CONVENING A WORKING GROUP TO ESTABLISH A NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION RECOGNIZED BY THE STATE TO SUPPORT ARTS AND CULTURE ENGAGEMENT AND RELATED INITIATIVES.

SR93

THE SENATE

S.R. NO.

93

THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2026

STATE OF HAWAII

SENATE RESOLUTION

Convening a working group to develop recommendations for
establishing and structuring a nonprofit organization recognized by the State
to support arts and culture engagement and related initiatives
.

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WHEREAS,
the State has long served as a center for cultural
exchange, artistic expression, and intellectual collaboration due to its unique
history, cultural heritage, and geographic position in the Pacific
; and

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WHEREAS,
other states have helped empower communities
and the people within them by establishing arts and cultural centers that
provide for creative residency programming for artists, writers, scholars, and
other creators with opportunities and safe spaces to collaborate, develop new
work, educate students and aspiring peers, and engage with local communities
;
and

����
WHEREAS,
such programs frequently bring in creators
at the top of their industries and disciplines such as award winning artists,
composers, authors, and others who benefit local communities through public lectures,
workshops, and educational programming in partnership with universities,
community colleges, schools, and community organizations
; and

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WHEREAS,
the State's arts and culture landscape
provides an appropriate setting for an arts and cultural center that supports
creative residencies while fostering public engagement and educational
programming
; and

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WHEREAS, some
of the most successful models of these kinds of arts and culture centers are
quasi-government nonprofit organizations that supplement and support broader
government-run efforts and programs, as these models provide more flexibility
and adaptability for private fundraising, management, innovation, and community
engagement; now, therefore,

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BE IT
RESOLVED by the Senate of the Thirty-third Legislature of the State of Hawaii,
Regular Session of 2026, that there is convened a working group to develop
recommendations for establishing and structuring a nonprofit organization
recognized by the State to support arts and culture engagement and related
initiatives; and

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BE IT FURTHER
RESOLVED that the working group is requested to be chaired jointly by the
Chairs of the Senate and House of Representative committees with jurisdiction
over arts and culture; and

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BE IT FURTHER
RESOLVED that the working group is requested to include a representative of the
State Foundation on Culture and the Arts and other members or subject matter
experts, to be invited by the Chairs; and

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BE IT FURTHER
RESOLVED that the Working Group is requested to:

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(1)
�
Identify successful arts and culture residency
nonprofit models in other jurisdictions;

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(2)
�
Examine governance structures and partnership
models used by those organizations;

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(3)
�
Develop and establish the structure,
governance, and operational framework of a nonprofit organization as may be
appropriate to provide for arts and culture residencies in Hawaii to connect
leading creators in their fields with local counterparts, students, and
communities as may be most beneficial; and

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(4)
�
Identify
potential partnerships with educational institutions, cultural organizations,
and community groups; and

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BE IT FURTHER
RESOLVED that the working group is requested to submit a report of its
findings, activities, along with any recommendations to the Legislature no
later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Sessions of 2027
and 2028; and

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BE IT FURTHER
RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the
Executive Director of the State Foundation on Culture and the Arts; Chair of
the Senate Committee on Water, Land, Culture and the Arts; and Chair of the
House Committee on Culture and the Arts.

OFFERED BY:

_____________________________

Report Title:
�

Working
Group; Culture and the Arts; SFCA; Reports