Josh Green has pumped up his state spending request for the next two fiscal years by almost $2.5 billion, updating a plan released in December that was largely prepared by his predecessor. Green’s revised budget proposal reflects, and adds details to, some spending priorities he highlighted in his State of the State speech, delivered in January. In a message to the Legislature explaining his new spending requests, Green said, “Our greatest ongoing challenge is the lack of affordable housing, which is the biggest factor affecting Hawaii’s cost of living. This initial spending plan from Green included only a few large high-priority requests inserted by the new governor, who was elected Nov. 8. “We hope to use the budget surplus to fund many unmet needs identified by the governor and the House.”Jacob Aki, director of communications for the Senate, deferred comment on the additional budget requests because many are still being reviewed.

Source: The Star February 21, 2023 02:09 UTC