Hawaii Gov. Neil Abercrombie says in his weekly message that the state can move forward without raising the general excise tax or making deeper cuts to government.

Abercrombie said yesterday that some taxes need to be raised to get the state out of a projected $1.3 billion deficit over the next two years.

But the Democratic governor says in return, Hawaii residents shouldn’t accept anything less than more value for their money.

Abercrombie didn’t specify how he would balance the budget, a difficult task facing state lawmakers as they enter the final days of this year’s legislative session, which concludes May 5.