After years of neglect of our harbors — a vital part of our economy and our lifeline here in the Pacific — the state and a dozen of our major harbor users are turning to the Legislature for at least $800 million for harbor improvements over the next six years.

Dealing with harbor expansion is crucial, and long overdue. About 80 percent of what we consume in Hawai'i is imported — and nearly all of it arrives by ship.

The price tag for improvements, the majority of which would be financed via bonds, will almost certainly result in higher harbor fees. And shipping companies and other harbor users won't waste any time in passing those higher costs along to consumers.

Still, tariff increases are overdue. Fees have not increased since 1995 and our tariffs lag behind other Mainland cities, according to experts.

State officials say the improvement package, which could cost as much as $900 million, focuses squarely on expansion, not maintenance. "It's not a failure to maintain the harbors, it's a failure to grow and expand," says Mike Formby, deputy director of the Harbors Division of the state Department of Transportation.

Tight quarters have plagued our harbors for years now. So it's no surprise that in 2005 harbor users got together to see if they could force some positive changes. Matson Navigation Co., Horizon Lines, Young Brothers/Hawaiian Tug & Barge, Norwegian Cruise Line, Hawaii Stevedore, McCabe, Hamilton & Renny Co. Ltd. and the other major harbor users formed the Hawai'i Harbor Users Group, or HHUGS.

The state worked with HHUGS to come up with a plan that they say will take us well into the future, looking ahead toward the next 25 years and taking growth and growing consumer demand into account.

That's a good sign. It will take a concerted effort to come up with a cost-effective plan that will carry us well into the future, so we don't find ourselves in a similar position of playing catch-up again down the road.

To be sure, taxpayers have already collectively been asked to shoulder many financial burdens. State lawmakers need to carefully review these improvements and make sure these dollars are spent wisely and in the best interest of taxpayers and the state as a whole.