North Shore NewsAloha friends and neighbors!
As the dust settles on the 2025 legislative session, the real work is just beginning. While some may look to summer as a time to rest, the Hawaiʻi State Legislature is gearing up for three special sessions—each one critical to protecting our people and ʻāina from the economic chaos unleashed by the new federal administration.
Trump’s 2025 federal budget overhaul is nothing short of an attack on working people. With $3.5 billion in cuts to Hawaiʻi’s $4.6 billion in federal funding, we are staring down the dismantling of Medicaid, SNAP, public education, and other essential programs that form the foundation of our everyday lives. This is not theoretical. It is real—and the pain will be felt most acutely in places like Wahiawā and Waialua.
We must meet this moment with bold action. That’s why, even before the gavel comes down on the regular session, lawmakers, community leaders, and organizers are convening on April 9, from 5:00–7:30p.m. at the Waiwai Collective for a critical event: “Our Kuleana: Fighting for Hawai‘i’s Future.”
RSVP here: tinyurl.com/Kuleana2025
This is more than a talk story. It’s a call to action. We’ll dive deep into the progressive revenue solutions Hawaiʻi needs now—reforms that can generate over $900 million annually by asking the ultra-wealthy and large corporations to finally pay their fair share.
We’ll also strategize how to build cross-sector power to demand better from our government and break free from a 130-year-old model of dependency and extraction. Since the time of the Overthrow, Hawaiʻi’s economy has been built around the interests of a few, while our working families and our environment bear the brunt. April 9 is about reclaiming that future.
And we’re bringing this conversation home. In May, we’ll be hosting a Wahiawā–Waialua Town Hall to share updates on our special session priorities and hear directly from our neighbors about what matters most in these uncertain times. Stay tuned for the date, time, and location—because your voice will help shape the path forward.
Here’s what we’re fighting for:
A New Top Income Tax Bracket (HB 928) on households earning more than $1.9 million, to protect schools, healthcare, and kupuna care. Ending tax breaks for big corporations and closing offshore loopholes through Worldwide Combined Reporting (HB 759).
Reforming the capital gains tax, the conveyance tax, and corporate income tax so that the wealthy contribute, not extract.
Removing GET exemptions and corporate tax credits that serve private interests, not the public good.
This is our kuleana. In the face of federal abandonment, we have everything we need to care for one another and for this land—we just need the political will to build it.
Let’s rise to this challenge together. I hope to see you on April 9, and again in May for our town hall. We can build a Hawaiʻi where public money serves public needs, where local people thrive, and where the ʻāina is protected for future generations. But it’s going to take all of us.