The new legislative session is coming soon........

Check out the Public Access Room.....this is a safe place to learn about the organization and function of the legislature.
The Public Access Room in located on the fourth floor of the State Capitol, Room 401.  The staff in the Public Access Room are there to answer
your questions, help you find information and they even may help you get started in writing testimony.  If you can't go in person than give them a call at 587-0478.
Hours:
During Session:   M-F   0800-1800
                            Sat   0800-1400

Interim                M-F    0800-1700

Email:  [ email ]

You can even sign up for hearing notices to be sent to your computer or smart phone.  Go  online and sign in to the Hawaii Legislature.

HAPN will be placing health care bills on this site for your review.  There may be an all call for testimony from the nursing community. Please consider writing testimony--find your voice.

Stay informed and involved.

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Subject: Session 2012 - New Senate Procedures and Enhancements

Today is the first day of the 2012 legislative session.  You are receiving this email because you subscribe to receive Senate hearing notices electronically. The Senate appreciates your interest in the legislative process, and looks forward to your continued participation.  We’ve implemented new procedures and enhancements to help you navigate through the process; some of the key features are outlined below.

Testimony.  Beginning this session, Senate hearing notices will no longer list specific information on Senate testimony policies and procedures.  This information has been replaced with a link that will take users that access hearing notices electronically to the Legislature’s website, where policies and procedures are outlined.  This information is also displayed wherever hearing notices are posted within the Capitol building for users that view printed hearing notices.  Copies of this informational sheet are also available in the Legislative Reference Bureau’s Public Access Room, located at the State Capitol building, to members of the public who are interested in learning how to submit testimony to Senate committees.

Testimony procedures have remained largely unchanged; members of the public can still submit testimony in the same ways - using the Legislature’s website, Senate committee e-mails or fax, or hand-delivering copies to the committee clerks.

The most notable change in Senate procedures is that the deadline to submit testimony to Senate committees has been changed from 4:00pm of the day prior to the hearing to 24 hours prior to the hearing.  Testimony received after the 24 hour deadline may be considered late, and may not be posted online prior to the hearing or otherwise made available during the hearing.  

Website.  The Hawaii State Legislature's website is the key portal for those wishing to get informed and involved in the legislative process.  The website was recently redesigned to enhance citizen engagement and includes:
• Contact information for current members of the Senate and House of Representatives
• Bill and resolution text and current status information
• List of upcoming committee hearings
• Daily downloads of bills, resolutions, committee reports, and other documents
• Online testimony submittal
• Downloadable bill status reports (i.e., all bills or resolutions introduced, bills signed into law, all committee reports filed, etc.)

Create an Account
You can also create an account with the Legislature and as a registered user, you can track your own personalized list of bills and get e-mail notifications for legislative committee hearings.

Video Streams
The Legislature will continue streaming selected committee hearings live over the Internet.  A new feature this session will be live streams of the daily House and Senate floor sessions, beginning with today’s opening day sessions in both chambers.  Links to the live and archived audio and video streams are accessible from the website.

Thank you for your interest and participation in the legislative process.  If you have any questions and concerns, please contact the Senate Clerk’s office at (808) 586-6720 or by email at [ email ]