The Hawaii State Legislature will convene on Jan. 15 and hit the ground running to meet the bill introduction cutoff of Jan. 23.

Is this the year lawmakers propose legalizing marijuana for recreational use?

What West Maui funding requests and proposed bills will be introduced by Rep. Angus McKelvey and Sen. Roz Baker.

If the fast-moving legislature is a mystery to you, get help from the Public Access Room (PAR), a division of the Legislative Reference Bureau.

PAR provides the public with information, facilities and services to assist them as they engage and participate in the state legislative process.

To start the new year and decade, PAR has a redesigned website and a new web address: lrb.hawaii.gov/par/.

The new PAR site features handy information sheets on the “Current Legislature” page and guides to offering testimony and bill tracking via the “Engage” tab on the “Engagement 101” page.

Find out more about the legislative process and how a bill becomes a law under the “Learn” tab on the “Overview of the Legislative Process” page.

There is even a Keiki Page to help younger folks learn about how things work at the legislature.

“We’ll continue to try to improve the site and our services to best meet your needs. Please don’t hesitate to provide feedback and suggestions – we’d love to hear from you,” noted Public Access Coordinators Virginia Beck and Keanu Young.

If a bill is important to you, testify and track its progress.