Cover Story continued

Representative Henry J.C. Aquino

May 27, 2009

Capitol Yearbook 2009

Henry Aquino / 35th Representative District: Pearl City, Waipahu
Phone: 586-6520
repaquino@capitol.hawaii.gov

1. What was your biggest accomplishment this session?
“I was told that the biggest accomplishment a freshman legislator can make is to pass legislation in the first term. By that standard, I guess I accomplished a lot. My biggest achievements this session was passing a bill (HB1536, Relating to Salary Reductions) and being able to secure future funding for capital improvement projects for schools in my district. This took a lot of collaboration and time from my colleagues to ensure these things happened.”

2. With which piece of 2009 legislation are you most proud to be affiliated and why?
“The one piece of legislation I am most proud is one of our House Majority bills – House Bill 989. As a co-sponsor of HB 989, and despite the economic hardships we are facing, we were able to protect the health of Hawaii’s children through this bill. This would extend the Hawaii Children’s Health Care Program (Keiki Care) for three more years and provide health coverage for children through public-private partnerships between the Department of Human Services and service providers.”

3. What was the biggest disappointment of the session and how might a similar disappointment be prevented in the future?
“There was no one disappointing episode but what I experienced as a freshman legislator is that occasional disappointment is the norm.”

4. Debating which issue turned out to be the biggest distraction from your priorities?
“Like the previous question, I believe that there was no one exclusive, distracting issue but the session can move rather quickly and if you don’t focus on priorities early, you can get lost with the many discussions that go on.”

5. What’s one thing you wish voters better understood about you or the political process as a whole?
“There is a way to have voters opinions heard in the process which many may not be fully aware of. Written and/or oral testimony in support/opposition of any bills are important components to the political process. It really helps legislators to know the various views of particular measures which then plays a part in making decisions to allow bills to move forward or not.”

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