Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 28, Number 3, 1 March 2011 — 0HA legislative package benefits Native Hawaiians [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

0HA legislative package benefits Native Hawaiians

Aloha aku, aloha mai, As Chair of the Committee on Beneficiary Advocacy and Empo werment (BAE), Iaminform-

ing our beneficiaries of the OHA-introduced measures to the 2011 Hawai'i State Legislature. Every year OHA submits legislation that we believe will propel the standing of Hawaiians from the status quo. Due to space limitations, please visit the Legislature's web site at www.capitol.hawaii. gov/session2011 for complete details. Also visit www.oha.

org to see how these measures relate to OHA's Strategic Plan 2010-2016. 2011 OHA LEGISLATIVE PACKAGE (9 BILLS) > 1) HB400 / SB985 OHA Appropriations Act of 2011 This item appropriates $4.94 million in legislative general funds to OHA over two fiscal years. Of the $2.47 million per year, $1.55 million will provide assistance to Hawaiians in the areas of: social services, legal services and education. OHA will then match these funds meaning that more than $3.1 million will fund these three program areas through June 30, 2013. > 2) HB399 / SB984 Amounts past due to OHA A complicated issue spanning 30-plus years, this bill targets collecting on past-due amounts from the State on unpaid Public Land Trust revenues from 1978 to 2010. This measure seeks to minimally establish the debt at $200 million and asks the Legislature to make minimum annual payments of $30 million beginning July 1, 2015. Why 2015? In 2015, another $30 million annual obligation by the Legislature expires. Also, OHA sees the delay as a gesture of good faith in working with the State as predictions see the current eeonomie cloud clearing in several years. OHA is open to being paid with land in exchange for this cash amount but will seek a best fit for beneficiaries. > 3) HB397 / SB982 Protecting the Puhlie Land Trust OHA seeks to get ample notification prior to any legislative session where public land transfers are at issue. OHA ean then eheek if

the land is classed as government, previous crown, or acquired for such lands. > 4) HB402/ SB987 Including Cultural impael Assessments (CIAs) The Legislature acknowledges the

need to protect Hawaiian culture. This bill would require all Environmental Assessments (EAs) and Environmental Impact Statements (EISs) to include CIAs. New minimal requirements for CIAs are outlined with OHA having approval authority. > 5) HB401 / SB986 Preventing Hawaiian contact with the justice system A mandated study found that while on-par in arrests versus other ethnicities, when sentenced, Hawaiians:

spend more days in prison, receive longer probation terms and are more likely to have their parole revoked. OHA seeks to reduce Hawaiian injustice within the criminaljustice system. > 6) HB395 / SB980 Tuiton Waivers at UH When the University of Hawai'i was established on Hawaiian Kingdom land, Hawaiians became a disenfranchised group. In its own strategic plan, UH vows to "recognize ourkuleana (responsibility) to honor the indigenous people and promote social justice for Native Hawaiians." In providing tuition waivers to all Hawaiian students, UH ean concretely effectuate its responsibility. > 7) HB396 / SB981 Native Hawaiian rights training by OHA State entities and their decisions directly impact Native Hawaiian rights, resources and access. OHA wishes to provide training to govemment entities as to their duty in protecting and preserving Hawaiian rights. > 8) HCR10 / HR11 / SCR19 Identify laws affected by passage of the Native Hawaiian Government Reorganization Act (NHGRA) If the NHGRA passes, these resolutions create a proactive approach in identifying whieh existing laws will need to be changed to be in accordance with NHGRA. > 9) HB398 / SB983 Empowering State Historic Preservation Division (SHPD) This bill gives SHPD first determination as to a proposed project's impact on historieal properties, aviation artifacts and burial sites. ■

Jūhn Waihe'e IV Trustee, At-large