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Senate committee trims broad tax proposal to a single section and advances amended measure
Summary
After hours of testimony from unions, tax analysts and advocates, the joint committee voted to strip a sweeping tax package down to a single section and advance the bill with a defective date; proponents and opponents had sharply different views on whether raising the state general excise tax is equitable or would harm the economy.
The joint Senate committees on Health and Human Services and Labor and Technology advanced a substantially amended version of a wide‑ranging tax measure, keeping only section 2 of the original bill and setting a defective effective date of Dec. 31, 2050.
The bill drew testimony from labor unions, anti‑poverty advocates and tax researchers. Nicole Wu of the Hawai‘i Children’s Action Network urged caution on a proposed general excise tax increase, saying, "The GET increase that's in this bill would make everything in the state more expensive." Tax Foundation of Hawai‘i executive Tom Yamachika told senators he worried the measure would roll back…
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