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IATSE665

IATSE665
In Message from the President

Message from the President

Aloha Kakou, members of Local 665

ORGANIZE NON-UNION SHOWS:

Cirque Du Soleil: One of the time-honored organizing tactics is for our members to apply for and get hired on a non-union show to then demand representation.

Much of this month has been spent at the State Capitol – crafting testimony, attending/testifying at hearings, meeting with legislators, or convening with allies at the Hawaii Film & Entertainment Board (HFEB), or the Council of Hawaii Entertainment Unions (CHEU). 

At the midpoint of this year’s session, there were nearly 800 bills still alive. Things start to speed up now. Crossover deadline was March 7th – all bills needed to be heard and passed all committee hearings in their original chamber as well as pass three readings on the chamber floor. Any bill that hasn’t gotten to this point is considered dead. March 22nd was the Second Lateral deadline for Bills – bills have to be moving to their final committee by this date or they’re considered dead. Many bills were either not scheduled, did not meet deadlines, or were deferred in committee.. I’ve been advocating for our industry at county, state, and federal levels for anyone that has ears to hear and eyes to see. Here’s an update on bills of interest.

ACTIVE Bills:

  • HB 2802 – ConAm relating to Marriage – Senate JDC passed unamended, referred to WAM
  • SB 3265 SD 1 – Relating to Film Industry Development (film tax incentive, Hawaiian content/staffing grant) Referred to FIN 03/22
  • SB 2942 SD 1 – Studio Teacher/Nurse bill Referred to FIN 03/21
  • Honolulu City Council Bill 59 CD1 – Film infrastructure bill

DEAD Bills:

 

  • HB 2757 HD1 – Family Medical Leave referred to FIN 02/16, not scheduled
  • HB 1775 HD1 – Relating to Education – Universal Free School breakfast and Lunches for DOE students (companion SB 2327) – Referred to Senate EDU, WAM 03/07/2024
  • HB 1662 – Child tax credit (Deferred by Senate HHS)
  • SB 3000 SD1 – Menstrual Equity (companion HB 2003) Deferred by House HLT
  • HB 2005 HD1 – Film incentive compliance, Referred to EET, WAM 03/07
  • HB 1804 – Relating to Tax Credits – DEFERRED by FIN

 

  • Political activism means participating in elections. There are people who say that elections don’t matter, so why bother? If elections were unimportant, there wouldn’t be groups spending millions of dollars trying to prevent us from voting. Your county councilmember, your state rep, and your state senator will vote on things that affect your daily life – from zoning, to speed limits, to the film tax incentive, and beyond. Register to vote today by going to: https://olvr.hawaii.gov/.

 

Your state legislators sit on committees where they discuss and vote on the bills that might eventually become laws. Get familiar with your legislators, identify the types of bills that they introduce, and study how they vote on issues. To find your legislators, go to: https://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/fyl/

 

  • Legislative activism means participating in the lawmaking process. We do this by actively submitting testimony in support or opposition to bills that are being considered by these legislative bodies. We will ask the membership to submit testimony in support or opposition to bills of interest as they emerge. When we do, we’ll provide sample testimony that you can submit verbatim or use as a template.

 

Create an account at capitol.hawaii.gov. You must register an account to submit testimony.

 

Bills are named based on which chamber they were introduced into, which version or “draft” the bill is being considered, and the subject matter of the bill. For example: “SB 1234 SD1 – Relating to Taxation” means “Senate Bill 1234 Senate Draft 1 – Relating to Taxation”. HB = “House Bill. Be vigilant when submitting testimony, as SB 1234 is completely different from  HB 1234. 

 

  • County Councils – Each county has its own set of rules for submitting testimony. Get informed about your county council, its members, the bills they’re discussing, and their voting history by visiting their websites:

 

Hawaii County Council 

https://www.hawaiicounty.gov/our-county/legislative/county-council/attend-meetings-submit-testimony

 

Maui County Council

https://www.mauicounty.gov/159/Council-Meetings

 

Honolulu City Council 

https://www.honolulucitycouncil.org/

 

Kaua’i County Council

https://www.kauai.gov/Government/Council

 

 

Get active in your local county and state government. If you’re not at the table, you’re on the menu. Mahalo nui loa to everyone that has been participating and submitting testimony. Keep it up. It’s working.

 

In Solidarity,

 

Tuia’ana Scanlan

President, IATSE 665

International Trustee

He/him/his

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