Bill Spares Hawaii Businesses From Replenishing UI Trust Fund - For Now - Honolulu Civil Beat
Bill Spares Hawaii Businesses From Replenishing UI Trust Fund For Now
The relief measure doesn’t solve how the state will pay back the more than $700 million it owes on mounting jobless claims. Reading time: 7 minutes.
Like most local businesses, The Pizza Press had to scramble, adjust and improvise to stay afloat in the COVID-19 pandemic. The Pearl City establishment drastically reduced the work hours for its 25 employees, relying on a “skeletal crew” to operate.
“We’re in survival mode to be able to pay our bills, pay our vendors and keep the lights on,” said co-owner Sarah Nguyen. “Every day we’re looking at our numbers. We’re looking at opportunities what’s working, what’s not working.”
The Maui News
A bill that aims to provide unemployment insurance relief to Hawaii employers is heading to Gov. David Ige’s desk after unanimously passing both chambers of the state Legislature.
If signed by Ige, House Bill 1278 would help to contain the economic fallout from COVID-19 by temporarily reducing the unemployment insurance contribution rates, the Legislature said Wednesday.
“This measure is critical in helping to protect employers from facing higher tax rates at a time when they can least afford it,” said Sen. Brian Taniguchi of Oahu’s District 11 and chairman of the Senate Committee on Labor, Culture and the Arts. “Without any legislative intervention, the unemployment tax rate schedule would be set to the highest rate at Schedule H and many businesses would continue to struggle while trying to survive this pandemic.”
Some business owners on Oahu believe loosened COVID-19 restrictions might not be enough to keep them afloat kitv.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from kitv.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
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The last time the state passed a law increasing the minimum wage was in 2014, when it was raised over four years from $7.25 an hour to $10.10.
The legislature considered proposals last year to increase it again, but then the pandemic hit. State lawmakers then shifted their focus on the state s response to the coronavirus.
Chamber of Commerce Hawaiʻi president and CEO Sherry Menor-McNamara says before the pandemic struck, the organization was supportive of a minimum wage increase. But Menor-McNamara says now is not the time to pass such a proposal. We have to focus on our economic recovery, she said. Let s help and support these small businesses so they can continue to keep their doors open, and continue keep positions available to the extent possible. So let s focus on that.
Hawaii s Tax Imbalance : Would A New State Property Tax Fix It? - Honolulu Civil Beat
Hawaii’s Tax ‘Imbalance’: Would A New State Property Tax Fix It?
A proposal by House leaders would reduce or eliminate state income taxes, and shift part of the tax burden to non-residents. Reading time: 8 minutes.
Some House lawmakers have hatched a complex plan to export more of Hawaii’s weighty tax burden to non-residents, but it would require an amendment to the Hawaii state Constitution and a huge leap of faith on the part of the voters.
House Bill 1208 and House Bill 1209, which lawmakers say go “hand in hand,” together propose a tax system overhaul. The first bill asks the voters to amend the constitution to allow the state to impose property taxes.