1X
Hawaii's $350 million projected deficit frames the conversation, with Calvin Say and Lowell Kalapa each offering different explanations for its origins. Say, chairing the House Finance Committee, points to three of the state's four economic pillars in decline — agriculture, construction, and military spending — while Kalapa, president of the Tax Foundation of Hawaii, argues the legislature was "lulled into serenity" by earlier surpluses and allowed government to grow 33 to 40 percent over the prior eight years. Both guests press the Department of Education for financial accountability, describing what they call a diversion of instructional money into district administration. Kalapa warns against a proposed one-year excise tax increase intended to fund a Hawaiian Homelands settlement, arguing it would harm an already fragile economy. The discussion extends to the Employee Retirement System's $1.6 billion underfunding, an obscure provision reimbursing retirees' Medicare Part B premiums, and the limits of the roughly $21 million that could be reclaimed from special funds. Callers challenge both guests on why the deficit was not flagged before the election.
Transcript
Read or download the full transcript (.txt). Speaker labels were assigned automatically and may contain errors.