Financial help for soldiers proposed
By William Cole
Advertiser Military Writer
Gov. Linda Lingle yesterday unveiled three initiatives aimed at giving something back to the state's National Guard and Reserve personnel serving in two war zones.
Among them is a bill to ensure that members of the armed forces who are state employees will not suffer any loss of wages when they are deployed.
Under the bill, which Lingle said she will propose to the Legislature later this month, if the military pay of a state employee serving in a hostile fire zone is lower than the civilian pay, the state will make up the difference. The estimated cost to the state is expected to be less than $200,000 a year, the governor's office said.
The proposed legislation also includes a provision exempting Hawai'i National Guard and Reserve members from paying vehicle tax and registration fees, and a bill to help soldiers renew vocational or professional licenses when they return from active duty.
Lingle announced the proposals at a mobilization ceremony yesterday for 67 Hawai'i Army National Guard soldiers at Waiawa Armory in Pearl City. The soldiers were from the 117th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment and 298th Engineering Detachment.
"The people of Hawai'i appreciate your service, and we will do everything we can to support you," Lingle said. "Our proposed initiatives are small in comparison to the important responsibilities each of you will carry out to preserve freedom and democracy. But we believe they are fair and just, and demonstrate the respect we have for our military community."
Maj. Gen. Robert G.F. Lee, who heads up the Hawai'i National Guard, said citizen soldiers are being called upon in numbers not seen since World War II and Vietnam. Since Sept. 11, 2001, more than 3,200 Guard soldiers and airmen from Hawai'i have been called to active duty in support of the war on terrorism, Lee said.
About 2,500 Hawai'i Guard and Reserve soldiers are preparing for deployment to Iraq, and Lingle said 800 citizen soldiers from the state already are serving in that country and Afghanistan.
Sgt. 1st Class Curtis Matsushige, 50, a Campbell High School science teacher who's with the 117th and going to Afghanistan, said the matching pay provision would be a plus.
His base military pay is lower than his teacher's pay, but separation pay and hazardous duty pay ups his Army paycheck. Managers or professionals in lower ranks are the ones who will take a big pay cut, he said.
Lingle said employers such as Kaiser and AIG have pledged to maintain civilian job pay levels, and nationally, Sears and Wal-Mart have done so. She added she'll ask county government to do the same thing.
Exempting Guard and Reserve members from vehicle tax and registration fees, similar to that provided for nonresident active duty members, would cost the state and counties approximately $1.3 million in lost revenue, Lingle's office said.
The third initiative would allow individuals in professions including barbers and beauticians, brokers, nurses, insurance agents and contractors, to restore their licenses within 90 days of discharge, rather than have to maintain that currency while deployed.
The proposals would build on existing Hawai'i programs and laws to support troops, including a law enacted last summer to increase allowable income tax deductions.
Reach William Cole at wcole@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-5459.
