September 2010
Hawaii Government Employees' Retirement System
No Accountability and Improper Incentives
Imagine this scenario: You live next-door to a man with a nice job promising nice retirement benefits. Yet when he decides to retire, you are the one who will pay the bill. This is the situation for the retirement benefits of almost 14 percent of workers in Hawaii. While it seems logical for taxpayers to cover the benefits of public employees, this arrangement has given the state government a moral hazard to invest retirement funds in unwise and risky investments. There is little incentive for the managers of the Hawaii Employees Retirement System to insure solvency. Decisions are made by individuals with no interest in the financial success of the fund and the taxpayers who cover the losses have no say in the way funds are invested. (more)
September 2010
Watch Ken Conklin's Akaka Bill Lecture
A series of three 60-minute lecture/discussions were scheduled for the Church of the Crossroads in Honolulu on three successive Sundays in September 2010. The presentations were publicly announced ahead of time. I, Ken Conklin, was the speaker for September 12. My topic was: "Unity and Equality vs. Racial Separatism -- Why the Akaka bill is historically, legally, and morally wrong; with bad consequences for all Hawaii's people including those with native ancestry" (more)
September 2010
HSTA v. Hawaii’s Children
Is Quality Education a Forgotten Goal?
A teachers’ union, such as the Hawaii State Teachers Association (HSTA), can be a helpful mechanism for employees to influence the terms of employment. Yet when this sort of union is given a monopoly over contract negotiation, both teachers and students suffer. In states with exclusive collective bargaining, as in Hawaii, a union is given the right to be the only body with whom the state can negotiate. This analysis considers the aspects of exclusive bargaining that hinder the efficiency and quality of Hawaii’s public education system. (more)
September 2010
Former Gov. Cayetano Warns Current Governor Lingle: Review Environmental Impact Statement Carefully Before Authorizing Most Expensive Rail System in the Nation
Former Democratic Gov. Benjamin Cayetano backed his political rival Republican Gov. Linda Lingle yesterday saying she shouldn’t rush to approve the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the proposed $5.5 billion Honolulu rail system without first reviewing the document carefully. That may seem like common sense, but Hawaii’s most powerful Senior Senator, Daniel K. Inouye, is “begging” Lingle to sign the EIS immediately before it ever reaches her desk. (more)
Blogs
The Mystery of Hawaiian History
Correcting historical revisionism and misconceptions promoted by the Akaka Bill.
Hawaii Spendometer
How Fast Does The State Government Spend Your Money?
$9,122,166,121.47
