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<title>Daily Smile: Thursday, April 16, 2026</title>

Poor cat...

Daily Smile: Thursday, April 16, 2026

Kam Napier Headshot

A. Kam Napier

Columnists

Government & Politics

Looking only at state and local taxes, not federal taxes, a 

 of the 50 states puts Hawai‘i at the top of its ranking for overall tax burden, with 13.3% of our total personal income getting hoovered up by the state and county governments.

[{"type":"text","text":"Alaska was lowest at 4.92%. "}]

The biggest portion of our tax burden, at 7.48% of total personal income, is our compounding GET, giving us the nation's highest sales and excise tax burden. ASD explained 

Second largest burden is individual state income taxes, at 3.2% of total personal income. It's the nation's 7th highest income tax burden and lawmakers are fighting tooth and nail to hold onto every penny. 

continues to advance through the digestive tract of the Legislature, seeking to repeal the historic income tax cuts passed in 2024. Click the link above to see who has been voting for and against this. 

 on how lawmakers could tighten government's own belt rather than pick our pockets. But ... it looks like they really, seriously just prefer to pick our pockets.

The smallest portion of our overall tax burden is property taxes at 2.62% of total personal income.

People believe a lot of odd things about our relatively low property taxes. I recently heard a fellow come before my McCully-Mō‘ili‘ili Neighborhood Board to elicit its support for a resolution that would call for a punitive property tax on vacant lots. He argued that property taxes are "artificially low," and therefore we could impose an additional tax — a fine, really, in spirit — on property owners who weren't doing anything with their lots but leaving them sitting empty, undeveloped, leading to blight.

I've heard people opine that our property taxes are low as a give-away to real estate investors, or to evil developers. 

[{"type":"text","text":"None of this is true."}]

Our property taxes are not artificially low. They're relatively low because, uniquely in the nation, Hawai‘i does not pay for public schools through property taxes. It pays for them through state taxes, so that cost — the DOE has an annual operating budget of $2.18 billion — appears on our income and GET bill.

This, by the way, has not stopped the government education set from 

wanting a dedicated property tax all to itself 

on top of what it already gets from the state general fund. People responsible for creating the nation's highest excise and sales tax burden forget that they've done so, then look at our property tax burden and think, "Hey! You people can afford to pay more!"

The WalletHub report shows us something else interesting about property taxes, which that plenty of states have a burden comparable to Hawai‘i and yet somehow still manage to pay for their schools with that money on top of whatever city services those taxes fund. Kentucky has a property tax burden of 1.95%, versus our 2.62%. Minnesota's property tax burden is 2.47%, lower than ours.

Well, with that, Happy Tax Day, Hawai‘i! You gave your all, more than any other Americans.

A. Kam Napier is editor in chief of Aloha State Daily. His opinions in Pipikaula Corner are his own and not reflective of the ASD team.

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Taxes by state

<title>Pipikaula Corner: Congratulations, Hawai‘i, we're No. 1! In local taxes!</title>

A walletHub analysis of state and local taxes puts Hawai‘i at the top.

Pipikaula Corner: Congratulations, Hawai‘i, we're No. 1! In local taxes!

Christian Shimabuku Headshot

Christian Shimabuku

Sports

When the University of Hawai‘i football program's coaches decided to shelf returning starting quarterback Micah Alejado for the vast majority of the team's 

, that meant the signal-callers behind him were about to receive a windfall of live reps during practice sessions. 

Following the departures of Luke Weaver and Dermaricus Davis via the 

 following the 2025 season, only two quarterbacks other than Alejado were on the UH roster this spring following movement in the transfer portal, and both were new to campus in January. Bjorn Jurgensen joined the Rainbow Warriors after redshirting at the University of Virginia in the fall, while O‘ahu native 

 enrolled early after graduating from Bishop Gorman High School in Las Vegas. 

In his first year as UH's quarterbacks coach, Chad Kapanui built a room full of rapport, where the four players in the position group became close friends and spent ample time with each other off the field. With Alejado the lone returner in the group, the spring semester figured to be a time where Jurgensen and Eugenio would compete with each other on the field while building a bond off it. 

Though they're both freshmen competing for the same spot, both Eugenio and Jurgensen spoke respectfully of each other throughout the spring and offered each other pointers on the field. It turns out the two go back a much longer way than converging on the UH-Mānoa campus in January. 

"It's funny. We've known each other for a while and it's just a pretty cool, full circle moment, just to be here with him and compete with him," Jurgensen told Aloha State Daily of Eugenio. "We're both getting each other better, and it's been really fun."

Says Eugenio of Jurgensen: "We actually met each other in the sixth grade at a competition. I love seeing him out here. He's a good dude. Love competing with him, love throwing with him, love doing drills with him. It's just great. We both get each other better every day, and I'm just blessed."

In the summer of 2018, the Jurgensen and Eugenio families were among the many across the country to make the trip to Fayetteville, Ga. for The Duel, a national competition put on by NFA Quarterback Academy, which attracts the nation's best QBs across a bevy of age groups. 

The two-day competition was measured by an intricate point system that was out of 100. A 10-year-old Eugenio wowed onlookers with 50-yard throws and won the sixth grade division with 94 points. He was the event's highest finisher, surpassing the point totals of all the high schoolers at the event. Not far behind was Jurgensen, the runner-up in the division. The top three finishers posed for a photo afterwards. 

Eight years later, the paths of Eugenio and Jurgensen brought each of them to UH, where they'll both vie to be Alejado's backup for the 2026 season. That competition has carried over from spring ball to 

The Rainbow Warriors are unlikely to release a depth chart until the week of their 2026 opener at Stanford on Aug. 29, but Kapanui says each present plenty to like. 

"When you're looking for a quarterback in the recruiting process, you got to look for someone that has everything from a high IQ, could throw the ball well and the ball jumps out of their hands. Both of those guys are guys that can throw it and sling it," Kapanui says of Eugenio and Jurgensen. 

"Those guys want to learn. When you recruit a quarterback and they're willing to learn, to come into the meeting room and always want to sit down and ask questions, that's so important for this offense. They're doing a great job, they're coming in trying to learn the offense, and it's been good the whole time working with them."

Maika Eugenio Bjorn Jurgensen 041526

<title>Former competitors Maika Eugenio and Bjorn Jurgensen now Hawai‘i teammates</title>

After meeting at a youth camp in Georgia in 2018, the two freshmen quarterbacks have reunited as Rainbow Warriors.

Former competitors Maika Eugenio and Bjorn Jurgensen now Hawai‘i teammates

Stephanie Salmons Headshot

Stephanie Salmons

Real Estate

The City and County of Honolulu has acquired a Chinatown property in an effort to expand housing opportunities in Honolulu's urban core.

Located at 175 N. Pauahi St., on the corner of North Pauahi and River streets, the property measures 8,231 square feet — about 0.19 acre. It was acquired for $4.52 million, an announcement Wednesday from the city's Department of Housing and Land Management notes.

Kevin Auger, director of the city's Department of Housing and Land Management, told Aloha State Daily in an emailed response to questions that the acquisition has been in progress for about seven months, after the seller's broker first reached out to the city in April 2025 to gauge interest in the property.

City representatives visited the site in May 2025, and a purchase and sale agreement was executed last November, he says. The sale closed on April 1.

Auger says the acquisition was funded by appropriations for affordable housing under the city's capital improvement program. Specifically, he notes, the funding comes from the Affordable Housing Mixed-Use Development program, which supports land acquisition, development and related infrastructure improvements to expand housing.

According to Auger, the city has determined that the project will proceed as a rehabilitation of the existing structure, managed by DHLM. The city is currently working to engage a construction team that will help determine the project schedule, scope and cost. 

According to the city, the property is "currently significantly underutilized," with only four of 42 existing residential units occupied.

"Through this acquisition and planned redevelopment, the city plans to bring these units back into productive use, increasing housing availability in a high-demand area," the announcement notes. "In the near term, the city will focus on site stabilization and property management, followed by planning for renovation and construction. The goal is to return the existing units back to the market as quickly as possible while planning for additional affordable housing on the site."

Auger says that once the initial design development of the project is finished, the city will be in a better position to offer a construction timeline and target date for the units to return to the market.

Focusing on housing in Honolulu's urban core allows the city to "

make the most efficient use of existing infrastructure, including transit, utilities, and public services," he told ASD.

And areas like Chinatown and Iwilei are centrally located, close to jobs and well-served by transit, which Auger says makes them ideal for expanding housing opportunities "where people can live, work and access services without long commutes."

The focus on housing in the urban core is by design.

"Our 2025–2028 Strategic Housing Plan prioritizes increasing housing production along the Skyline rail corridor," Auger says. "The Department of Planning and Permitting has been working on transit-oriented development (TOD) plans in neighborhoods around rail stations for 10-15 years. These are comprehensive plans that have undergone robust community engagement and have been approved by City Council. The administration is now activating these plans. These are the areas that makes the most sense for future housing development: infrastructure can be aligned to support development, they provide allow for the creation of walkable neighborhoods with convenient access to job centers, allowing households to be less reliant on automobiles and in return reducing greenhouse emissions.”

This is the latest move the city has made in an effort to address housing needs across the island.

Partnering with the development community to build housing on city-owned lands is another component of the three-year 

Preferred negotiating partners have already been selected for the redevelopment of a number of city-owned properties, including 

Most recently, the city announced in March that it had 

 for the redevelopment of the former Dee Lite Bakery site in Kalihi.

Located across from the future Mokauea Skyline station, the city acquired the property at 1930 Dillingham Blvd. and 1907 Eluwene St. for about $8.4 million in 2019 "as part of a long-term effort to secure land for affordable housing near transit," the city said then.

Housing continues to be a major challenge in the Islands. Hawai‘i Housing Finance and Development Corp.'s 

, found that Hawai‘i needs an estimated 64,490 additional housing units by 2027 to meet demand.

175 n pauahi 041526

<title>City acquires Chinatown property for future housing, redevelopment</title>

The property, located at 175 N. Pauahi St., was acquired on April 1 for $4.52 million.

City acquires Chinatown property for future housing, redevelopment

Square Mike Brestovansky Headshot RGZ3736 Large

Michael Brestovansky

A proposal to prohibit corporate political donations could also prohibit contributions by workers’ unions, some unions argue.

, which passed third reading in the state House of Representatives Tuesday, challenges the verdict of Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, a 2010 U.S. Supreme Court case that found that it is unconstitutional to pass laws prohibiting political spending by corporations.

Nonetheless, SB2471 attempts to do just that, albeit through a technicality: while the Citizens United verdict found that impinging on a corporation’s First Amendment 

 is unconstitutional, limits on a corporation’s 

 are not. Therefore, the bill’s language specifies that a corporation recognized in Hawai‘i can only wield powers granted by the state.

Those state-authorized “artificial-person powers” would include the power to sue, to purchase and own property, to make contracts, lend money and more. They explicitly exclude the power to “engage in election activity or ballot-issue activity.”

 removed language that differentiates charitable and political donations, which Rep. Scot Matayoshi (D-Kāne‘ohe) said at the time would allow nonprofits and unions to make political donations while still preventing corporations from doing so. However, several unions have opposed the measure out of concern that the bill still limits their ability to engage in elections.

Jeffrey Masatsugu, representing the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades District Council 50, submitted testimony 

 opposing the measure, writing that it is unclear whether trade unions will be prohibited from taking electoral action.

Masatsugu pointed to language in the latest versions of the measure that allow incorporated nonprofits to carry out “election activity” via candidate and noncandidate committees. Whether that applies to unions, however, is an open question, Masatsugu wrote, but the state statutes regarding unincorporated nonprofits can be interpreted to apply to trade unions, which would leave them unable to make political donations.

Two other construction unions — the Hawai‘i Building and Construction Trades Council and the Plumbers and Fitters UA Local 675 — also opposed the measure on similar grounds.

However, other prominent unions — including the Hawai‘i Government Employees Association, the largest union in the state — have remained mum on the measure one way or the other.

Nonetheless, the bill still has at least one staunch opponent: the state Department of the Attorney General, which has repeatedly warned that the measure will most likely provoke a legal challenge at cost to the state taxpayer.

Last week, the Attorney General also argued against the argument that stripping a corporation of its power is different from stripping it of its rights. In a letter, the Department of the Attorney General called that “an untested legal theory … that collapses in upon itself upon further examination.

“The operative theory behind this bill is that states have the ability to define corporate powers and can strip certain powers to speak based upon the content of that speech,” read the AG’s letter. “This bill then contradicts its own theory by saying that foreign corporations authorized to transact business in Hawai‘i … are also subject to the provisions of the bill. However, Hawai‘i has no ability to define the corporate powers of foreign corporations.”

Nonetheless, the bill passed third reading in the House on Tuesday with only two representatives — Republicans Garner Shimizu and Elijah Pierick — voting against it.

[{"type":"text","text":"The HGEA did not respond to Aloha State Daily’s requests for comment."}]

 For the latest news of Hawai‘i, sign up 

State capitol 022725

<title>House passes anti-corporate-election-spending bill</title>

Bill that would strip from corporations the power to make political donations is on the cusp of passing, despite Attorney General's warnings.

House passes anti-corporate-election-spending bill

Business & Tourism

Food & Dining

Zippy's Restaurants and Diamond Bakery have collaborated to create a limited release, specially marked box of Original Hawaiian Soda Crackers in celebration of milestone anniversaries in 2026.

The collab commemorates Zippy's 60th and Diamond Bakery's 105th anniversaries.

Each limited box also will include a Zippy's coupon for 50% off a large chili with rice, redeemable at all Zippy's locations, including those in Nevada, the restaurant said in an announcement Wednesday.

You'll only be be able to find the special boxes, which include eight sleeves of soda crackers, in the Islands, available for purchase at retailers where Diamond Bakery Soda Crackers are sold, 

"The friendship between Zippy’s and Diamond Bakery spans Zippy’s lifetime," Zippy's said in the announcement. "Since its start in 1966, Zippy’s has provided its customers with Diamond Bakery Soda Crackers as a complement to their signature chili and various soup dishes. The first version of Zippy’s menu offered their customers the choice between Diamond Bakery Soda Crackers or rice to enjoy with their bowl of chili. Today, Zippy’s guests can still enjoy Diamond Bakery Soda Crackers with chili, Portuguese bean soup, and the soup of the day, continuing the long-standing relationship between the two legacy brands."

opened the first Zippy's Restaurant in Honolulu's McCully neighborhood in 1966. 

 across on O‘ahu, Maui, Hawai‘i Island and in Las Vegas.

ICYMI: Jason Higa, CEO of Zippy's parent company, FCH Enterprises, and Francis' son, recently spoke with Aloha State Daily about the restaurant's origins, legacy and more. You can 

Zippy's, which will celebrate the milestone throughout the year, kicked off its anniversary celebration in March with the launch of a new line of 

Zippy's also will introduce limited-time menu offerings and a series of collaborations with Hawai‘i-based businesses throughout the year, including collabs with Kahala, Hawaiian Island Creations, FITTED Hawai‘i, Keiki Kaukau and others, a March announcement noted. More will be announced through the year.

Just last week, Zippy's and Kahala unveiled an aloha shirt collaboration that features custom artwork inspired by the restaurant's menu. The shirts are now available at 

 is the largest cracker and cookie manufacturer in Hawai‘i, its 

. The factory shore is open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. weekdays for visitors. Visit 

Daily Smile: Thursday, April 16, 2026

ASD Staff

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Daily Smile: Thursday, April 16, 2026

Authors

ASD Staff

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