Senior citizens on the minds of candidates

Increasing support for seniors is a key issue for state House District 34 general election candidates.

Republican Jaci Agustin is trying to unseat incumbent state Rep. Gregg Takayama, a Democrat running for a third term in the district that covers Pearl City, Waimalu and Pacific Palisades.

“I understand when people say they want change because to me change means improving their lives for the better,” said Takayama, 64. “I think I’ve been successful in a small way in improving people’s lives but I would like the opportunity to do more,” he said.

Census data show approximately 22 percent of District 34 residents are age 65 and older.

According to Takayama, House leader of the Kupuna Caucus, the district has one of the highest percentages of residents older than 65 statewide. If re-elected, he said he would push for additional funding for Kupuna Care, a state-funded program that provides transportation, home-delivered meals, personal care and other services for seniors with disabilities.

An estimated $8 million is allocated to the program annually through the state Department of Health, but only a small percentage of seniors are covered by existing funds. Increasing funding to $10.5 million to $11 million a year is one of Takayama’s goals.

Continued improvements at public schools is another priority for Takayama. “We’re very proud of our public schools but they do need constant support and, of course, in terms of supporting our teachers and supporting higher incentives for people to come into teaching,” he said.

He and his wife of 41 years, Linda Chu Takayama, director of the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations, have lived in Momilani since 1975 and have three adult daughters.

Rail construction and funding are hot-button issue for the district, with traffic congestion on both the H-1 freeway and Kamehameha Highway affecting residents and businesses alike. The Legislature will likely consider a proposal to extend Oahu’s half-percent excise tax surcharge to finance construction or operation of the rail system.

“I would support extending the tax surcharge as a last resort only — after the city aggressively seeks alternative sources of funding such as private-public partnerships and increased support from the federal government,” Takayama said.

In addition, he said, supporting small businesses, particularly those along Kamehameha Highway affected by rail construction, is a priority. During the Legislature’s last session, Takayama introduced legislation to provide financial assistance to businesses, but the measure failed to gain traction due to a lack of support beyond the district. Something needs to be done because rail construction will affect more businesses as it gets closer to downtown, he said.

Regarding Gov. David Ige’s plans to propose increases to the state gas tax, vehicle weight tax and state registration fees to help fund state road projects, Takayama opposes implementing all three at once because it would impose a heavy burden on motorists. “I would support (it) only if it were implemented on a staggered basis.”

In response to another hot-button matter, public disclosure of Honolulu police officers disciplined for committing crimes, Takayama said that if re-elected, he will offer up a compromise: Release the names of officers who have been disciplined twice for misconduct within a five-year period. That would strike a balance between full transparency and total secrecy, he said.

Agustin, 33, whose husband, Chad Agustin, is an 11-year police officer with the Honolulu Police Department, said she supports privacy for officers. “I think we need to protect our officers,” she said, adding that the issue is a city matter.

Married for almost 12 years, the Agustins live in Waimalu and have a 5-year-old son.

Jaci Agustin is a member of the Pearl City Community Association, Pearl City Lions Club and Rotary Club of Pearlridge. She attends the University of Hawaii at Manoa, majoring in political science.

Agustin, who first ran for the district seat in 2014, said she advocates for “transitional aging” to help residents prepare for retirement. Whether obtaining medical insurance, in-home care for kupuna in need of assistance, or help for veterans in accessing benefits, residents need to be educated about available services, Agustin said.

Infrastructure improvements at public schools to accommodate equipment to cool classrooms and support for teachers are other issues Agustin actively promotes.

She said her son is the top reason she is running for elected office. “I want to make sure he can afford to live here,” she said, adding that many seniors live by themselves because their children and grandchildren moved to the mainland because they couldn’t afford to live in Hawaii.

Agustin also is working with the community to set up neighborhood watches to address crime and educate residents on how to better protect themselves.

To address traffic congestion, Agustin proposes working with the state Department of Transportation to construct an onramp to Kaonohi Street from the H-1 freeway to help relieve the bottleneck for westbound drivers during peak traffic.

Agustin strongly opposes an extension of Oahu’s half-percent excise tax surcharge for rail. “A large portion of people in my district are retired and on a fixed income,” she said, adding that seniors would be burdened by an increase. “It’s regressive.”

For the same reasons, she opposes Ige’s plans to raise taxes to help pay for state road projects.

Crowned Mrs. Hawaii in 2013, Agustin said she overcame adversity when at age 6 she, her sister and mother became homeless. They had recently moved to Hawaii island from Montana. Her mother juggled raising her daughters, working, and studying at the University of Hawaii at Hilo.

With an unsteady income, they became homeless and lived in a Volkswagen van at Onekahakaha Beach for a few months. They were on public assistance, and Agustin recalled how she worried about whether her mother ate and saved her school lunch for her.

She said her mother, Jera Stewart, was able to secure a family unit located within walking distance of campus, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology. Stewart later moved to Montana, where she earned a doctorate in psychology, specializing in the field of neuropsychology, said Agustin.

She said her mother’s work ethic and service to the community have greatly influenced her.

To effectively address homelessness in Hawaii, the city and state as well as nonprofit groups and businesses need to work on the same goal, she said. “There’s no cohesiveness.” Agustin said. “Everybody has to be on the same page, and that will eliminate homelessness in Hawaii.”