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#24486648 at 2026-04-10 22:03:18 (UTC+1)
Q Research General #29861: UMBRELLA Drops Think 'umbrella surv' MAKE IT RAIN Edition

The budget that doesn't grow

HonoluluMayor Rick Blangiardi did something remarkable early this month in releasing a city budget that came in $133 million under the previous year's budget. ASD columnist Sterling Higa looks at all four county budgets to see which counties are living within the means of their citizens.
Sterling Higa
March 30, 2026

On a Monday morning earlier this month, Mayor Rick Blangiardi sent his proposed budget for the coming fiscal year to the Honolulu City Council. The total came in $133 million less than the year before.The operating side grew by less than one percent. There were no ribbon cuttings. The press conference lasted about 40 minutes and drew a few paragraphs in the morning papers.

Had the number gone up - a record spend on city services, a bold new chapter - there would have been more headlines. The budget that doesn't grow is not a story.

What matters is whether government grows faster or slower than the income of the people paying for it.The University of Hawai?i's economic research arm, UHERO, projects personal income in Honolulu will grow about 3.7% this year. That 3.7% is the speed limit. A government budgeting above it is spending money its people haven't earned yet.

Blangiardi'soperating increase of less than 1% means city government is shrinking against the economy. That's harder than it sounds.

Union contracts alone required wage raises above 1%. He covered that and still cut the total.

The pattern elsewhere is mixed - and mostly worse. On Kaua'i, Mayor Derek Kawakami's current budget grew 8%, more than twice the county's projected income growth.

Maui's Richard Bissen is a different story.
UHERO projects Maui's income to grow about 4% this year. Bissen's proposed budget for next fiscal year rises 3.9%.That's nearly flat in real terms - a return to earth after the fire-driven spending surge.

The outlier nobody talks about is Hawai'i County Mayor Kimo Alameda.His proposed operating budget increases 1.4% against projected income growth of 3.4%.Nearly as disciplined as Honolulu,with almost no press.

Alameda governs quietly, and Hawai'i County draws less notice than Maui or Honolulu.

Blangiardi didn't cut services. He cut the budget lines for vacant jobs. With roughly one in five city jobs vacant, that pay was already sitting idle. The mayor pulled about $50 million in vacancy funding back across departments. The police chief called it tight but workable. AI tools are rolling out across city offices - not to cut jobs, but to get more done.

Blangiardi is not always easy.
Councilmembers, reporters, and slow-moving department heads have all felt the friction. But for five years, he's been the strongest check on government growth in Hawai'i. And in his 2026 State of the City address,he pledged not to raise property taxes while in office.

Government that lives within its means doesn't produce ribbon cuttings. It fills the potholes, keeps the lights on. In the oldest sense, it's a good neighbor. It doesn't always make the news.

https://alohastatedaily.com/2026/03/30/the-budget-that-doesnt-grow/

#7700231 at 2020-01-03 06:33:50 (UTC+1)
Q Research General #9854: Gonna Be Some Sweet Sounds Edition

>>7700228
Resignations in the news 1/1/2020 and 1/2/2020 - part 2


ALLEN CHAN STEPPING DOWN FROM ROBERTSON
https://www.today.duke.edu/2020/01/allen-chan-stepping-down-robertson-scholars-post

Retiring CEO John Morahan has shepherded St. Joseph through many changes
https://www.readingeagle.com/news/retiring-ceo-john-morahan-has-shepherded-st-joseph-through-many/article_9f4942f2-2341-11ea-87a0-1b5d844fed3f.html

HNN General Manager Rick Blangiardi announces he's retiring, considering run for mayor
https://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/2020/01/02/Rick-Blangiardi-hnn-general-manager-announces-hes-retiring-considering-run-honolulu-mayor/

Roberson retiring as Utah head for Bureau of Land Management
https://www.thehour.com/news/article/Roberson-retiring-as-Utah-head-for-Bureau-of-Land-14946465.php

UK bank staff fired after trying it on after IT crash
https://www.euroweeklynews.com/2020/01/02/uk-bank-staff-fired-after-trying-it-on-after-it-crash/

Macclesfield Town manager Daryl McMahon resigns from crisis club
https://www.theguardian.com/football/2020/jan/02/macclesfield-town-coach-daryl-mcmahon-resignation-crisis-club-football

Allahabad University VC resigns amid charges, says he was being hounded
https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/allahabad-university-vc-resigns-amid-charges-says-he-was-being-hounded/story-kCSZeblWcrycH9SmFjYtRL.html

Three Cong tehsil presidents resign over Patil's non-inclusion in Cabinet
http://www.uniindia.com/three-cong-tehsil-presidents-resign-over-patil-s-non-inclusion-in-cabinet/west/news/1840283.html

St. Bonaventure football coach Tony Henney announces resignation
https://www.latimes.com/sports/highschool/story/2020-01-02/la-sp-tony-henney

Board of tech group Inex to step down amid governance row
https://www.irishtimes.com/business/technology/board-of-tech-group-inex-to-step-down-amid-governance-row-1.4129045

City's Chief Constable fired
https://www.stabroeknews.com/2020/01/01/news/guyana/citys-chief-constable-fired/

Kravtsov resigns as CEO of Ukrainian Railways after criticism mounts
https://www.kyivpost.com/business/kravtsov-resigns-as-ceo-of-ukrainian-railways-after-criticism-mounts.html

Another 22nd Century executive announces resignation plans
https://www.journalnow.com/business/another-nd-century-executive-announces-resignation-plans/article_4138dca2-412b-5e3c-b5a8-01c8e2eda116.html

Traynor resigns from board of higher education
https://kfgo.com/news/articles/2020/jan/02/traynor-resigns-from-board-of-higher-education/970976/

Two Cherokee Fire Chiefs Retired At End Of 2019
https://patch.com/georgia/woodstock/two-cherokee-fire-chiefs-retired-end-2019

Controversial aide for Hamilton County commissioner resigns for 'family matters'
https://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/2020/01/02/hamilton-county-commissioners-chief-staff-resigns/2794996001/

Caleb Atemi resigns as global karate body chairman.
https://www.nation.co.ke/sports/othersports/Caleb-Atemi-resigns-as-global-karate-body-chairman/1951306-5404212-hqrlh1/index.html

Providence Councilman Seth Yurdin steps aside after 13 years
https://www.providencejournal.com/news/20200102/providence-councilman-seth-yurdin-steps-aside-after-13-years

Veteran animal control officer retiring
https://www.woodwardnews.net/news/veteran-animal-control-officer-retiring/article_1f65a330-2d5c-11ea-b9fd-9b2e86029751.html

Mathew Mustard resigns as president of Vallejo Police Officers' Association
https://www.timesheraldonline.com/2020/01/02/mustard-out-as-president-of-vpoa/