Hawaii Governor May Nix Plan To Put More Money Into The State Rainy Day Fund
Green says the state cannot afford to put another $300 million into the budget reserve fund, which already has about $1.5 billion.
Gov. Josh Green said Tuesday he is strongly inclined to veto a bill that would pump hundreds of millions of extra dollars into the state’s rainy day budget reserve fund and the Employees Retirement System.
During an interview on Hawaii News Now’s “Spotlight Now” program, Green said he does not expect to veto many bills this year because he worked closely with lawmakers during the session that ended May 3.
But lawmakers should expect at least one measure will probably be rejected.
That is House Bill 40, which would deposit $300 million into the emergency and budget reserve fund, better known as the “rainy day” fund. That fund now has a balance of about $1.5 billion, the largest amount its ever held.
The same bill would direct another $135 million to the Employees Retirement System next fiscal year to help fund pensions for state workers. That money would be in addition to the routine annual payments the state makes to fund the retirement system.
“I don’t like that bill,” Green said. “That’s $435 million. I’d rather see us have a more conservative, secure economy and financial plan.
“I intend, most likely — most likely — to veto that and put that money to balance our budget,” he added.
Green said the budget he proposed before session would have left the state with a cash surplus of $600 million at the end of next fiscal year, but during the session the Legislature approved bills that would spend an extra $835 million beyond what Green wanted.
The governor said he was pleased with much of the work lawmakers did, including funding for the Maui wildfire recovery effort and passing a huge state income tax break that is expected to reduce state tax collections by $5 billion over the next six years.
But Green said if he signed every bill today that lawmakers passed apart from the state budget, “we would be actually $200 million in the red, which can’t happen.” The Hawaii Constitution requires a balanced budget.
Green also said it is a “coin toss” as to whether he will veto Senate Bill 1511, which would limit the authority of the Research Corporation of the University of Hawaii. RCUH now handles research funding for the UH along with a variety of other activities.
Green said that bill “could be disruptive, so I have to figure that one out.”
