Welcome to the House Minority Caucus Website
A Message from Representative Lynn Finnegan
House Minority Leader
Aloha and welcome to the Hawaii State House Minority Caucus website.
This site will be updated regularly with news and commentary relating to
important issues and measures facing the legislature. We hope that you find this
information useful in keeping abreast of critical legislation and exciting community
events. We appreciate any feedback, questions, and concerns that you would like to express.
Contact information for our Caucus members can be found using our "members home pages"
link.
Representative Lynn Finnegan
District 32 ( Lower Pearlridge, Aiea, Halawa, Hickam, Pearl Harbor, Moanalua Gardens )
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House Minority Views
May 8th Bill Signing - Providing Justice for Victims of Crime
The Governor was joined by Attorney General Mark Bennett, county prosecutors, law enforcement officials, legislators and
victims rights advocates as she signed bills imposing stronger sentences for habitual violent felons and child predators.
Governor Lingle also signed a bill providing $2.3 million for programs providing treatment and protection for sexual
violence victims and for a program that will implement DNA testing of convicted felons.
Streamlining Hawaii's Cumbersome Wiretap Laws
(Apr. 28, 2006)The House and Senate have agreed to pass a bill that will streamline Hawaii's
wiretap laws by eliminating the adversarial hearing and making other changes that will more closely align state
law to federal wiretap law. These changes will enable prosecutors to more effectively prosecute criminals,
particularly those involved in drugs rings operating out of the state as well as criminals involved in murder,
kidnapping, criminal property damage, and organized crime. The bill strikes an appropriate balance between the
interest in enhancing police and prosecutors' ability to capture criminals and obtain convictions and the interest
in preserving individual privacy as law enforcement must still convince the court of the necessity of the wiretap
and secure a judge's approval. Representative Moses noted that "this bill will help to get criminals off the
street and protect the community."
Click here to read the full Honolulu Advertiser article.
More Access Needed to Budget Bill
(Mar. 26, 2006)Sunshine laws, which require government to make important information available to the public, are crucial to enhancing transparency in the legislative process and enabling citizens to remain informed of critical issues. Although the Legislature complies with the technical letter of the sunshine law, it often fails to act in accordance with the spirit of the law. For example, the House procedures for amending the state budget are not conducive to the aim of the sunshine law as the public is only given approximately 48 hours (the period between the first two floor votes on the budget bill) during which they can review the 200-page budget bill and the 600-page detailed budget worksheets. Representative Finnegan and Representative Moses point out that the budget:
| "is important to the people - because it affects everybody. The public should have been given more warning and notice that the budget bill was going to be online and there should have been a longer window for people to view it." |
House Republicans - Strong Supporters of Public Notice
(Mar. 19, 2006)House Republicans demonstrated their opposition to any attempts to eliminate the 48-hour public hearing
notice requirement. The Caucus also suggested increasing the notice period from 48 hours to 72 hours so that the public could have more time
to prepare testimony to submit regarding the bills on the hearing agenda. In a floor speech, Rep. Meyer noted that adequate public access to
information was a cornerstone of a fair and sound democratic process. Click here
to read the Honolulu Advertiser article.
Women of the GOP
(Mar. 8, 2006)The March 8, 2006 edition of Midweek features the coverstory: "Women of the GOP".
Representatives Corinne Ching, Lynn Finnegan, Barbara Marumoto, Colleen Meyer, Kymberly Pine, Anne Stevens, and
Cynthia Thielen discuss the unique challenges and opportunities they each encountered as women in the political
arena.
Click here
to read the full Midweek article.
Members in the News
Representative Lynn Finnegan
Biographical Data
News and Opinions
Rep. Lynn Finnegan Participates in Hanalani Schools' Public Service Project
Hanalani School embarked upon a year-long public service project aimed at providing students with in-depth insight into the work of State legislators. The program ended with a special legislative convocation on April 19 where students were able to see Senate Minority Leader Fred Hemmings and other legislators debate hot issues such as tax relief and long-term plans for traffic management. Earlier in the year, Rep. Lynn Finnegan participated in a shadowing program that enabled Hanalani students to obtain a first-hand glimpse of life at the state capitol. Rep. Finnegan also provided an interview to students, relating her experiences in the political arena thus far. Please click here to read the interview and article in the Honolulu Starbulletin.
University of Hawaii College of Social Science Public Policy Center Appoints Rep. Lynn Finnegan to the 2005 Legislator in Residence Program
The Legislator in Residence Program was established to promote collaboration between legislators and the academic community comprised of faculty, staff, and students. "The program provides a learning environment for policy makers to work with faculty and students to explore significant issues that face the community. In exchange, faculty and students benefit by working with legislators to learn how these issues can be transformed into policy." Public Policy Center Website.
Commentary
Gas Cap Commentary:
Cap Is A Bad Idea That Will Bring Us Only More Grief
Click here
to read Rep. Lynn Finnegan's analysis of the gas price cap.
The Need for Tax Relief in Hawaii
Click here
to read the Honolulu Advertiser article containing Rep. Lynn Finnegan's explanation of the urgent need for tax
relief and why the state can afford it. The article notes that during the 2005 session, Minority Caucus
members proposed a substantial increase to the standard deduction, a measure that would have significantly helped
those families struggling the most to make ends meet.
|
"Let's give the money back to the people who need it most. Let's increase the standard deduction so working
people can bring home a larger paycheck. And let's get rid of the GET on food bought at the grocery store.
These two tax deductions would cost the state $251 million - a fraction of the new $820 million surplus."
"While all of us would benefit from ending the GET on food, those among us with the least would benefit the most. That's because the lower our income, the larger the share of our income is spent on food bought in stores." |
Attorney General Reports
View the reports from the Department of the Attorney General. This site containing reports submitted to the legislature is updated regularly and currently contains reports on: Hawaii's Gasoline Industry, Electronic Commerce-Based Crimes, the Cold Case Squad (FY04-05), the Drug Nuisance Abatement Unit.