Several bills before the Hawaii State legislature aim to make our very own Hilo Hawaii more appealing to aerospace and space tourism companies. Is this pie in the sky or a new era for high tech in Hawaii? According to an article in the Washington Examiner:
Hawaii Island is already at the center of the state’s aerospace industry, and the University of Hawaii-Hilo has been selected as the site of a proposed lunar research center where new technologies can be tested in environments that replicate outer space.
Now two proposals before a House and Senate conference committee would allow the state to make the Big Island even more attractive to aerospace and lunar transportation companies. A third would allow the state to invest in aerospace tourism.
One bill seeks to give tax incentives to companies in an attempt to encourage them to come here:
Another bill creates a special district in downtown Hilo that will use state and county tax incentives to draw major aerospace companies to Hawaii Island.
While another bill seeks to change who controls the funding to PISCES and increase the amount of funding:
A different proposal would provide more flexibility and funding to the Pacific International Space Center for Exploration Systems, or PISCES. The center is currently under UH-Hilo, but this proposal would transfer oversight to the state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism.
Now I’m not against making Hawaii more attractive to aerospace and space tourism companies. But why not make Hawaii more attractive to all companies especially the ones that have been here for generations? Why should a select group of companies get tax incentives and funding, while other companies are left to struggle with high taxes and lots of red tape?