(AP) — The Hawaiʻi Senate has passed legislation that would increase the income tax paid by Hawaiʻi’s top wage earners to 16% from 11%. The hike would apply to individuals earning more than $200,000 a year and would give the islands the highest state income tax rate in the nation. The bill cites a need to maintain essential government services at a time when the pandemic has led state tax revenues to shrink. The measure now heads to the House for consideration. California now has the highest income tax rate in the nation, at 13.3% for individuals earning more than $1 million a year.

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