LABOR COSTS

HOUSE BILL DETRIMENTAL TO HAWAI'I NONPROFITS

The state has long worked with nonprofits to improve health and social services while reducing the cost to taxpayers. Unfortunately, HB760, which has zipped virtually unopposed through four legislative committees, could undo that.

The bill is an unfunded mandate requiring nonprofits that contract with the state or any county to pay wages of at least $11.06 per hour. It does not stop there, however.

The bill requires contracting nonprofits to pay employees "wages or salaries not less than the wages paid to public officers and employees for similar work" — in other words, matching public union wage scales.

There is social justice in living wages for all, but already state contracts often do not reflect actual labor costs. "We have to make up the difference in competitive wages with our fundraising efforts," says John Howell, CEO of Easter Seals Hawai'i.

"Nonprofits desire to compensate workers as well as possible," said Beth Giesting, executive director of the Hawai'i Primary Care Association, but first the state must "make serious adjustments in its contract amounts and systems."

For the state to mandate a dramatic increase in labor cost without concurrently increasing appropriations for service-provider contracts is irresponsible. It would mean nonprofits could only break even on state contracts through layoffs and slashing essential services to the community.

We urge the Senate Ways and Means Committee to defer HB760 until its impact can be measured and provisions are added to adjust state contracts to fund pay increases.

STATE SENATE

HEE DESERVES THANKS FOR LEADERSHIP, WORK

Sen. Clayton Hee is doing a great job.

For more than two decades, I have had many opportunities to observe him. Like many others who have worked with him in the community, I appreciate his courage, commitment and effectiveness in making a positive difference for our state.

Senator Hee is well known for his advocacy for Native Hawaiians and his knowledge of Hawaiian language.

He is also well known for asking tough questions as part of his duties in the confirmation process.

He should also be known and thanked for his leadership and legislative work on language access for immigrants who are non-native English speakers, University of Hawaii scholarships for low-income students with a grade of B or better, access and diversity in health careers, domestic violence program support, and many other issues related to worker's rights and civil rights.

KAHALA

AT LEAST KAWAMOTO IS GIVING CHILDREN A HOME

I would like to comment on Lee Cataluna's column on Genshiro Kawamoto (March 25).

Helping just one Hawaiian family is better than none. So what if the pool is filled with rocks, there are six young children who will be living there.

Those families are just happy that they are not on the beach or in a shelter. We should be happy for them even, if their landlord can afford to help more people.

Is there anyone else giving free rent to Hawaiian families or single mothers?

I don't care what his motives are, at least he is giving children a home.

KAWAMOTO KINDNESS, GENEROSITY APPRECIATED

I am speechless at Genshiro Kawamoto's kindness and generosity to Hawaiian families who needed homes.

It's a shame that Hawai'i's local millionaires could not do the same.

By choosing those families, he not only gave them a home, but he also gave them hope and faith that there are better things in life.

TRAFFIC SAFETY

BICYCLISTS ON SIDEWALKS SHOULD WARN WALKERS

My wife and I walk in Kahala and Ala Moana for exercise, and we are frequently startled by bicyclists flying past us from behind on the sidewalks.

I guess the bike riders use the sidewalks because bike lanes are too dangerous with all the crazy drivers running over pedestrians, moped riders, etc.

Fine. But if you cyclists are coming into our world on the sidewalks, how about using a warning horn or a bell before you pass? Or a friendly "coming by" comment?

You guys don't want to be hit on the highway, and we don't want to be hit on the sidewalk. Mahalo.

HOMELESS

ALL WHO LITTER IN PARKS SHOULD BE TICKETED

If I leave litter in a public park I can be ticketed, and expect to be.

If I live there illegally for months and leave tons of trash behind for the city workers to clean up, I get to move to a new home for free!

Isn't life in Hawai'i great?

EIS

SUPERFERRY DECISION ABOUT WHAT IS RIGHT

While setting the framework for our Constitution, Alexander Hamilton said, "Give all power to the many, and they will oppress the few. Give all power to the few and they will oppress the many. Both therefore ought to have power, that each can defend itself against the other."

Earthjustice attorney Isaac Moriwake thinks it's undemo-cratic for state Rep. Joe Souki to disregard a "groundswell of public opinion" by not requiring the Superferry to do an environmental impact study.

I'd like Mr. Moriwake to know that democracy is not dependent upon supporting public opinion. As Mr Souki said, its about what is right and what is fair.

I'm sure there was a "groundswell of public opinion" in favor of incarcerating those of Japanese ancestry at that time in our history. Having a Japanese surname, Moriwake should be careful of using his "majority rule" definition of democracy.

GLOBAL THREAT

CLIMATE CHANGE MUST BE TAKEN SERIOUSLY

Seldom in the history of The Honolulu Advertiser has so much valuable space in the Focus section been so wasted on so little content.

The commentary by Jonah Goldberg on Al Gore's film and testimony on global climate change before Congress (March 25) is mainly a diatribe against Mr. Gore, and offers little in the way of useful suggestions.

When air quality became a major concern in the United States during the 1960s, congressional hearings were held to set pollutant emission standards for automobiles. The automobile industry opposed it, arguing that there was no way in which such standards could be met. This provided a great opportunity to Toyota, Honda, and other Japanese manufacturers to start getting larger shares of the American market. When oil prices shot up during the 1970s, Japanese and European companies were ready to take an even larger share of our market because Detroit kept insisting that bigger is better.

At a time when the scientific community has agreed that human activities are contributing substantially to global climate change, and many state governments and large U.S. corporations have initiated steps to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases, Mr. Goldberg's support of "deniers" is as quaint as his suggestion that we could "Add sulfate aerosols or other substances to the atmosphere to mitigate global warming."

We are going to need new and improved technologies and better management techniques (some as simple as switching off computers overnight, if they are not being used during that time) to address the threat posed by global climate change.

We need to start working seriously on both approaches, rather than arguing over which one is better, while the problem keeps getting worse.

ALA WAI HARBOR

ADD PARKING TO ENSURE ACCESS TO OUR BEACHES

Whoa! You want to restrict parking at the beach ("Time could be running out on free parking at Ala Wai harbor," March 27)?

Since when have we added parking to our beaches? It's hard to find parking at our beaches already.

The Kahala homeowners were found to be wrong in restricting access to the beaches; seems to me the boat owners are wrong, too.

Frankly, if the boat owners want to have a more exclusive home area, maybe they should pay a higher slip fee, or move to a different location.

Everyone else has to live with their decision on where to live, maybe it's time the boat owners start living with their decision.

Maybe we should be more concerned with adding parking to the beaches to ensure public access.