Josh Green in 2024 Governor's State of the State speeches


On Environment: Impose a Climate Impact Fee on visitors to the islands

The responsibility to protect Hawai'i's unique natural environment should extend to visitors to our islands. A Climate Impact Fee would provide the needed resources to protect our environment and increase awareness of the impacts of climate change. I am proposing a $25 fee on visitors when they arrive and check into a hotel or short-term rental. This modest fee--far less than the resort fees or other taxes visitors have paid for years--will generate more than $68 million every year.
Source: 2024 State of the State Address to the Hawaii legislature Jan 22, 2024

On Government Reform: Cut through red tape to quickly approve new housing projects

The process of building homes has become so complicated and costly in Hawai'i over the last three decades--fraught with unnecessary bureaucracy, impossible permitting processes, and prohibitive zoning rules--that we needed immediate action. I signed the Emergency Proclamation Relating to Housing on July 17th last year, which formed a committee of the state's leading housing experts--and empowered them to cut through red tape to approve new housing projects more quickly and easily.
Source: 2024 State of the State Address to the Hawaii legislature Jan 22, 2024

On Gun Control: Gun buyback event took almost 500 guns off the streets

In just a few hours, the Departments of Law Enforcement and Public Safety were able to get almost 500 firearms off of our streets in exchange for Foodland gift cards--with no questions asked and no ID required. We collected ghost guns, sawed off shotguns, many semi-automatic weapons, and even an Uzi--and I have asked the directors of these departments to continue holding gun buyback events on a regular basis to get more guns off the streets.
Source: 2024 State of the State Address to the Hawaii legislature Jan 22, 2024

On Health Care: $30M for loans to keep healthcare professionals in Hawai'i

The Healthcare Education Loan Repayment Program, or HELP, provides an unprecedented $30 million in educational loan repayment to health professionals to bring them to and keep them in Hawai'i. A diverse list of healthcare professions qualify for loan repayments of up to $50,000 per year--in exchange for a minimum of two years of service in Hawai'i, while they care for low-income patients in their practice.
Source: 2024 State of the State Address to the Hawaii legislature Jan 22, 2024

On Tax Reform: Index the state's tax code to provide relief from inflation

In the next phase of our plan, we will provide more tax relief--including a child and dependent tax credit totaling more than $87 million annually--so that working families with keiki can afford to live in Hawai'i and our next generation can have a future here. We will also index the state's tax code to provide all taxpayers relief from inflation--a long overdue change which will help people in every tax bracket. ["keiki" is Hawaiian for "child"]
Source: 2024 State of the State Address to the Hawaii legislature Jan 22, 2024

The above quotations are from 2024 Governor's State of the State speeches.
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Page last updated: Sep 29, 2024