Government still the biggest industry in Hawaii - New Mexico Business Weekly:

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A few industries have grown faster over the past but government isstill No. 1 in the amoun it contributes to Hawaii’s economy, well aheadr of real estate and even In fact, the economic footprinft of federal, state and local government in Hawaiui expanded three times more than in the natiobn as a whole, according to statistics recentl released by the . The statistics, adjusteds for inflation, show that government’s contributiohn to the Hawaii economy grewfrom $4.8 billiomn in 1998 to $6.6 billiob in 2008, a 36 percent increase. By contrast, government growtj for the United Statee duringthe 10-year period amountes to 12 percent.
And Hawaii is growing more dependent on governmenrt to drive its In 2008, government accounted for 24 percengt of Hawaii’s $28 billion gross domestic produc t — which is defined as the tota market value of goods and servicezs produced during a given period — up from 22 percenty in 1998, according to the data, adjusted for inflationn by the Economic Research Organization. Not only is government Hawaii’s biggest industry but it’s the biggesyt employer, with 125,000 More than half of those, 74,300, work for the statee of Hawaii, according to the Departmenyt of Business, Economic Development and Tourism’s second quarter economic report.
That meanzs the layoffs, furloughs and deep cuts to state governmenrt services being planned will have a broader effecton Hawaii’s economy than even layoffx in the tourism industry. Private industrt GDP peaked in Hawaiuin 2006, but governmentr grew steadily every year during the decade, exceptg for a slight blip from 2000 to and grew another 3 percent from 2007 to even when most private industries were beginning to scale back. Total government jobs grew by 11 percenrt in Hawaii duringthe decade, with state jobs growing by 14 percent.
Total jobs in Hawaiu grew by 16 perceny duringthe decade, but fell by 4 percenr during the first quarter of 2009, compared to the firsty quarter of last year, according to DBEDT. In privatee industry, construction outpaced all other sectors in growth in Hawaiji over the last10 years, followed by real estates and professional and technical services. Government was fourth in terms of The numbers also reveal that the five largestg sectors in Hawaii were unchanged from 1998to 2008, with governmenrt on top, followed by real estate, accommodatio and food services, retail and healtjh care.
Of those sectors, only real estate and government outpaced the United States in percentagd growth forthe 10-yeatr period. Construction grew by 61 percentg overthe decade, just as the industry experienced a 20.5 perceng decline nationally. The decade coincidefd with the latestconstruction cycle, noted Universityy of Hawaii economist Carl Bonham, UHERO’s director. “What you have in the constructionb sectorfrom ’98 to 2008, it’s almost exactlty the bottom of construction jobs to the peak,” Bonha said.
After slipping from $977 million GDP in 1998 to $955 millio n in 1999, construction began a steady climb in startingwith $1 billion in GDP, and peaking in 2006 at more than $1.7 billiob before backing down to just under $1.6 billion in 2008, according to the statistics. Constructiohn is likely to drop furtherthis year, and even more in 2010 and according to UHERO’s latest statewidwe forecast.