Darius’s Pledge

Community First

Any and All decision making, will always be made with our communities best interest in mind.

Removing Barriers

State or City issue? I will always do my best to always find the support, solution or answer you need.

Availability

I will always foster open and clear communication; I want to hear and learn from you.

Darius’s Plan & Priorities

Education

Tried and true, Darius is a living breathing product of our Hawaiʻi Public School Education system. Darius is proud to share with many that his early development happened primarily in the public school sector, but he also believes we can do more to support our Keikis development. We know that higher education is a goal for many, but we also need to support and invest in programs at our schools, in their different grade levels to help our students compete competitively, especially in the work force. We need to make sure they have the tools to succeed in either a classroom, a kitchen, a construction site or an accounting office; Their Hawaiʻi High School Diploma will have merit, substance and credibility.

• Funding to improve our school facilities, educational resources, and access to technology.

• Quality educators and staff, along with competitive salaries and benefits to recruit and retain them.

• Early childhood and adult education programs to keep learning open to all people of all ages and backgrounds.

• School-community partnerships to foster educational enrichment.

Kūpuna Care

As an active volunteer with our Waiʻanae Mōkū Kūpuna Council and an active volunteer with our Kūpuna food pantries, Darius listens to our kūpuna directly about the concerns and worries they have. Darius will work to increase funding for our kūpuna caregivers and adult disability resource centers. Darius is also committed to creating parity in our tax law by exempting retirement income like 401(k) and IRA plans from state income taxes so folks can truly save their monies and keep their monies.

• Increasing funding for Kūpuna Caregivers and Adult Disability Resource Centers.

• Ensuring appropriate oversight and safety in long-term care facilities and nursing homes.

• A publicly funded option for long-term care insurance to help reduce the cost of long-term care.

• Adult and continuing education programs to support lifelong learning.

Homelessness

Darius is ready to re-envision our approach to homelessness and houselessness. He recognizes this is an epidemic we are facing in our community and throughout Hawaiʻi alike, as he & his ʻohana were once homeless as well. Darius knows temporary “band-aids” are not what we need and he knows housing displacement situations and solutions are not one size fits all. Darius understands that by identifying individuals sources of their issues, and working to implement cohesive solutions based on different needs, we have an actual chance to sustain the solutions and plans we implement.

• Expand ‘ohana zones to allow for safe living.

• Work with different partners to ensure safe overnight living quarters opportunities outside of normal shelter offerings.

• Remove barriers and expand housing options for folks with animals.

Housing

Darius shares openly that he and his family are lifelong renters who dream of home ownership. He and hundreds of Hawaiʻi residents alike share the same setbacks, but Darius wants to find innovative ways to give our families the little boost they need. Whether through different down payment assistance programs, sustainable housing options that allow families to save up to purchasing homes, working to diversify rent to own options with state, city and private groups, finding ways to lessen the burden of fees to first time home buyers, and strengthening our partnerships with public and non-profit groups to financially assist Hawaiʻi’s ‘ohana’s.

• Incentivize the construction of long term-affordable rental units and provide additional funding to the Rental Housing Revolving Fund for working families.

• Work closely with DHHL to ensure the $600 million is spent effectively and significantly reduce the number of beneficiaries on the waiting list.

• Support additional investments in water, sewer and road infrastructure to lower the up-front cost of buying a new home.

Economic Development

As we move into a post pandemic society, we need to bolster our local economy and reinvigorate our relationship with Hawaiʻi businesses. We know in the middle of the pandemic, we rallied around the “buy local, support local” ideology, and we must continue to push this. Darius wants to work with different state groups to create branding and unique markings to differentiate and proudly display our Hawaiʻi made or local products. Darius also knows that many small and first time business owners face barriers in their early startup that can sometime discourage local families from creating different streams of income or seeking financial independence. By working with our different state agencies and partners, Darius wants to find ways to dismantle these barriers and push for the state to be a conduit in promoting, supporting and investing in our local and small businesses throughout Hawaiʻi. Darius is the best advocate for our local and small businesses because he knows firsthand the issues these businesses face. His parents and family operate a small local business here in our community making traditional Hawaiian food.

• Public-private partnerships to develop new areas for economic growth.

• Limiting burdensome taxes on local and small businesses.

• Provide additional tax relief to working families by continuing to support the Earned Income Tax Credit.

Crime

Vandalism, robberies, auto theft and violence are slowly invading even the quietest neighborhoods here on Oʻahu and our communities. Darius is committed to working with City and State partners to push for more personnel patrolling our neighborhoods and throughout District 8. He plans to work with our City counterparts and the Honolulu Police Department to make sure they have all they need to recruit and retain officers. Darius also wants to call on his local Neighborhood Security Watch groups to have a larger advocacy role in community safety, and push to revitalize Weed and Seed and similar community-oriented programs.

• Coordinating with HPD to focus police presence in high-traffic corridors and high-crimes areas, and to partner with area schools to reinforce anti-drug and crime reduction.

• Introduce legislation for tougher penalties on individuals and organizations who illegally operate game room facilities, drug homes and other illegal activities.