Deal would increase military, transportation spending in Hawaii
A year-end spending bill before Congress includes $250 million for the Honolulu rail transit project, $171.6 million for highway maintenance and construction of bridges, roads, and bike and pedestrian paths, and $42.2 million for bus and transit fundingwhich will distributed among the state and counties for public transportation operations. (Star-Advertiser file)
Hawaii stands to gain from a year-end spending bill being hashed out in Congress this week.
U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz, a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, said today that under a bipartisan deal, defense spending in the islands will increase by more than $200 million in fiscal 2016, while federal transportation spending will increase by about $10 million.
The Defense Department spending includes $123.8 million for a new Behavioral Health and Dental Clinic at Schofield Barracks, $122.1 million to replace a Medical/Dental Clinic at Marine Corps Air Station Kaneohe Bay, $30.6 million to consolidate the electric grid at Kauai’s Pacific Missile Range Facility, and $46 million for a new F-22 fighter alert facility at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam to strengthen the readiness of the Hawaii Air National Guard, according to Schatz’s office.
Total military construction spending in Hawaii for fiscal 2016 would be $444 million under the current proposal.
Transportation funding for Hawaii includes $250 million for the Honolulu rail transit project, $171.6 million for highway maintenance and construction of bridges, roads, and bike and pedestrian paths, and $42.2 million for bus and transit funding which will distributed among the state and counties for public transportation operations.
“I’m pleased we were able to help secure an across-the-board increase in federal investments for Hawaii,” Schatz (D, Hawaii) said in a news release. “I know that people are paying particular attention to defense and transportation, and we did exceptionally well there.”
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The House and Senate are expected to vote on year-end tax and spending bills later this week.
8 responses to “Deal would increase military, transportation spending in Hawaii”
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Without much fanfare or grand standing, Senator Schatz is quietly and systematically doing a great job for Hawaii and for the US Senate. He is already stronger and more productive than most of the rest of the senate and he is gaining momentum and elevated status daily.
Main Street can always count on a Democrat to get things done, while the Republicans continues the mudslinging.
Hanabusa scares me with her very dark past. I am glad Schatz is in. He is a decent sort of person. Military spending continues to prop the house of cards economy out here. That and fragile tourism.
About 99% of what the Federal government gives Hawaii will end up in some leader’s pocket.
What are you talking about…besides verbalizing ingnorance?
(SIC)
According to estimates by the Joint Committee on Taxation, the cost of the bill extending the tax breaks alone is $621 billion over 10 years, all of which will be added to the deficit. So the phony “deficit hawk” Republicans have shown their true colors again. Who cares about deficits, as long as the beneficiaries are the 1%?
Great news any time military spending in Hawaii goes up.