Crunch time at Legislature

POSTED: 01:30 a.m. HST, Apr 15, 2012

~~<p>As the Legislature moves into its final push to reconcile differences over the proposals that are still alive, things can get pretty frenzied and confusing — with most of the action obscured in the murkiness of the conference-committee process. So it's useful to consider the surviving bills through the clarifying lens of Hawaii's important long-term priorities.</p>
<p>Last year, during the first half of the current biennium, the local repercussions of a global recession and lagging tax receipts forced lawmakers to close a huge fiscal gap. Now that most of budgetary bloodletting seems to be behind it, the priority needs to return to rebuilding the foundations for long-term economic and social stability.</p>
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As the Legislature moves into its final push to reconcile differences over the proposals that are still alive, things can get pretty frenzied and confusing — with most of the action obscured in the murkiness of the conference-committee process. So it's useful to consider the surviving bills through the clarifying lens of Hawaii's important long-term priorities.

Last year, during the first half of the current biennium, the local repercussions of a global recession and lagging tax receipts forced lawmakers to close a huge fiscal gap. Now that most of budgetary bloodletting seems to be behind it, the priority needs to return to rebuilding the foundations for long-term economic and social stability. Login for more...