Lauren on the Issues
Agriculture
Invest in water, electrical and transportation infrastructure to increase productivity and accessibility to markets
Ensure agricultural lands are protected for agricultural use to produce food for local people.
Increase access for farmers to processing and distribution facilities.
Reduce thefts and burglaries on agriculture lands.
Expand business training for local farmers.
Hawai‘i was at one time a completely self-sustaining chain of islands in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. We now produce only about 10% of our own food. Since the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted an overdependence on food imports, now is the time to renvision and rebuild agricultural infrastructure so that we can become more self-sustaining. Born into a fourth generation farming family in Wahiawa who established Petersons’ Upland Farm in 1910, I uniquely understand the difficulties facing agriculture in Hawai‘i today. A frightening statistic is that the average age of Hawai‘i farmers is 60 years old. We need to educate and inspire our younger generations to embrace the farming lifestyle. Our district has some of the best prime agricultural lands left on Oahu, however, there are so few farmers because much of the land is lacking water and electric infrastructure needed to successfully grow crops. Building out water, electricity, and transportation infrastructure will greatly help increase Hawaii‘s agricultural output and make it more attractive for farmers who can’t afford such investments on their own.
Additionally, Hawai‘i has a unique opportunity to be successful in agricultural tourism. We are the only place in the United States that can grow cacao. We have the potential to be the Napa Valley of chocolate. We need to encourage our local farmers to begin to invest in value added products to help them raise their bottom line. The State must also take a firmer stance on protecting farmers from theft of products, machinery, and personal items.
As your state legislator I fight to keep our agricultural lands zoned for their intended use, provide tax incentives for local farmers, continue to educate the public on the importance of buying local, and encourage educational programs in our schools such as Future Farmers of America.
Jobs and the Economy
Support our local businesses to reopen and recover from the COVID-19 economic crisis.
Focus on diversifying our economy through agriculture, technology, and the film industry.
Update antiquated State computer systems to increase efficiency and reduce waste.
Temporarily eliminate state income taxes on unemployment benefits to help people get back on their feet.
STEM school to career pipeline to help create the local talent to fill high paying positions.
In addition to the stop-gap measures that the legislature just implemented, one of the first things we need to do is figure out how to re-open up our economy safely. Since Hawaii is an economy largely based on tourism, in the short term we need to focus on how to bring back tourism responsibly in regards to both total number of tourists and public health concerns. The first three sectors that the state should invest in to diversify is the film industry, technology, and agriculture and agricultural tourism. In order to diversify we need to recognize what is realistic to implement in both the short and long term.
Film is an already existing, though underutilized industry we can leverage to help stimulate our economy as a short term solution while we are able to create long term sustainable solutions. The film industry can play a key role in the revitalization of our economy through creating jobs for our residents and adding much-needed dollars to help our state recover. Film is a large part of the current economy, and would be a strong, immediate economic driver. Throughout my time in the legislature and throughout the pandemic I have been in communication with the Hawaii State Film Office on how to make changes to push the film initiative forward in order to help diversify our economy. According to the Department of Business, Economic Development & Tourism, film had generated as much as $825M in overall economic activity up until the pandemic hit. As a member of the Economic Development committee in the legislature I have advocated to remove the current cap on the Hawaii Film Tax Credit. This would give us a competitive advantage over many of the other top film locations around the globe and further push the film industry in our state forward.
As a legislature we need to start laying the groundwork for the long term diversification of the tech and agricultural sector. While we are working on opening our current economy up safely we need to be laying the framework for the long-term goal of diversification. Once our economy is on the road to recovery I believe we should begin to diversify by focusing on our unique location in the center of the Pacific Ocean between Asia and the continental U.S. We should use this advantage to develop a strong tech industry here in Hawaii. For several years in the legislature I have championed several STEM bills that would strengthen the pipeline for technological jobs in our state. As an island state we have limited land space and tech will provide high paying jobs with a small footprint.
K - 12 Education
Advocate at the legislature, that when considering tough budget choices post COVID-19, teachers are an essential, non-negotiable part of our state government.
Give principals additional power and resources to attend to minor repair and maintenance projects.
Continue to support partnerships between K-12 schools and community partners to allow for real-world experiences and support
Such as Aina Pono, Waialua Robotics, commercialization
Reduce the teacher shortage by expanding the salary bonus for teachers at hard-to-staff schools and by solving issues with pay compression among long-time DOE teachers
Educate the whole child by funding physical education, arts, vocational tech, and extra-curricular programs into the school day.
In order to move Hawai‘i forward, education needs to be one of our top priorities. I am dedicated to finding common ground among parents, teachers, principals, small & large local businesses, industries and educational institutions to rebuild our schools. Every school in our state is uniquely different with their own distinct needs. I believe that a greater percentage of the money allocated for education needs to be given directly to the schools so they can determine how to best teach their students. As a product of the Hawai‘i public school system I was privileged to attend school at a time when we had music and arts programs and a full time physical education teacher. Unfortunately, most schools in Hawai‘i today don’t offer these programs because of lack of funding, and I believe our children are suffering because of it. In the legislature I have introduced several bills over the years to encourage opportunities for a well-rounded education.
I’ve introduced legislation regarding physical education, computer science, vocational classes, and extra curricular support for programs like Future Farmers of America. I have advocated for having funding brought down to the school level to give principals and teachers more flexibility in how funds are allocated. In the 2019-2020 session I introduced a bill that would create discretionary sub accounts for schools to fund minor repair and maintenance projects that don't require an EIS or building permit. This is beneficial because those who work at the schools are the most familiar with the needs of their schools and it would help restore faith in government if families could see necessary repairs being done quickly to our schools. If we cut wasteful spending from the top and bring the money down to the level of the individual schools, we can take the first step toward a brighter future for our keiki.
In addition to my work at the legislature, I have been involved personally with the teachers and students in my district. I frequently visit classrooms to talk and answer questions about civics, governmental processes and to read to students. I conduct legislative tours for classes as well as host special tours during fall break so teachers, parents and their children can learn about the legislative process. I have also created a resource for students to learn how to have their voices heard. I designed the Hawai‘i State Government Activity Book to provide a fun way to learn about our government. During the stay at home orders, I have distributed both a PDF version and hardcopy of the activity book to all of the elementary schools in my district to supplement the students' learning. Finally, I know how important hands-on experience is for our students so for the past eight years I have had a high school internship program in my office for students who are interested in getting involved in our government. As one of the co-conveners of the national Women’s Legislative Caucus I have pushed for a formal internship program within the capitol and have been working with a committee to launch this initiative.
Childcare & Early Childhood Education
Provide greater access and affordability for early childhood education and care.
Incentivize onsite childcare facilities at businesses in our state through tax credits.
Fully-fund universal pre-k for Hawaii’s working families.
Create a grant program for teachers who receive a degree in early childhood education at the University of Hawaii system and commit to stay in Hawaii and teach at an Executive Office of Early Learning preschool.
Create dependent care flexible spending accounts for private workers to have the benefit of using pre-tax dollars for dependent care expenses which is currently only available to public employees.
As a mother of two I understand the importance and am a strong advocate for early childhood education. An area that needs to be addressed is the access and the cost of childcare and early childhood education. For many families childcare is one of their biggest expenses after their rent or mortgage, and for some the top expense. According to PATCH in 2019 the average cost of childcare per child in Hawaii is around $14,000 a year per child. This is an area that desperately needs to be addressed in order to help our local families with the high cost of living.
I have introduced legislation to create dependent care flexible spending accounts for private workers. Currently, only state employees have the benefit of using pre-tax dollars for dependent care expenses and I believe that the privilege of doing so should be extended to all taxpayers in Hawaii. I also would support increasing the existing flex spending amounts for state and city workers.
Employers should receive a tax credit for providing on-site childcare. I have introduced legislation many times, most recently in this year’s legislative session to provide businesses tax credits for on-site childcare. Businesses should be rewarded for making childcare more convenient for working families and this legislation would help incentivize more businesses to create on-site childcare options. dependent care tax credit to help alleviate the high costs of childcare, preschool, and other expenses.
Increasing access to high quality preschool and childcare is a top priority. As the mother of a three year old and a six-month old, I know firsthand how expensive childcare is and how necessary it is in order for my husband and I to support our family and dedicate adequate time to our careers. I’ve introduced or signed onto dozens of pieces of legislation relating to preschool and childcare and have been a consistent supporter of organizations dedicated to this cause.
Environment
Create state-of-the-art website for environmental impact statement resources so people can easily weigh in on important projects.
Protect agricultural lands and water resources.
Invest in clean, renewable energy that fits the area’s needs.
Preserving open space and investing in shoreline rehabilitation.
Implement policies to reduce and or eliminate invasive species.
Environmental stewardship and economic prosperity go hand-in-hand. Throughout my time in the legislature I’ve favored legislation to protect our environment and ensure Hawai‘i stays on its goal of becoming fossil fuel free by 2045. Our islands are among the most important gifts we have a duty to leave them to our children better off than when we found them. One of the ways I have found that we can continue stewarding our environment is by creating an environmental impact statement website to give residents an easy and intuitive way to search for major projects around our islands. And once this website is implemented, we shouldn’t stop from increasing transparency and including the public in the decision making process in other areas of the environment. I also will do everything in my power to ensure the State boldly leads in the country by protecting our agricultural lands, water resources, and sticks to our timeline of becoming fossil free by 2045.
We can and should work with economists and the environmental community to maintain and preserve the natural environment that makes Hawai’i such a special place to live. We must lead the way for clean energy solutions in Hawai’i in order to reap the economic benefits of environmental progress and achieve our mission of protecting Hawai‘i’s fragile environment.
Watching the situation unfold surrounding Mauna Kea it is clear that there is a strong disconnect between the State and the public in the process for approving projects like the Thirty Meter Telescope. There is an obvious flaw in the current process. Often, community members never know that an extensive project like the TMT or the Kahuku windmills are in the pipeline until the period for submitting public comment or filing Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) lawsuits is over. I drafted and submitted legislation this year that would have required the State to overhaul its EIS website and information to make it more user friendly and ensure people could search for projects in their area or by topic (e.g. a user could search by “Oahu North Shore” or “windmills”) and allow them to sign up for email notifications so they are aware of new projects. This bill was moving through the legislative process until the capitol was shut down due to COVID-19. This is much needed legislation that I plan to introduce again next legislative session. A law like this would effectively give people a stronger, more proactive voice in the decision making during the process, instead of learning about projects after they have been finalized.
Cost of Living
Make food and medical services exempt in order to help families afford their everyday necessities.
Repeal the income tax for minimum wage earners and lower rates for the middle class.
Invest additional dollars in high-density residential infrastructure in our urban core.
Update the State’s financial database system to provide greater transparency and accountability so taxpayer dollars are spent wisely.
Increase access to and reduce the cost of early childhood education which is often one of the highest cost burdens for families after housing.
Since I have held office, addressing the high cost of living in Hawaii has been a top priority. In light of COVID-19, the economy and the cost of living are more important than ever. I have introduced several bills to address the high cost of living.
First, one of my main priorities is to eliminate the General Excise Tax (GET) on food, medicine, and feminine hygiene products. Hawaii is one of only a handful of states that taxes food and medicine. Removing the GET from these necessities would immediately lower daily living costs for individuals and families in a wide range of income levels. This measure would go a long way in helping local families and benefit the community as a whole.
In addition to reducing the GET burden, removing the income tax for minimum wage earners and reducing rates for the middle class would go a long way to helping working families in Hawaii. Our state income tax rates are some of the highest in the nation, and working residents must pay nearly 7% marginal rates even if they’re working a minimum wage job. Removing the income tax for minimum wage earners and reducing it for the middle class rewards the hard working men and women in our communities and would give families additional funds to save, invest, or spend in the local economy.
It is also essential to increase access to and reduce the cost of early childhood education through initiatives such as more teacher certification opportunities to address the teacher shortage within early learning and out-of-the-box solutions like tax-credits for businesses that provide on-site preschool for their employees and allowing taxpayers to spend pre-tax dollars on child care expenses including daycare, after school programs, and in-home care, thus reducing total taxable income. This is important for many families because childcare is one of the biggest expenses after rent or mortgage. According to PATCH Hawaii, in 2019 the average cost of childcare per child in Hawaii is around $14,000 a year. As the mother of a three year old and a seven-month old, I know firsthand how expensive childcare is and how necessary it is in order for my husband and I to support our family and dedicate adequate time to our careers. This is an area that desperately needs to be addressed in order to help our local families with their monthly expenses.
These examples are initiatives that can provide instant relief for our families, especially those affected by the economic fallout from the COVID-19 crisis. In addition to these measures there are other long-term and structural issues we need to continue to address. The high cost of housing in Hawaii is one of the largest contributors to our cost of living and needs long-term, dedicated solutions to ensure our future generations can afford to stay in Hawaii. We also need to look at our education system, especially higher education, to ensure our keiki are being prepared for future careers and will be ready to help diversify Hawai‘i’s economy. I’ve spent the last eight years dedicated to reducing our high cost of living and would be honored to continue working toward making Hawaii more affordable for our valued residents.
