Small Business News
May 2005 | Online Edition
An Open Letter to Governor Lingle
By Grover G. Norquist
Americans for Tax Reform
Dear Governor Lingle,
As taxpayers across the nation are becoming increasingly wary of their elected officials saying one thing and then doing another, taxpayers in Hawaii can consider themselves lucky to have in you — a governor who understands the true meaning of the word governing: making responsible decisions that reflect the best interests of a state’s constituents, and staying true to your word.
Ever since you assumed office in December ’02, you have protected taxpayers’ interests and have stayed true to the commitment you made to the taxpayers of your state to “oppose and veto any and all efforts to increase taxes”.
As a signer of the Taxpayer Protection Pledge, you have demonstrated great fiscal leadership and have clearly established yourself as a friend of Hawaii’s taxpayers.
You truly understand that Hawaii – currently ranking last on the national Tax Foundation’s Business Climate Index – cannot afford higher taxes, which would ultimately raise the cost of living and doing business in Hawaii, and would do nothing to spur economic growth and consumer confidence.
In this context, I would like to draw your attention to bills that are currently being floated in the legislature that would enable Honolulu and other counties to increase taxes on their constituents to fund light rail transportation projects, the benefits of which are widely contested.
While proponents of HB 1309 HD 2, which as I am sure you know would enable counties to levy a county surcharge on the state general excise tax, seem to think that they have found the silver bullet to alleviate traffic congestion, a number of studies conclude that the light rail project will not be the solution to congestion problems.
(See the 2004 “Urban Mobility Study” of the Texas Transportation Institute; the Grassroot Institute’s 2004 study “The Impact of Rail Transit on Urban Livability”, or the 1991 study “An Evaluation of the Honolulu Rapid Transit Project” by the Office of State Planning)
The argument has been made that HB 1309 HD2 is not a tax increase per se, because it merely allows localities to impose taxes. Yet, taxpayers will consider it a tax increase when they see their taxes go up as a consequence of this measure.
Taxpayers know they can count on your veto if HB 1309 HD2, or any proposal that seeks to enable localities to raise taxes on their constituents.
However, your public opposition to proposals of this kind would most certainly influence the current debate and could prevent passage of a tax increase, thus preventing the necessity of a veto in the first place.
Taxpayers would be delighted to see you speak out on their behalf and declare publicly your opposition to HB 1309 HD2, and any proposal that seeks to increase taxes on the hard working families of Hawaii, who are already burdened with an extremely high cost of living, and the fourthhighest combined tax rate in the nation.
Onward,
Grover G. Norquist
Grover G. Norquist is the president of the Americans for Tax Reform, a Washington D.C.-based organization that fights against tax increase and for government reform across the country.
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