Welina mai ke aloha!

“Welcome to the Honolulu City Council's Hale Ho'okele (Navigation House). We serve as the Hale’s navigation portal that provides the public with guidance and information to assist understanding of the Council’s functions, city legislative process, and how to effectively engage in our civic kuleana to the 'āina and people of O'ahu. Our collective action impacts all of us now and generations to follow. I MUA!”

-Council Chair Tommy Waters

Our services include:

Hale Ho’okele Coordinator Contact:

Sommerset Yamamoto
councilmedia@honolulu.gov
(808) 768-5095

  • Answer questions about the City Council process

  • Provide up-to-date community resources

  • Host workshops and trainings

  • Connect people with their Councilmembers

“Our Civic Kuleana at the City”: An Online Event Series

  • Session I

    August 17, 2022 @ 6 p.m.

    In this session we went over:

    1. What happens at the local government level

    2. Relevant website pages and interactive features

    3. How to get to know your Councilmember

    Watch Recording

  • Session II

    September 14, 2022 @ 6 p.m.

    In this session we went over:

    1. The importance of Council Committees

    2. How to find and track legislation

    3. How to navigate a hearing agenda

    4. An overview of the bill to law process

    Watch Recording

  • Session III

    October 26, 2022 @ 6 p.m.

    In this session we went over:

    1. How to write an effective story when submitting testimony

    2. Best practices on how to submit testimony

    3. Present other ways to get involved at the City, featuring a special guest from a Neighborhood Board Chair

    Watch Recording

Budget Resources

Key Community Resources

Downloadable Resources

Council 101 Videos

Your mana’o matters.

Public engagement and advocacy is essential to ensure that city policies reflect the best interests of our community. By providing a new, accessible and informative program we will help equip residents with the tools to voice their stories and inform the decisions that impact their lives.

Hale Ho'okele is a non-partisan virtual program for citizens of any viewpoint or position held to to use as a guiding resource to inform their understanding of the City’s legislative process and how to get involved. People are welcome to contact us with any questions regarding the program material and virtual workshops. We will not engage in any electoral campaign-related inquiries or activities. If you are interested in the process to run for office in Hawai'i click here.

Please contact us if you experience difficulty in accessing content on our website and need information in an alternate format. Hale Ho'okele contact information: councilmedia@honolulu.gov

Sign up for program updates below!