Protecting Hawaiʻi’s future demands pause on tax cuts

In the face of severe and unpredictable federal cuts, the plan to pause future state income tax cuts is a responsible safeguard for the very foundations of our community.

Under the Trump administration’s H.R.1 budget, the federal government is already giving up to $44,000 per year in federal tax breaks for the top 1% of earners.

To pay for these tax breaks, the administration is poised to rip hundreds of millions of dollars from Hawaii’s economy, targeting lifelines like Medicaid and SNAP — programs over 400,000 of our neighbors rely upon. To proceed with additional state tax cuts while the federal safety net is being shredded would pose a direct threat to our most vulnerable.

We have lived this story before and bear the scars today. During the Great Recession, state revenue shortfalls led the Lingle administration to push for deep, lasting cuts to education, public health and social services. A generation of students felt the impact of those cuts in overcrowded classrooms and reduced resources. Our homelessness crisis was exacerbated and our capacity to care for kupuna and keiki diminished.

We cannot afford a repeat. Yet, H.R.1’s provisions — which could strip 56,000 people of Medicaid and add tens of millions to the state’s share of SNAP costs — guarantee a worse outcome unless we act with prudence now.

The federal government’s actions have provoked high levels of economic uncertainty, prompting the state Council on Revenues to lower its general fund revenue forecast by billions of dollars. Meanwhile, mandatory state costs for pensions, retiree health benefits and debt service continue to climb. This crisis demands we make bold decisions about Hawaii’s future.