The Honolulu Advertiser from Honolulu, Hawaii • 1

ISUIIO EDITION gays win anti-discrimination victory 0 JJy Kevin Dayton Advertiser Capitol Bureau Employers would be barred from discriminating against workers and prospective employees on the basis of sexual preference under, legislation cleared its last hurdle at pie state Legislature yesterday nd was sent, to Gov. John AVainee for his "We made history todav made history today," eaid William Woods, for the Cay and Lesbian Education and Advocacy Foundation and, the Cay Rights Task Force. Woods, who said he has been lobbying for such a law since 1973, said the Legislature "just protected thousands and thousands of people" from on-the-job discrimination. Opponents who swamped lawmakers with calls and letters in the last several days -predicted the measure will trigger a flood of lawsuits against employers. The opponents said lawmakers have no evidence that such a law is needed.

Both opponents and backers of the bill said they would carry the fight to the governor's office with determined lobbying efforts. Waihee has 10 days to decide if he will sign it or veto It A spokesman for Waihee declined to say If the governor favors the measure. But backers of the bill noted It has been supported by a number of organizations that answer to the governor, including the Governor's Committee on AIDS and the state Department of Health. Of the 51 House members, 14 Democrats and two Republicans voted against the measure. The bill would prohibit employers from discriminating because of "sexual preference." They already are barred from discriminating because of race, religion, sex, age, national origin, handicap, marital status, or arrest and court records.

Rep. Jim Shon, D-28th Dist (Makikl-Kalmuki), said critics of the bill were complaining because the measure would be "inconvenient" for employers. He argued that the bill "is in the spirit of Hawaii, the spirit of tolerance," and would offer everyone a "level playing field" In the workplace. House Judiciary Chairman Wayne Metcalf said opponents of the measure were using "the same tired arguments" that were raised against civil rights legislation to protect women, minorities, the elderly and the handicapped. Rep.

Gene Ward, R-22nd Dist. (Hawaii Kai-Alna Halna), said the bill undermines the Legislature's "moral authority in much the same way that the Vietnam War undermined the authority of the federal government that waged It. "The fact is, we are protecting a behavior that not everyone agrees with," he said i Ward said many businesses oppose the bill out of "litigious-ness-phobia, not homophobia," See Gays, Fage A4 Tli Honolulu rain reprieve in store mo SPORTS- saturated Qah.it for suaper- III hli prfi Hilo's Malani Player of Year Shon Malani, who led Hilo to first state high school basketball title since 1964, named Advertiser's All-State Player of the Year- HAWAII 'Friendly fire' blamed Fire from allied warplane killed Marine Lance Cpl, Frank Allen in Persian Gulf War, father says V.V i PageA3 Advertiser photo by Gregory Yamamoto Island is hit by mudslides, some flooding By Thomas Kaser Advertiser Staff Writer With the National Weather Service forecasting more rain through at least tomorrow, weather and Civil Defense officials are beginning to worry whether Oahu is heading toward a repeat of the 1987 New Year's Eve flood. "The worst is not over," National Weather Service lead forecaster Dick Sasaki said last night. "AH indications are that more rain is coming, and it's going to cause more trouble." What's causing that trouble, Sasaki said, is not the amount of new rain falling, but the amount of old rain already in the ground.

"We're not getting a record amount of tain, but we've had; continuous rain and the ground is saturated. New rain has nowhere to go but over the banks of streams and onto streets and property." i Rain fell on all islands yesterday, but Caused little damage on the Neighbor Islands, with the exception of Maui, where roads to Hana were On Oahu, the rain yesterday caused power outages, mudslides, traffic accidents and swollen streams and closed highways in Windward Oahu and East Honolulu, snarling traffic and stranding motorists for hours. The forecast fori today, tomorrow and probably Friday: more rain. A large high-pressure system that caused the rains that hit Hawaii over the weekend and through yesterday is moving away, but an equally ominous low-pressure system with more rain is developing west of the Islands. "Our computer-generated charts are telling us this low-pressure system will intensify over the next few days and possibly into the weekend, although forecasting beyond a day or two is always kind of iffy," Sasaki vV A flash flood warning remained in effect for Oahu last, night, meaning dangerous flood conditions were imminent or Throughout the day, rainfall was heavy all along the Koolau Mountains, "especially on the Windward side, where' many streams overflowed, sending water over roads and highways.

Paul Flynn sweeps mud out of his carport last night after water poured down a Niu hillside and into his home. The water gouged out the driveway below Flynn's house and washed rubble onto Kalanianaole Highway, blocking the roadway. THE WORLD i 1 Withdrawal worries The White House plays down concerns that President Bush might link the return of U.S. troops from the Persian Gulf to domestic unrest in Iraq PageDI MONEY Highway near the drive-in. Parts of the old village area of Ka-huku were evacuated about 9 last night as Malaekahana Stream spilled over its banks, police said.

An unknown number of residents were moved to a temporary shelter at Kahuku High and Intermediate School just blocks away. The old Kahuku Sugar Mill was also flooded, Kahuku police said, but there was a lull in the deluge by 9:30 p.m. Newly installed sensors in Kailua's Kawainui Marsh reported a rising water-level there, but city public works officials who were on the scene monitoring the situation were not concerned about an overflow. At 5 p.m, however, one resident of the nearby Coconut Grove reported that area's storm-drainage system had reached its capacity and was threatening to overflow. It was overflow from the marsh that caused massive flooding and millions of dollars in damage to about 600 homes in Kailua's Coconut Grove section the night of Dec.

31, 1987. See Rain, Page A4 Blue Tuesday The Dow plummets 62 points, pulled well below 2900 by IBM's blue earnings prediction and a continued rise in Inflation PageC7 Advertiser photo by Gregory Yamamoto Ambulance technicians move a woman who was injured yesterday afternoon when her car, at right, skidded on the wet Pali Highway, about a mile mauka of Waokanaka Street. WEATHER of Waikane Valley Road and parts of Kahaluu; and saturated ground conditions caused mud and rock slides on the Kapaa Quarry Road, near the Kailua Drive-In, and on the Pali Waimanalo Stream overflowed, flooding parts of Waimanalo and closing Kalanianaole Highway near Beh lows Air Force Station; Waikane Stream overflowed, causing flooding TONIGHT TODAY Continued showery, possible thundershowers; high mid 70s. low upper 60s; easterly winds 10 to 25 mph becoming i southeasterly 1 0 to 20 mph Protesters seek property tax relief Waialae-Kahala board heads delegation before City Council tomorrow l( isle, Mainland details. Page A2 THE INDEX 9 sections, 88 pages AnnLandws B4 Asia-Pacific news -Dt Classified ads 07-17 Comics, crossword, bodge C6 Edttoriais A12 Entertainment B4-e Food section E1-4 Global news 01 Horoscope C6 Letters to the editor A13 LMnfl section B1-6 Money tectkm C7-10 Obttuartes 03 PeopiecolOTn B2 Srtip arrivals, departures C1Q Sports section C1-S Stocks C8 TV schedule, highlights B4 41 percent in just a year's time, according to figures from the city Finance Department.

Overall improved residential property values increased by nearly 47 percent while apartment property valuations increased by about 41 percent But some individual Oahu residents saw their assessments jump by more than 100 percent As a result Mayor Frank Fasi has proposed dropping property tax rates for the improved residential, apartment unimproved residential, commercial and hotel and resort land-use categories. Property taxes are determined by multiplying a property's assessed value by the tax rate set by the City Council for that particular land use. At present the tax rate is $4.70 per $1,000 valuation for improved residential land and $4.95 per thousand for buildings on improved residential property. Fasi has proposed dropping those rates to $3.25 and $4.09, respectively. Waialae-Kahala Board Chairman Richard Turbin said reducing the rates is a step in the right direction.

But he said members of his board more strongly favor a bill submitted by City Councilman John De-Soto that would allow property owners to defer paying property tax increases of more than 6 per cent per year. The deferred payment would come due at the time the home is sold. The protest caught the attention of Fasi, who passed the demonstrators on his way to lunch. Although he did not address them directly, Fasi said he can sympathize with longtime residents whose property valuations have soared out of sight "because I'm in the same boat" "I bought a home in Makiki in 1959 for $39,000," Fasi said. "According to the assessment I just got, it's now worth $1.1 million," The ultimate responsibility for solving the problem of runaway land values belongs to the governor and the Legislature, who must find ways to break up land monopolies, curb real estate speculation and stem the flow of "cheap foreign dollars" into the real estate market here, Fasi said.

By David Wake Advertiser Capitol Bureau More than 40 people from various areas of Oahu staged an orderly protest at Honolulu Hale yesterday in hopes of convincing the City Council to adopt some form of property tax relief. The protest was organized by members 6f the Waialae-Kahala Neighborhood Board, although residents from several other Oahu neighborhoods also showed up to protest soaring property assessments. Oahu residents have been shocked by the latest assessment notices sent out by the city last week. The assessed value of all taxable property on Oahu grew by nearly.