August 2008

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September 2009

President's Message for Spring Come to the Biennial Convention May 30! Public Funding of Election Campaigns (Kory Payne) Bills Relating to Health Care (Joy Marshall & Suzanne Meisenzahl) Election Day Registration (Jean Aoki) Housing (Jackie Parnell) Major Challenges for 2010 Elections (Jean Aoki) Civil Unions (Jean Aoki) My Favorite Testimony Proposed Budget June 1, 2009 - May 31, 2010 (Susan Miller) Voting Rights, Incarcerated Persons (Jean Aoki) Withrdawals and Nominations (Jean Aoki) Corporate Donations (Jean Aoki) Mahalo to All the Contributors to Our Big Non-Event! Campaign to Stop Legalized Gambling Successful (Grace Furukawa & Pearl Johnson) Local Legue Reports - Honolulu (Piilani Kaopuiki) Local League Reports - Hawaii (Leilani Bronson-Crelly & Susan Dursin) Local League Reports - Kauai

Civil Unions HB 444, HD1 attempts to provide equal rights to gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgendered people by establishing civil unions; (see “A parent’s testimony). This bill passed the House crossed to the Senate, where an all-day hearing in the Judiciary and Government Operations Committee ended in a 3 – 3 tie. There is a provision in our state constitution, Article III, Section 12, which states, “Twenty days after a bill has been referred to a committee in either house, the bill may be recalled from such committee by the affirmative vote of one-third of the members to which such house is entitled.” Support for this bill seems to be there in the whole senate, but the culture of respect for the rights and powers of committees makes many senators reluctant to use their constitutional authority to override the stalemated committee. But the public deserves Senate action! Our elected leaders have taken an oath to uphold the State Constitution and equal rights for all are part of Article I, the Bill of Rights. The Bill of Rights, not majority rule, determines who is entitled to these constitutional rights. Action Needed: Call or e-mail Senator Colleen Hanabusa (586-7793; senhanabusa@capitol.hawaii.gov and your senators. Ask them to pull HB 444, HD1 from Judiciary and Government Operations and bring the bill up for a vote by the whole Senate. Ed. Note: On March 25 legislative leaders, responding to a very vocal minority, failed much of the community and left HB 444 to virtually certain death for this year. Jean Aoki

August 2008

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September 2009