Rail is the largest public infrastructure project in the state’s history, and we are going to get it built.
Just like sewers, roads and water mains, we can’t build our future on an infrastructure that no longer serves or supports our population. These are not sexy items, but they are critical to our quality of life and the vitality of our people and our economy.
As mayor, I promised to build rail better, and to be open and transparent on its funding. I am not backing away from that promise.
Minutes after Dan Grabauskas, executive director of the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transpo- tation, announced to the HART board the need for additional funding to build rail, I held my own press conference to report to the public what actions I planned to take, in partnership with HART, in order to get the rail financing back on track. For example:
» We just negotiated a new memorandum of understanding (MOU) with HART to issue bonds in a more sensible way, with potential savings of up to $60-$75 million in interest. Just this past week, I submitted the MOU to the Honolulu City Council for its approval.
» We must take a serious look at the current general excise tax collections for rail. It makes no sense that the GET collections for the state are up, and the collections for rail are short. The cumulative deficit is $40 million, and I have met with Gov. David Ige and asked him to take a closer look. He said he would. I look forward to working collaboratively with the governor on this and other issues.
» We can achieve cost savings through measures such as value engineering, time compression of bids and public/private partnerships.
» We plan to work with our federal partners to find additional federal funding outside the Full Funding Grant Agreement from the Federal Transit Administration.
» And perhaps most important, I will be advocating vigorously during the legislative session to extend or lift the sunset on the GET surcharge for rail. Last year, I fought for a similar bill, and this year, I’ve already met to discuss this issue with the House speaker and the finance chairwoman, and am scheduled to meet with the Ways and Means chairwoman. I will meet with as many of the remaining senators and House representatives as I can in the coming months. I also will testify before a joint House Finance and Senate Ways and Means committee hearing on Jan. 26.
I have asked Grabauskas to lead the charge on explaining to legislators why there have been dramatic increases in HART’s construction costs and efforts to bring them under control. He has agreed to do this, as HART was created by the people to build rail.
We need to look forward, not backward. Honolulu is now a large metropolitan area, and like other major cities around the world, we need a modern multi-modal transportation system that allows our city to thrive and prosper. About 70 percent of Oahu’s population growth will be located on the Ewa plain by 2030, which is just 15 years away. Rail will give these people a choice to get out of gridlock every morning and afternoon by traveling via rail.
The finances of rail may be complex, but the policy is simple. We need public funding to build the public facilities that the population depends upon every day and into the future. When taxpayers are footing the bill, they need to be informed on how the money is being spent.
I am as committed as ever to build rail better, and to be transparent on how rail is funded, even when it means facing bad news.
The rail is a city initiative. As mayor, I am fully engaged in finding the solutions we need to get rail completed. I will not waver from this task.
