Duane Shimogawa
Not only is the State Energy Office looking to grab a bigger piece of the so-called barrel tax. The state Department of Agriculture is hoping state legislators will nearly triple its share of the barrel tax from 15 cents to 42.5 cents of the $1.05 total for every barrel of petroleum that is imported to Hawaii.
The issue is expected to be debated during the upcoming legislative session.
“Some of the funds will go to restoring some lost [staff] positions and some new positions,” said Janelle Saneishi, spokeswoman for the state Department of Agriculture.
The positions it is looking to restore include clerical, plant pest technicians and noxious weed control staff.
The new positions include ag engineers, entomologists and irrigation and ag park program workers.
In addition to filling lost spots and adding new positions, Saneishi told PBN that the increased funding would go toward key new programs and developments.
They include establishing a Queen Bee Program on Kauai and in Kona on the Big Island, furthering livestock feed development and marketing the “Buy Local, It Matters, Seal of Quality” campaigns. The ag office also wants to spend money for livestock pasture improvement, which aims to increase the quality of grass-fed beef to meet local demand.
Additionally, the funds may be used for fishpond development, a bio-digester that converts food waste to animal feed and/or fertilizer, establishing mobile slaughterhouse operations on Kauai and Maui and undergoing more bio-control research, pest prevention and control efforts.
The barrel tax, which was increased from 5 cents to $1.05 cents two years ago, hiked up the price of gasoline and energy prices with the goal of funding clean-energy projects and food security efforts.
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