Meeting/Event Information

Supply-Side Constraints of Hawaii’s High Cost of Doing Business

Being a small-island economy, Hawaii faces natural constraints that increase costs, yet many supply constraints are due to policies and regulations that can be modified. These policies exacerbate price pressures if the economy is unable to increase the supply of goods and services. They result in more money chasing after a fixed amount of goods, driving up prices and reducing affordability. Policies aimed at increasing incomes can be counter-productive if the economy cannot respond by increasing supply. 

This year, the HEA Annual Conference will investigate why Hawaii’s economy has a hard time supplying certain goods and being responsive to the price mechanism. We will identify the “natural” and “created” constraints facing key sectors of the economy and highlight real life experiences from business owners, academics and government officials working in Hawaii that have studied these problems.

Panel 1, 8:30 a.m. – 10:00 a.m. : Supply-side constraints to operating a business: the perspective of restaurateurs large and small

Panel II, 10:15 a.m. – 11:45 a.m. : Supply-side constraints to expanding residential housing

Panel III: 1:00 p.m. – 2:30 p.m. : Supply-side constraints to local agriculture

Panel IV: 2:45 p.m. – 4:15 p.m. : Hawaii Economic Forecasting Panel