Over the past month, Hawaii has come together to help those affected by the devastating earthquake and tsunami in Japan.

Last weekend’s Kokua for Japan concert, which raised more than $1.6 million, testifies to the fact that the aloha spirit is alive and well in Hawaii — despite rising gas prices, concerns about the disaster’s impact on our tourism industry and lingering uncertainty in the face of a slow economic recovery.

Truly, we are lucky to live in Hawaii. Helping our neighbors is as much a part of our local culture as rice or Spam. And yet, at this very moment at the Capitol, the Legislature is considering drastic budget cuts that would undercut the very notion of compassion in Hawaii. Cuts so severe and ill-conceived that they are likely to stunt our economic recovery and produce calamitous results for low-income families.

At the Department of Human Services (DHS), we oversee programs that safeguard Hawaii’s most vulnerable populations. In addition to the critical duties of investigating cases of child abuse and neglect, our staff provides vocational rehabilitation services that put disabled people back to work, nutrition assistance programs for children and the elderly, as well as administration of federal Medicaid programs. These programs ensure that our keiki and kupuna, as well as those with disabilities, do not fall through society’s cracks.

Contrary to popular belief, these programs also stimulate our local economy and ensure that Hawaii gets a fair share of federal tax dollars. Collectively, programs administered by DHS bring in more than $1.2 billion dollars in federal funding.

Overall, only about 6.5 percent of our budget goes to employee salaries. Moreover, these personnel perform essential duties, ensuring adherence to federal guidelines, preventing fraud and verifying clients’ eligibility.

Previous reductions in force have already cut DHS to the bone, adversely affecting our staff’s ability to help people in a timely manner. To cut further would not only threaten federal dollars currently flowing in, but likely would risk additional costs in the form of penalties and litigation. Thus, the negative economic consequences of haphazard budget cuts should concern us all. Consider:

» More than 11 percent of our neighbors benefit from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, popularly known as food stamps). Imagine the affect on island grocers if these shoppers disappeared from their aisles.

» Recently, DHS expanded SNAP eligibility standards — to improve nutrition for children and the elderly, and to access $60 million in additional federal dollars. Moreover, studies show that for every SNAP dollar spent at the market, $1.84 in new economic activity is generated here. As a result, the economic stimulus of expanded participation in SNAP will likely exceed $100 million. Without sufficient staffing to process new applicants, Hawaii will lose out on this funding opportunity just as it is most needed for our fragile economic recovery.

» More than 20 percent of our neighbors receive health benefits through Medicaid (i.e. QUEST or QExA). Without this critical coverage, island hospitals will be inundated with patients seeking emergency care without any means of payment. The potential impact on hospitals, as well as doctors and nurses, could be devastating.

Now is not the time to turn our backs on our neighbors in need. It would hurt us as a people and have negative consequences on the economy.

We need to restore critical deficiencies in government services, not cut them further.

It would be a cruel irony for us to create economic and social disaster in Hawaii so soon after coming together to show our aloha for the people suffering in Japan.