On March 27, the White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs and the Office of Public Engagement hosted 30 local elected officials and community leaders from across the state of Hawaiʻi as part of its “Communities in Action” event series.

During the half-day forum, senior Biden-Harris Administration officials highlighted the impacts of the American Rescue Plan, Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and Inflation Reduction Act on communities across Hawaiʻi. Speakers also discussed the Administration’s robust whole-of-government response to support immediate and long-term healing, recovery, and rebuilding efforts following the devastating fires in Maui.

Participants included local elected officials, Native Hawaiian elders (kūpuna), educators, labor leaders, environmental experts, community leaders, and Maui wildfire survivors who work to leverage the historic investments from the President’s Investing in America agenda to create and expand opportunities for working families.

The forum was the twenty-ninth in a series of “Communities in Action” events that the White House hosts with state and local leaders to demonstrate how the Biden-Harris Administration is delivering critical progress for the American people. The White House Senior Liaison for the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities hosted a special in-person session on Oʻahu to lift up the voices and experiences of Native Hawaiian leaders who were not able to travel to Washington D.C. for this event.

Administration officials included Federal Emergency Management Agency Administrator Deanne Criswell, Director of Public Engagement Stephen Benjamin, National Climate Advisor Ali Zaidi, National Security Council Senior Director for Resilience Jennifer DeCesaro, Department of Commerce External Affairs Director Molly Ritner, Deputy Director of Gun Violence Prevention Greg Jackson, Senior Advisor for Public Engagement Kota Mizutani, and Assistant Press Secretary Michael Kikukawa.

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