Working for a better economy, better governANCE and a better society
Why Judy Fujimoto left Hawaii
I lived in Hawaii for 53 years. I arrived in March 1966 on the SS Lurline, and left in September 2018. I was with a girlfriend. We came from California. I was 20 years old, and I was the queen of the Lurline for that voyage. We were prepared to stay for three months....
The Grassroot Top 5 articles of 2019
The Grassroot Institute of Hawaii covered a lot of policy ground during the past year. Our writers and researchers produced reports and commentaries on the negative effects of the federal Jones Act, what can be done to help resolve Hawaii’s public pension...
Self-driving cars another nail in rail’s coffin
Self-driving cars are just around the corner for America, but as we begin to embrace the future, Honolulu’s over-budget and behind-schedule rail project is firmly stuck in the past. Automated vehicles are expected to become the norm in the United States within the...
The ‘Rail Skim’ lawsuit: We lost the battle but won the war
A long time ago, in October 2015 to be more precise, the Tax Foundation of Hawaii sued the state. Why? Because at the time, the state was skimming 10 cents off every dollar that was being collected for rail, and it plopped the money into the state’s general fund,...
Akina rides again with ‘Perry & the Posse’
Hawaii radio personality Michael W. Perry once again hosted Keli‘i Akina, president of the Grassroot Institute of Hawaii, on his popular KSSK show “Perry & The Posse.” Introducing Akina on his morning show this past Thursday, May 2, as “one of the people you...