KITV4: Hundreds of citizens turn out for opening day of Hawaii Legislature
January 17, 2024 | By Diane Ako
HONOLULU (Island News) — Hundreds of people in the community came to the State Capitol on Wednesday morning. For some, it was a real-life lesson in government. For others, it was a way to show support for the Legislature on this opening day. And for many, it was a chance to meet lawmakers who will be voting on bills that impact various industries.
Opening day brings energy and enthusiasm from many segments of society. Some, like nonprofit Hawaii Workers Center, set up a booth to educate passers-by about the working middle class.
Tom O’Malley explained, “I’m just here doing a demonstration on how wealth is distributed in the country,” while referencing plastic slices of pie and plates labeled with various income brackets. He was also giving out real pie to anyone who wanted to play his guessing game. O’Malley’s hopes for this session are “just that the Legislature represents the average person in Hawaii.”
After the long actors and writers strike last year, the local Screen Actors Guild president says she’ll be lobbying for bills that boost the local entertainment industry.
Andrea Sikkink says SAG-AFTRA will be “watching the ones that’ll increase our tax credit and our competitiveness in the market. There’s a lot of other states offering tax credits.”
The Chamber of Commerce Hawaii has more than 2,000 member companies statewide that employ 200,000 workers. It’s following any bills that affect businesses and the workforce.
President & CEO Sherry Menor-McNamara details, “Our legislative agenda focuses on the cost of doing business, cost of living, work-based learning opportunities, addressing a workforce shortage, and help rebuild Hawaii’s economy.”
The Hawaii Alcohol Policy Alliance (HIAPA or The Alliance) plans to oppose bills this session that advance alcohol industry-initiated bills. It’s concerned about any laws that “would loosen alcohol regulations for their financial gain at the expense of the community’s well-being,” according to its spokesperson.
As the statewide organization dedicated to advocating for evidence-based, responsible alcohol policies to create safer communities, HIAPA returns to the Capitol — along with Mothers Against Drunk Driving and others — to urge passage of legislation to prevent alcohol-related traffic fatalities and injuries, specifically a bill to lower the legal blood alcohol concentration (BAC) for driving from 0.08 to 0.05 percent. This is the fourth consecutive session HIAPA has supported such a bill.
New this year, metal detectors and security screeners if one wanted to get in the chambers or the offices. At times, the line was dozens of people deep.
Some of our youngest citizens came out to not just to learn, but to teach. Malama Honua Charter School students practiced the traditional way of making pa’i ‘ai or hand-pounded poi, and honored the 2011 law that lets pa’i ‘ai be sold without a Department of Health permit. Ku’i at the Capitol, it’s called.
Jace Inagaki is an eighth grader at Malama Honua Charter School and took a break from poi pounding to say, “Today’s a representation of the pa’i ai movement which is what we now know as Ku’i at the Capitol. This is how we celebrate and make our practices are more available to others.”
But the simple act of being here also sparked a civics interest in some of these students, like Inagaki, who says, “We’re focused on Hawaiian cultural practices. Being here, it makes me more passionate about partaking in cultural practices and how fortunate I am to be able to do it.”
