The measure increasing the statewide general excise tax by 0.5 percent was one of many bills clearing their first chamber as the session’s midpoint nears.

Lawmakers shouldn’t be enacting complex GET exemptions that put the risks and rewards in different places.

The Senate president said lawmakers are not united on a plan, even as the House speaker reiterated his ideas to fund the troubled project.

Lawmakers will consider medical aid in dying legislation while also weighing how to fund transportation projects such as Honolulu rail.