The 2022 Hawaiʻi legislative session included extraordinary examples of the types of actions policymakers can take to rewrite the economic rulebook.

Policymakers have shaped an economy that relies far too much on extractive tourism that provides little to residents in return. To reverse these trends, we need a dramatic shift in our public policy. 

The State Government’s Crucial Role in Countering the Pandemic Recession.

40 Years of Rising Costs & Stagnant Wages.

Hawaiʻi’s post-COVID-19 economy should be one informed by an understanding that the old economic order had been failing many Hawaiʻi residents for decades.

Not only would a minimum wage increase help to improve the living standards of affected Hawaiʻi workers, but it would also strengthen local businesses, as low-wage workers plow almost every additional dollar of earnings back into the local economy.

The Need for a Working Family Credit

How Hawaiʻi’s low-income residents are faring post-recovery.

Survey results show half of Hawaiʻi's households are living "paycheck to paycheck."

The High Cost of Our Affordable Housing Shortfall

SNAP and the EITC in Hawaiʻi

Recommendations to the Hawaiʻi State Legislature

How the Great Recession disproportionately impacted Hawaiʻi’s disadvantaged, and policy recommendations to achieve fairness.