Legislators greenlight $28 billion budget for operations

House and Senate lawmakers reached agreement on a new two-year, $28.4 billion state operating budget Monday that would increase state spending over this year’s level but would trim the overall budget somewhat from what Gov. David Ige originally proposed.

Lawmakers also gave preliminary approval to a new two-year, $1 billion construction budget financed with general obligation bonds, which is a sizable reduction from the $1.49 billion that Ige proposed in December.

The proposed new construction budget features $77 million in new funding for a new East Kapolei Middle School, and $27 million in additional funding to complete the new Campbell High School classroom building. It also includes $63 million to complete classroom spaces in a new high school at Kihei, Maui.

State Rep. Kyle Yamashita (D, Spreckelsville-Upcountry Maui) said the new budget includes about $488 million in new construction funds for the state Department of Education.

“I think, all in all, it’s a good budget,” said Yamashita, who controls construction appropriations for the state House.

The new budget also includes $23.75 million to acquire 500 acres of agricultural land in Central Oahu. The state has already purchased 2,000 acres of privately owned Central Oahu land to preserve it for agriculture as part of the same initiative, and is buying 900 acres more.

Lawmakers included $1.8 million for each of the next two years for the Hawaii Promise Program to help cover the unmet financial needs of community college students in Hawaii.

University data for last year showed that about 1,100 UH community college students statewide were left with an average unmet need of $295 in direct college costs, which included tuition, fees, books, supplies and transportation. The overall unmet need across the community colleges was estimated to be $1.8 million that year.

Lawmakers also set aside another $10 million for a master plan and environmental impact study for the planned redevelopment of the Aloha Stadium site, including the possibility of a mixed-use development project on that land.

The proposed budget includes another $1 million to combat rat lungworm disease, a condition in which parasitic worm larvae infect people’s brains. The larvae, transmitted to people via snails and slugs, can cause neurological damage, a potentially painful and debilitating type of meningitis, and sometimes death.

A spike in cases of the disease during the past two years has prompted growing alarm among state lawmakers and attracted national media attention. Most recently, two people on Hawaii island were confirmed to have contracted the disease, and four more are believed to have likely contracted it, after drinking kava that had been left outside overnight and contaminated with at least one slug.

Health officials estimate that there have been 15 confirmed or probable cases so far this year, and House Finance Committee Chairwoman Sylvia Luke described the problem as “the biggest concern for the community right now.”

The money will allow the Department of Health to start the research and “make sure that we tackle this issue,” she said.

“We think that our vector office needs to be able to go out there and attack this,” said Senate Ways and Means Committee Chairwoman Jill Tokuda. “It’s important for our communities; it’s become an issue for our tourist industry as well. It’s a health and safety issue.”

Tokuda said the money was allocated for the Health Department so the issue can be addressed statewide.

Lawmakers also appropriated about $140,000 over the next two years to fund a position within the Health Department to investigate environmental health clusters, such as lead poisoning.

About 1,800 infants and toddlers across Hawaii have tested positive for high lead levels in their blood in recent years, according to data recently compiled by Health Department officials for the years 2011-15. The funding is expected to help the department better track cases and follow-up care.

———

Star-Advertiser reporter Sophie Cocke contributed to this report.