Hawaii’s Top 5 Statehouse Issues?

No surprise with homelessness, housing, transportation and the economy. But the future of Native Hawaiians, too?

By /

CQ Roll Call has released its list of the top five issues in statehouses across the country.

“Everyone knows public policy in the states is more active than in Congress,” says the report. “So far this year states have passed 19,313 bills to Capitol Hill’s 150. That’s a lot of legislation.”

What’s important in Hawaii?

Concerned community member holds up sign during a Department of the Interior panel during a public meeting on whether the United States should establish a government-to-government relationship with Hawaii’s indigenous community held at the Hawaii State Capitol auditorium on June 23, 2014
A concerned member of the community speaks up at a Department of the Interior hearing on federal recognition of Native Hawaiians.. PF Bentley/Civil Beat

Homelessness, housing, transportation and the economy are the top four, according to Honolulu Star-Advertiser reporter Gordon Pang, who was consulted for the survey and offered brief explanations as to why he picked them

I’d say Pang called it right. But the fifth issue caught me a little bit by surprise: Native Hawaiians and the future.

“Native Hawaiians continue to disagree on the future of the sovereignty movement, or even whether there should be one,” he wrote. “A constitutional convention in February was fraught with conflict, disagreement and protests. Some want a ‘nation within a nation’ model, while others seek an international tribunal.”

It's our job to make sense of it all.

The decisions shaping Hawaiʻi are happening right now, which is why it’s so important that everyone has access to the facts behind them.

By giving to our spring campaign TODAY, your gift will help support our vital work, including today’s legislative reporting and upcoming elections coverage.

Donate

About the Author