By B.J. Reyes

After apologizing to public employees for introducing proposals that would cut some of their retirement and health benefits to help balance the state budget, House Speaker Calvin Say said he was putting forth the idea simply as a means to foment discussion on every possible option for making up what is projected to be a $75 million budget shortfall this fiscal year.

The Labor Committee ultimately tabled two of the proposals in the package of bills and scrapped a third altogether, but not before dozens of public employees packed the hearing room to call out Say and other lawmakers for trying to balance the budget on the backs of public workers.

Many suggested that lawmakers find more creative ways to balance the budget, or even cut their own benefits.

One measure along those lines that is advancing is House Bill 1536, which  freezes the salaries of the governor, lieutenant governor, justices and judges of all state courts, administrative director of the state, departmental directors and deputy directors, and members of the Legislature.

The move is expected to save about $4 million over the fiscal biennium.

Hawaii’s legislators got a 36 percent pay raise — to $48,708 from $35,900 — on Jan. 1. It was their first raise since 2005, and they had not seen an increase in 12 years before that, Say previously told the Associated Press.

H.B. 1536 passed out of the Labor Committee today with an amendment that clarifies how long the pay freeze would last.

“As of Jan. 1, 2012, all of the salaries that are affected by the Salary Commission will revert to the point that they would have been had this bill not passed,” said Labor Chairman Karl Rhoads (D, Chinatown-Downtown). “In other words, there will be a two-year freeze and then the Salary Commission’s reccommendation will go back into effect

The measure still has to clear the Finance Committee and then the full House before going to the Senate for consideration, but lawmakers from the governor on down have expressed some willingness to forego their raises during these tough economic times to share the pain and lead by example.

By Richard Borreca

According to the Campaign Spending Commission, more than 50 candidates for office have failed to file their required campaign spending reports.  Those who failed to file, according to the listing on the spending commission web page include Maui Mayor Charmaine Tavares and state Reps. Mele Carroll and Karen Awana.

The commission notes that the “penalty for not filing a report by the due date is $50 per day for the first seven days, beginning with the day after the due date of the report, and $200 per day thereafter, not to exceed twenty-five per cent of the total amount of contributions or expenditures, whichever is greater, for the period covered by the report; provided that the minimum penalty for a report filed more than four days after the due date shall be $200.”

Here is the list:

Michelle Anderson
James “Kimo” Apana
Karen Awana
Bryan Baptiste
Joseph Barrozo
Robert Bartolo
Paul Bryant
Mele Carroll
Cameron Datanagan
Gail Dukes-Requilman
Roger Evans
Frederick Fogel
Galen Fox Fox
William Georgi
Blitz Harry
John Hoff
Helene Honda
Henry Kahula, Jr.
Samuel Kalalau, III
Mark Kalilikane
Harry Kaneakua
Frankie Kawelo
Jo Kim
Janice Lehner
Gene Leslie
Rhoda Libre
Melissa Lyman
Chayne Marten
Paul Mattes
Nancy McMahon
Michael Moore
Bart Mulvihill
Noel Muraki
Rose Niimoto
Steven Offenbaker
Marie Okutsu
Inam Rahman
Janice Shields
Nancy Stone
Stephanie Tabbada
Deirdre Moana
Charmaine Tavares
Raynard Torres
Norman Vares
Dante Verdadero
Nelson Waikiki
Patrick Walsh
Dawn Wasson
Shane Yaw

By Richard Borreca

Gov. Linda Lingle and former Miss Hawaii USA Juliet Lighter will be speaking at  Rep. Kymberly Marcos Pine’s $35 a ticket fundraiser at Pearl Ultra Lounge.The fundraiser, called “Political chicks for Pine” will be held from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. on Feb. 17.

Taking a page from  Gov. Sarah Palin’s vice presidential playbook, Pine’s supporters will be serving “pit bull punch and grinds from the local barracuda buffet.”

By Richard Borreca

The state Senate is teaming up with  the public access television operation, Olelo, to collect selected hearings and an make them available on the Internet.

You can find videos from this year’s Senate hearings at  http://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/site1/senate/senate.asp.

The hearings will also be available for on-demand viewing on the Internet for up to six months from the hearing date, according to the Senate Democrats.

The House is also mulling over a similar project.

Because the hearings that are broadcast are closed captioned, viewers can do a text search for key words that show up in the hearing.

Hawaii is late coming to the Internet video party as the National Conference of State Legislatures reports that live proceedings were available on the Internet from 46 states plus Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.     About half the states also archive floor or committee proceedings (for varying periods of time).