Hawaii Economy

Since statehood was achieved in 1959, tourism has been the largest industry in Hawaii, contributing 24.3% of the Gross State Product(GSP). New efforts are underway to diversify the economy. The total gross output for the state in 2003 was US$47 billion; per capita income for Hawaii residents was US$30,441.

Industrial exports from Hawaii include food processing and apparel. These industries play a small role in the Hawaii economy, however, due to the considerable shipping distance to other ports. Food exports include coffee, macadamia nuts, pineapple, livestock, and sugarcane. Agricultural sales for 2002 were US$370.9 million from diversified agriculture, US$100.6 million from pineapple, and US$64.3 million from sugarcane.

Hawaii is known for its relatively high per capita state tax. In the years 2002 and 2003, Hawaii residents had the highest state tax per capita at US$2,757 and US$2,838, respectively. This rate can be explained partly by the fact that services such as education, health care and social services are all rendered at the state level, as opposed to the municipal level in all other states.

Millions of tourists contribute to the collection figure by paying the general excise tax and hotel room tax. Business leaders have often considered the state’s tax burden as being too high, contributing to both higher prices and reducing tourism.

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