Want Nice Roads? Honolulu Mayor Wants You To Pay More At The Pump
Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell wants to tack a nickel onto every gallon of gas sold on Oahu to help repair what he describes as some of the worst roads in the country.
Caldwell proposed the tax hike during a press conference in which he unveiled his $2.09 billion spending plan for Fiscal Year 2014, that increases expenditures nearly 7 percent over last year. His capital budget is $623 million.
The Honolulu City Council adopted a $1.96 billion operating budget for Fiscal Year 2013, and a $620 million capital spending plan.
The increase in the gas tax is so far the most controversial aspect of Caldwell鈥檚 budget. The council, which must approve the tax hike, two years ago shot down a proposal to increase the gas tax by a penny.
鈥淲e鈥檝e been told we have some of the worst roads in the country and we have to pay for these roads and I鈥檝e committed to do that,鈥 Caldwell said. 鈥淚t would be easy to not do this because it鈥檚 not glorious or glamorous work, but I think it鈥檚 something that needs to be done. We鈥檝e put it off for too long and the money has to come from somewhere, and I believe there is a nexus for driving on roads and paying for road improvements.鈥
The city collects 16.5 cents per gallon gasoline sold today. Under Caldwell鈥檚 proposal that amount would go up to 21.5 cents per gallon. The last time the gas tax was raised was in 1989. Caldwell said his $0.05 increase in the tax would be the equivalent of a 1.3 percent increase per year since then.
Councilwoman Ann Kobayashi, who chairs the Budget Committee, was skeptical of Caldwell鈥檚 proposal to raise the gas tax. She felt it could become too much of a financial burden on residents and small businesses.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 know if the City Council would be in favor of raising taxes, we鈥檒l have to discuss that,鈥 Kobayashi said after Caldwell鈥檚 press conference. 鈥淚 know in the past they have not been supportive of raising taxes.
Caldwell outlined five specific budget goals for the upcoming year. They included spending $3.5 million to restore bus service cuts that were implemented during Mayor Peter Carlisle鈥檚 administration, spending $153 million on repaving Honolulu鈥檚 roads and building rail better, investing $226 million in sewer infrastructure and dumping an additional $17.7 million into improving city parks.
During his run for mayor, Caldwell promised that he’d put soap in all the bathrooms. The $17.7 million he intends to spend in the coming fiscal year would go toward improving public restrooms as well as fixing leaky roofs and faulty sprinklers.
Caldwell touched on the city鈥檚 $5.26 billion rail project, saying he wanted to work with Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation to improve the aesthetics of the train line, particularly in the city’s urban core.
The mayor said that the automatic federal budget cuts that took effect today wouldn鈥檛 impact a $1.55 billion federal grant for the rail project. He also said the impacts of sequestration to the city would be minor, but that Section 8 housing could take some hits. He was unable to provide specifics at the press conference, and said he hoped it wouldn鈥檛 result in anyone getting kicked out of their homes.
鈥淲e鈥檙e hoping that maybe Congress is going to come to their senses and try to maybe unwind some of these things next week or maybe the week after,鈥 Caldwell said. 鈥淲e鈥檒l have to see.鈥
Caldwell鈥檚 $2.09 billion budget is less conservative than the previous administrations when it comes to spending. When Carlisle released his budget last year he described it as a 鈥渞esponsible鈥 spending plan that addressed 鈥渆ssential needs and core services.鈥
His budget focused on infrastructure, particularly rail, and set aside $40 million for retiree health benefits and $20 million in a rainy day fund.
鈥淭his requires the fiscal discipline to bend the debt curve downward, keep the (capital improvement project) budget focused on investing in core infrastructure that is mandated, required or essential to maintaining existing facilities for the delivery of city services,鈥 Carlisle told Civil Beat at that time.
The current mayor on the other hand believes Honolulu鈥檚 economy is on the rebound. He鈥檚 bolstered in part by projections that property tax revenues will increase by $23 million in the coming year without any rate hikes.
Caldwell also said he believes there are several large development projects on the horizon that will bolster that revenue even further. His budget calls for increases in certain plan review fees.
The mayor was unapologetic about his spending plan, saying some of the increases were unavoidable due to mandates and jumps in benefit costs for employees. He noted during his press conference that even if sequestration results in job losses, the city鈥檚 road repaving program could help create jobs.
鈥淚 believe this is not the time to bend the debt curve,鈥 Caldwell said. 鈥淚 believe we鈥檙e crawling out of recession where bond rates are at an all-time low. This is when we do improvements so when the economy is hot we pull back. When bond rates are higher we pull back. The private sector is doing what they need to do to keep our economy humming. And I think we have the right approach here.鈥
Other highlights of Caldwell鈥檚 budget can be found in his Feb. 28 letter to the City Council. You can read that letter:
