Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 19, Number 10, 1 October 2002 — Bill 53 [ARTICLE]

Bill 53

As of press time, the city council's Executive Matters Committee has tentatively scheduled a critical public hearing for Bill 53 on Oct. 9. The controversial lease-to-fee mandatory conversion bill has potential dire impacts on the Queen Lili \iokalani Trust land, as its passage would make it easier for leaseholders to force landownars to sell land. Queen Lilicuokalani Trust benefits orphaned and destitute native Hawaiian children. Over 9,000 Hawaiian children benefited from the Trust's over 300 statewide programs in 2001. OHA and other Hawaiian organizations stand with the trust in protect the Queen's legacy of land whieh she left in trust to care for ha: people. Five committee votes are needed at the the Oct. 9 committee meeting to send the bill to the fu 11 eouneil floor for the bill's third and final reading on October 16.

If Bill 53 receives five votes at the moining session of the eouneil, it will go before the mayor, who then has ten day s to veto or sign Bill 53 into law, or let it pass into law without his signature. If the bi 11 is v etoed, the eouneil ean still override the veto with six votes. Eight of the 1 2 owner~occupants of the trust's 142-unit Foster Toweis have peti~ tioned to convert their lease units to fee. City eouneil members John Henry Felix, Steve Holmes, Gary Okino and Duke Eainum and Jon Yoshimura support Eill 53. Romy Cachola, John DeSoto, Darrlyn Bunda and Ann Kobayashi voted against the bill at the group's last reading. The hearing date is still tentative, willbe confirmed with the official posting of the council's agenda on Oct. 4. For updated information, log onto mw.kupaa.org.