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Home My WebLink AboutCOM 0751.135 2014-2016 p1�c Murashige, Laura bOM M.75) From: Baez,Wendy Sent: Tuesday,April 05, 2016 1:29 PM To: Murashige, Laura; Leslie, Earlanne Subject: Testimony in OPPOSITION to Bill 165 re GET increase of one-half percent, on Finance Committee at 2 pm Attachments: Testimony from Stephen Lopez,April 5, 2016 in OPPOSITION to Bill 165 to increase GET by one-half percent.pdf Hi Laura, Stephen Lopez submits his opposition to Bill 165 on the Finance Committee at 2 pm, regarding the proposed GET increase of one-half percent. He is requesting that it be passed out to council members in Hilo. Wendy P.Baez,Legislative Assistant Office of Council Member Karen Eoff Council District 8,North Kona West Hawai`i Civic Center, Building"A" 74-5044 Ane Keohokalole Highway Kailua-Kona,Hawai`i 96740 808/323-4279 wendy.baez@hawaiicounty.gov hawaiicounty.gov ...Nothing is so Strong as Gentleness, and Nothing is so Gentle as Real Strength... ca c o k N O Comm. No. -1•511 1 7 Ref. To: \Vii Ref. Date4PR 03 7E06 ---• 1 April 5,2016 Testimony AGAINST Hawai'i County Council Bill 165 to increase GET by.5% The only thing good about this bill is that it comes during an election year when the public can easily recall which elected voted to take easy money out of the taxpayer pocket. There is a public revolution going on in this country fueled by politician business as usual,disregard for the middle and lower class and distain for the political establishment. It was VERY clear we would eventually get here when the body of Mayors requested this of the State legislature as a chip in trade for TAT. It's become very easy to raise money by hitting the taxpayer but yet the rhetoric of solutions to cut government waste and to maintain or cut costs to the public come at a snail's pace if at all. It's a foregone conclusion borne out in history that the longer it takes to kick the can down the street the mushroom public will simply forget and fall in line. In 2013 the County Council accepted the Administration across the board 10%property tax increase by a 7-2 vote. County services had deteriorated due to the poor economy that affected us all.Credit Councilmember Margaret Wille who introduced a resolution to revisit this increase and seek tax reductions for the 2014 fiscal year.As an appeasement to the public,it passed 6-3 yet THIS WAS NEVER"revisited" by the Council as a whole and its now 2016-17. We are no longer in that economic slump yet the budget has had continual increases on this "temporary"tax benefitting a house of cards annual compounding. What about the highly touted review of the complex property tax structure started a few years ago as a way to bring more fairness into the process? WHAT EVER BECAME OF THAT? Bill 165 is portrayed,to raise funds for transportation projects. WHAT definition is presented to give us any confidence against fundraiding from some obscure use of the term? Remember needing to have a"like degree", remember the now defunct State Hurricane Fund,we all know about constant borrowing from social security now in distress,same with the US Postal Service. Shouldn't take much to come up with many more examples. As for transportation and other infrastructure needs, remember the FAIR SHARE system? How well is that working out? In recent history,then Councilmember Pete Hoffman tried in vain 2 times to get us out of this illegal system by introducing IMPACT FEES as a way for new development to do much better to help pay the costs of transportation and infrastructure impact to us. I worked on a 3"d iteration in 2014 while a Legislative Assistant as another attempt to raise needed funds for transportation and other impacts while recognizing and adjusting the costs to the smaller homebuilder. It's still remains in political limbo. I urge you not to fall prey to easy money at the cost of hitting us again especially for those who can least afford to pay for"transportation projects"while paying for their food,medical and other basic needs. Some solutions are briefly stated. Given a little cogent thinking there are many others at the tip of the iceberg. It just requires some political will. • s•ectfully, / 1" Stephe D. Lopez • t (� Kailua Kona, HI.