000 students. What do you think of that idea?

A: Because the DOE is a government entity, we already have audit systems in place. I'm pretty confident that our auditing procedure and our fiscal management procedures are adequate. I think what they might be talking about is whether we are using the limited funds as efficiently as possible and that is a legitimate concern.

I do believe that it's always important for policymakers, including me, to question whether we should be spending money on this program or that program. Things need to be prioritized, and sometimes things that have long-standing support through the decades need to be reviewed. What I think is appropriate is zero-based budgeting, where once in a while every state department goes through an exercise where they start with a budget of zero and rebuild the budget, adding back the things that are central to the core mission of that department.

Q: Could the DOE do that exercise now, or soon? Would that be something you would support?

A: Yes. I think what we've got to do is look at our state budget similar to the way we look at our personal finances. In a normal down cycle, we tighten our belts and cut our expenses here or there. But with a major shift, say the loss of a job, then we as individuals have to reassess our finances entirely. You have to look at everything. And I think we have to look at the state in the same way.

This is not a simple exercise. Every time there is talk of eliminating a program or service, the people most affected come out and lobby their legislators, or contact the Star-Bulletin.

Q: You've pressed to end Furlough Fridays, early on backing the call for a special session, encouraging the governor to tap the rainy day fund, and so on. What do you think the prospects are of ending them this school year?

A: We get into session on Jan. 20. The bottom line is that the governor and the Board of the Education and the teachers union have to come together and agree. Short of that agreement, we're not going to end Furlough Fridays. But I believe that we are getting closer and I'm hopeful.

Q: What did you think of the superintendent's decision to retire in the middle of all this?

A: I think her retirement caught everyone off guard. But having a few days to reflect on her decision, I have not only accepted it, but I appreciate it. I think it would have been much harder for the state to handle the loss of a superintendent six months from now or a year from now.

Q: Lastly, let's talk about the University of Hawaii and the budget crisis there.

A: I've always said that the university can't be everything to everyone, and I do believe that the university needs to take a look at itself and prioritize where it's spending money. But that decision needs to be made by the entire university community - students, faculty, staff and administration - as well as the larger community, which includes legislators.

Just like with the Furlough Friday situation affecting the lower schools, we can't afford ... to affect thousands of students trying to get their college degrees.