About Karl
STATE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
• First elected in 2006
• Committees
Chair, Labor & Public Employment
Education
Higher Education
Transportation
Public Safety
• Major legislation Karl passed
HB 2169 (2010) - Reduces unemployment insurance taxes by $241 million over two years. Reducing the scheduled jump in unemployment insurance rates was the Chamber of Commerce's highest priority during the 2010 legislative session. The bill passed the Legislature without a single no vote and the Governor signed it into law on March 12 in time to incorporate the changes into the first quarter unemployment insurance statements sent to Hawaii businesses. Because of the high priority placed on this legislation, it was the second bill passed during the 2010 session.
HB 667 (2007) - Provided $151 million in funding to allow the State to purchase half of the Kukui Gardens affordable housing complex and maintain affordable housing for years to come. The loss of the 857 affordable housing units at Kukui Garden would have been a major blow to working families in the 28th District and on the whole island.
• Other significant legislation Karl passed
HB 3002 (2008) - Created the offense of habitual solicitation of prostitution. This bill increases the penalty for customers of prostitutes who repeatedly patronize them. It does not alter the penalty for prostitutes themselves.
HB 1978 (2008) - Prohibits public urination and defecation in Chinatown and Downtown.
HB 61 (2009) - Requires the use of the dBC scale for the purpose of community noise control, providing better control of bass sounds than the presently used dBA scale. The Senate version of the bill, SB 605 (introduced by Senator Fukunaga), was passed into law over the Governor's veto. Unfortunately, the Administration has refused to implement this legislation.
HB 111 (2009) - Equalizes the time the State and public employees have to seek redress for overpaid or underpaid wages. Before HB 111 became law, employees had to make a claim within two years if their wages had been underpaid. The State had an unlimited period of time to bring claims against employees who had been overpaid.
HB 1984 (2008) - Prohibits consumption of alcohol in common areas of public housing complexes. The Senate companion, SB 2141 (introduced by Senator Chun Oakland), was enacted. This bill was designed to cut down on fights in public housing complexes such as Mayor Wright homes.
HB 1870 (2010) - Closed the loophole that allowed the State to invest in so-called student loan-backed auction rate securities (SLARS) as short-term investments. The State invested over $1 billion in SLARS as cash equivalents only to have the market for them freeze up. So far the State has been forced to take $250 million in losses and is stuck with SLARS with maturation dates of 2040 and later. The returns on these now long-term investments are far below what other long-term investments would yield. The Senate version of this bill, SB 2825 (introduced by Senate President Hanabusa at Karl's request), passed the Legislature and was signed into law by the Governor.
Link to State Legislature Website
• Named Freshman Legislator of the Year for 2007 by the University of Hawaii Professional Assembly.
COMMUNITY SERVICE
• Downtown Neighborhood Board, 10 years
• Chinatown Citizens Patrol, 14 years
• Pacific Gateway Center Board of Directors, 6 years
• Honolulu Tower Board of Directors, 6 years
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
• Legislative Aide, Rep. Marilyn B. Lee, 6 years
• Small business owner (solo law practice), 4 years
• Law practice, Perkin & Hosoda, 2 years
• Legislative Assistant, U.S. Rep. Eliot L. Engel, 3 years
• Legislative Aide, U.S. Rep. Louise M. Slaughter, 2 years
• Intern, U.S. Senator John F. Kerry
EDUCATION
• J.D., George Washington University (with Honors), 1996
• Summer clerk, Judge Corinne K.A. Watanabe (Intermediate Court of Appeals), 1995
• M.A., University of London, Soviet & Eastern European Area Studies, 1987
• B.A. Andrews University (History major, Chemistry minor), 1986
PERSONAL
• Happily married to Cindy McMillan for 16 years
• Basketball team, University of London, 1986-87