Update: From Seema Sueko-Low ’90

Dear Friends,

I am reaching out to all my friends and networks in the state of Hawaii to urge you to contact your elected officials as soon as possible. There are three actions I am hoping you will take:

1)      Call all your Federal elected officials (you may find them and their contact numbers here Find and contact elected officials | USAGov), and tell them you oppose Donald Trump’s order to pause all federal grants and loans.  If you work for a nonprofit organization (arts, culture, universities, hospitals, healthcare, associations, etc), your livelihood will be negatively impacted by this pause. If you work in local government, you also will be negatively impacted by this. If you need healthcare, go to the hospital, attend a university or college, visit a museum, attend a concert or play, and so on and so on, you will be negatively impacted by this. 

2)      Email or call members of the State of Hawaii House Committee on Arts and Culture and urge them to oppose HB1299. You may find their contact info here. I am pasting my email to them below. Please feel free to use this and/or personalize it.

3)      Email or call members of the State of Hawaii Senate Committee on Transportation and Culture and the Arts to urge them to oppose SB1236. You may find their contact info here. I am pasting my email to them below. Please feel free to use this and/or personalize it.

In the House of Representatives, contact the following to oppose HB1299 Measure Status Details for HB 1299

Speaker of the House Nadine Nakamura, 808-586-6100, repnakamura@capitol.hawaii.gov

Vice Speaker Linda Ichiyama, 808-586-6220, repichiyama@capitol.hawaii.gov

And all the members of the Committee on Culture and the Arts Committees

Chair: Rep Jeanne Kapela, 808-586-9605, repkapela@capitol.hawaii.gov

Vice Chair: Rep Sam Satoru Kong, 808-586-8455, repkong@capitol.hawaii.gov

Rep Andrew Takuya Garrett, 808-586-8475, repgarrett@capitol.hawaii.gov

Rep Mike Lee,  808-586-6480, replee@capitol.hawaii.gov

Rep Jackson Sayama,  808-586-6900, repsayama@capitol.hawaii.gov

Rep Julie Reyes Oda,  808-586-9730, repreyesoda@capitol.hawaii.gov

In the Senate contact the following to oppose SB1236 Measure Status Details for SB 1236

Members of the Committee on Transportation and Culture and the Arts Committees

Chair: Senator Chris Lee, 808-587-8388, senlee@capitol.hawaii.gov

Vice Chair: Senator Lorraine R. Inouye, 808-586-7335, seninouye@capitol.hawaii.gov

Senator Brandon J.C. Elefante, 808-586-6230, senelefante@capitol.hawaii.gov

Senator Dru Mamo Kanuha,  808-586-9385, senkanuha@capitol.hawaii.gov

Senator Samantha Decorte,  808-586-7793, sendecorte@capitol.hawaii.gov

Thank you for your advocacy. Please feel free to call me at 858-761-3871 if you have any questions. More details are HB1299 and SD1236 are in my earlier email below.

Finally, please spread the word to everyone you know, and feel free to call me at 858-761-3871 or email me at seemasue@gmail.com if you have questions or suggestions about any of these actions.

Mahalo,

Seema

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Seema Sueko

www.seemasueko.com

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Email for members of the House Committee on Arts and Culture:

Dear Representative ___________

I thank you for your service to the state of Hawai‘i.

I am reaching out to you in your capacity on the House Committee on Arts and Culture.  As you know, Representative Kyle Yamashita introduced HB1299 on January 23, 2025. I urge you to oppose HB1299. 

Though section 1 of the bill acknowledges that, “Art inspires,” HB1299 will ultimately damage Hawai‘i’s arts and culture sector by slashing the state’s dedicated funding. This will have a devastating effect on hundreds of local artists, thousands of our keiki and schools, the livelihoods of the those working in the supporting services engaged by and benefitting from the arts and culture community, and, perhaps most significantly, the public, who depend on the arts and access to cultural practices to, as written in the bill, “educate and challenge us to think differently, while making the world a more beautiful and interesting place.” 

Further, Representative Yamashita writes that the purpose of HB1299 is to “appropriate general funds, to, and authorize the use of federal funds for, the state foundation on culture and the arts; for performing arts initiatives; and to expand arts programming in schools,” and yet the appropriation amounts are left black, while specifying in detail the cutting of the works of art special funds one percent transfer requirement on renovations of state buildings. This does not sit right with me. If the goal is to appropriate funds, then do so. That can be done without this bill.

Please do all you can to stop HB1299.

Mahalo,

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Email for members of the Senate Committee on Transportation and Culture and the Arts

Dear Senator ____________

I thank you for your service to the state of Hawai‘i.

I am reaching out to you in your capacity on the Senate Committee on Transportation and Culture and the Arts. As you know, Senator Donovan Dela Cruz introduced SB1236 on January 23, 2025. I urge you to oppose SB1236. 

Though section 1 of the bill acknowledges that, “Art inspires,” SB1236 will ultimately damage Hawai‘i’s arts and culture sector by slashing the state’s dedicated funding. This will have a devastating effect on hundreds of local artists, thousands of our keiki and schools, the livelihoods of the those working in the supporting services engaged by and benefitting from the arts and culture community, and, perhaps most significantly, the public, who depend on the arts and access to cultural practices to, as written in the bill, “educate and challenge us to think differently, while making the world a more beautiful and interesting place.” 

Further, Senator Dela Cruz writes that the purpose of SB1236 is to “appropriate general funds, to, and authorize the use of federal funds for, the state foundation on culture and the arts; for performing arts initiatives; and to expand arts programming in schools,” and yet the appropriation amounts are left black, while specifying in detail the cutting of the works of art special funds one percent transfer requirement on renovations of state buildings. This does not sit right with me. If the goal is to appropriate funds, then do so. That can be done without this bill.

Please do all you can to stop SB1236.

Mahalo, Seema