Hermina 'Mina' Morita (born September 2, 1954) is an adviser for the Hawaii State House Committee on Finance. She is the former chair of the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) of the State of Hawaii. She previously served as a Democratic member of the

Hawaii House of Representatives The Hawaii House of Representatives is the lower house of the Hawaii State Legislature. Pursuant to Article III, Section 3 of the Constitution of Hawaii, amended during the 1978 constitutional convention, the House of Representatives consis ...

, representing the state's 14th District between her election in 1996 and 2011, when she was appointed to the PUC. The district includes Hanalei, Princeville, and

Kapaa Kapaa (Kauai dialect: Tapaa) is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Kauai County, Hawaii, United States. It is the most populous town in the island of Kauai, with a population of 11,652 as of the 2020 census, up from ...

on the island of

Kauai Kauai, () anglicized as Kauai ( ), is geologically the second-oldest of the main Hawaiian Islands (after Niʻihau). With an area of 562.3 square miles (1,456.4 km2), it is the fourth-largest of these islands and the 21st largest island ...

. Morita was the chair of the House Committee on Energy and Environmental Protection. On March 14, 2011, Morita was confirmed as chair of the

Hawaii Public Utilities Commission The Hawaii Public Utilities Commission (HPUC) is a public utilities commission, a quasi-judicial tribunal, which regulates public service companies operating in the U.S. state of Hawaii. In 2017 HPUC authorized smart inverters to increase grid st ...

. She was appointed by Governor

Neil Abercrombie Neil Abercrombie (born June 26, 1938) is an American politician who served as the seventh governor of Hawaii from 2010 to 2014. He is a member of the Democratic Party. Born in Buffalo, New York, Abercrombie is a graduate of Union College and the ...

and is the first ever female chair of the PUC. In January 2015, she announced her resignation from her position as Chair of the Public Utilities Commission. In February 2015, she said she will advise the Hawaii State House Committee on Finance."Former Hawaii PUC chair Hermina Morita will advise House committee on policy issues"http://www.bizjournals.com/pacific/blog/morning_call/2015/02/former-hawaii-puc-chair-hermina-morita-will-advise.html

References

External links

Hawaii State Legislature - Representative Hermina Morita

Project Vote Smart - Representative Hermina M. 'Mina' Morita
Democratic Party members of the Hawaii House of Representatives 1954 births Living people Hawaii politicians of Japanese descent Women state legislators in Hawaii American women of Japanese descent in politics 2020 United States presidential electors 21st-century American women {{Hawaii-politician-stub