The case for exempting medical services from Hawaii's general excise tax
Because the GET is a gross receipts tax, it becomes a significant overhead expense for private practice physicians, making it extremely difficult to be profitable — especially for new doctors who are just starting out and still paying their student loans.
Hawaii’s state budget does not have big enough cushion to deal with a deep recession, if one should hit, so lawmakers should rein in spending and build up a financial reserve, rather than dig deeper into taxpayers’ pockets.
The Economic Freedom of North America 2018 report outlines Hawaii’s statistical paradox — Hawaii moved up a surprising eight notches this year in a national ranking measuring economic freedom in all 50 states, from 45 in 2017 to 37, but its overall economic freedom worsened.
How to resolve Hawaii's public pension debt crisis
The state Employee Retirement System has almost $13 billion in unfunded liabilities, which could jeopardize future public worker retirement benefits and impose a significant burden on Hawaii taxpayers.
Hawaii moved up a notch nationwide in 2017 in terms of economic freedom, but the Aloha State still is near the bottom, according to factors from 2015 analyzed in the Economic Freedom of North America report.