Proposal for a nonprofit Royal Hawaiian Band makes news

The Nonprofit Quarterly’s Nonprofit Newswire reported on May 17 in an article headlined “Funding Shell Game in Hawaii” that a proposal to turn the Royal Hawaiian Band into a nonprofit is “a decidedly odd twist.”

“We've seen way too many reports around the country of the different ways local and state governments are taking ‘creative’ steps to cope with diminishing funds to pay for services,” the online news report said. “In many cases, cuts are hurting nonprofits that provide these services, forcing them to seek funding from other private sources.”

Paul Arceo, the band's director, told the Honolulu Advertiser the idea of becoming a nonprofit is "not popular with me. ... You take our $250,000 to $300,000 dollars a year out of the budget – that means we have to raise more than $20,000 a month. That's a lot of money. I don't think we're going to be able to do it. That kind of money is just not available."

In a letter sent to the band last month, the county's corporation counsel wrote: "If preparations are not made now for the incorporation of the band into a private entity capable of fundraising, there is a distinct possibility next fiscal year will find the band completely unfunded." Click here to read the entire article.