Working for a better economy, better governANCE and a better society
Honolulu City Council’s PLA proposal is pilau
What happens when a government tries to fix a system that isn’t broken? Usually, the taxpayers pay the price. That is what might happen if Honolulu’s mayor approves a measure that would restrict the use of nonunion labor on city contracts worth over $2 million....
‘Rebel’ Ed Case urges Jones Act reform
There haven’t been many prominent Hawaii politicians willing to openly criticize the federal maritime law known as the Jones Act. Fortunately, there are a few notable exceptions, and it was my pleasure to interview one of those “rebels” on this week’s episode of my...
‘CWAs’ a recipe for disaster
Around the country, states and municipalities are changing their procurement regulations to allow for more competitive bidding. That’s a best practice that saves money on government projects. Hawaii, however, appears to be moving in the opposite direction. This week,...
Testimony on ‘Community Workforce Agreements’ — Bill 37
This testimony was submitted by the Grassroot Institute of Hawaii to the Honolulu City Council Committee on Budget, July 24, 2019. RE: Bill 37 (2019) — RELATING TO COMMUNITY WORKFORCE AGREEMENTS. [1] Aloha, Chair [Joey] Manahan, Vice Chair [Brandon] Elefante and...
Public pension reform will benefit government workers
This is a letter to the editor that was published Monday, Dec. 3, in The Garden Island, which headlined it, “Pension problem needs solving.” Your recent guest column, “Don’t begrudge pensions for public employees,” (TGI, Nov. 27) misrepresented the...