Economy
The history of Hawaiʻi can be traced through a succession of dominating industries: sandalwood, whaling, sugarcane, pineapple, military, tourism, and education. Since statehood was achieved in 1959, tourism has been the largest industry in Hawaiʻi, contributing 24.3% of the Gross State Product (GSP) in 1997. 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 Hawaiʻi residents was US$30,441.
Industrial exports from Hawaiʻi include food processing and apparel. These industries play a small role in the Hawaiʻi economy, however, due to the considerable shipping distance to markets on the west coast of the United States and ports of Japan. The main agricultural exports are nursery stock and flowers, coffee, macadamia nuts, pineapple, livestock, and sugar cane. Agricultural sales for 2002, according to the Hawaiʻi Agricultural Statistics Service, were US$370.9 million from diversified agriculture, US$100.6 million from pineapple, and US$64.3 million from sugarcane.
Hawaiʻi is known for its relatively high per capita state tax burden. In the years 2002 and 2003, Hawaiʻi 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 as all other states.
Millions of tourists contribute to the collection figure by paying the general excise tax and hotel room tax; thus not all the taxes collected come directly from residents. Business leaders, however, have often considered the state's tax burden as being too high, contributing to both higher prices and the perception of an unfriendly business climate. See the list of businesses in Hawaiʻi for more information on commerce in the state.
Until recently, Hawaiʻi was the only state in the U.S. that attempted to control gasoline prices through a Gas Cap Law. The law was enacted during a period when oil profits in Hawaiʻi in relation to the Mainland U.S. were under scrutiny, and sought to tie local gasoline prices to those of the Mainland. The law took effect in September 2005 amid price fluctuations caused by Hurricane Katrina. The Hawaiʻi state legislature suspended the law in April 2006.
Sandwich Islands
The Sandwich Islands was the name given to Hawaii by Captain James Cook on his discovery of the islands on January 18, 1778. The name was made in honour of one of his sponsors, John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich, who was at the time the First Lord of the Admiralty and Cook's superior officer. During the late 19th century, the name fell into disuse.
The Sandwich Islands should not be confused with the South Sandwich Islands, an uninhabited British dependency in the southern Atlantic Ocean.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/
