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Honolulu can’t afford to borrow more for rail, Grassroot Institute says
The following is testimony submitted by the Grassroot Institute of Hawaii for consideration by the Honolulu City Council at its July 8, 2020, hearing on Resolution 20-144. _________________ To: Honolulu City Council Ikaika Anderson, Chair Ann Kobayashi, Vice chair...
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...
#AuditTheRail finally on track!
The Honolulu rail is now famous, but for all the wrong reasons. The question is: “What we are going to do about it?” With the project under federal investigation, news outlets around the country are writing about it, using words like “debacle” and “boondoggle.”...