Ige signs $18 minimum wage increase, tax refund

A state report estimates Kauaʻi “self-sufficiency wage”—the amount needed to cover basic housing, food, transportation and other costs—is $40,830 for a single adult. A person working at the current minimum wage of $10.10 an hour would make just $21,008 a year.

Based on this report, a person working full-time on Kauaʻi would need to make $19.62 an hour to afford the cost of living.

The bill makes the earned income tax credit permanent and refundable, helping low- to moderate-income workers cut their taxes and potentially increase their tax refund.

The Hawaiʻi Tax Fairness Coalition estimates that the policy would to boost the incomes of 5,452 families by $420 on average while generating $2,840,179 in economic activity for Kauaʻi.

Progressive organizations Raise Up Hawaiʻi, the Hawaiʻi Tax Fairness Coalition and Hawaiʻi Appleseed applauded the bill signings in a release Wednesday.

“This historic legislation represents a significant and meaningful step toward transforming our economy so that it works for everyone,” said Hawaiʻi Appleseed Executive Director Gavin Thornton. “But much more remains to be done.”