Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 30, Number 4, 1 April 2013 — Upholding the federal government's responsibility to Native Hawaiians [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Upholding the federal government's responsibility to Native Hawaiians

Recently, the National Congress of American Indians, the largest and oldest Native Ameriean organization in the U.S., released its federal budget request for the next fiscal year. The budget request provides the federal government an outline for upholding its trust responsibility to tribal nations. While the NCAI focused on federal programs for American Indians and Alaska Natives, it also stated its strong support for Native Hawaiian federal programs. The group has long been a friend to the Native Hawaiian people, supporting our efforts for federal recognition and eonsistently including certain Native Hawaiian programs in its budget request. This year, NCAI provided mueh greater support for Native Hawaiians by including critical federal programs associated with the federal government's trust responsibility to Native Hawaiians in its budget request: The Native Hawaiian Education Program, Native Hawaiian Heahh Care Systems Program and the Hawaiian Homelands Block Grant and Loan Guarantee Program. For this, we are grateful to our American Indian and Alaska Native brothers and sisters. With the current fiscal landscape, there could be no better time to remind Congress of the federal government's obligation to fulfill its trust responsibilities to Native Hawaiians. Funding for Native Hawaiian programs is part of the federal government's trust obligation to Native Hawaiians - an obligation codified in national law. Ronald Reagan clarified this 25 years ago when he signed the Native Hawaiian Education Act and the Native Hawaiian Heahh Care Act, both of whieh affirmed the federal trust obligation to Native Hawaiians. Before anyone in the U.S. House

of Representatives talks about rolling these programs back, they would do well to recall the legacy of President Reagan, a conservative hero. Indeed, respecting the rights of Native Hawaiians should be a bipartisan issue. Despite these facts, there will be some in Congress who will attack Native Hawaiian rights under the eloak of fiscal responsibility. The reality, however, is that there is nothing fiscally responsible about the federal government denying its obligations. Any reduction in federal funding inappropriately transfers the federal government's duties onto the State of Hawai'i and the people of Hawai'i. Like other states, Hawai'i cannot afford to fulfill the federal government's duties. Those who want to eliminate Native Hawaiian rights would have us believe that if we destroy Native Hawaiian federal programs, we ean halanee the federal budget. But the numbers don't support this assertion. If the federal government defunded every Native Hawaiian federal program, it would make no meaningful impact on the deficit. The Native Hawaiian Heahh Care Act, Native Hawaiian Education Act and the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands Block Grants combined total less than l/250th of 1 percent of the federal debt. Clearly we cannot halanee the federal budget on the backs of the Native Hawaiian people. Over the long term, cutting Native Hawaiian federal programs would likely increase the federal deficit, while maintaining them

would be a smart investment. Cutting Native Hawaiian education programs will lead to fewer opportunities for Native Hawaiians to contribute to the economy as skilled, collegeeducated employees. Similarly, cuts to Native Hawaiian heahh programs will likely increase the incidence of preventable illnesses and thereby increase health-care costs - the heaviest burden of whieh would fall on the people of Hawai'i. The fiscally and morally responsible course is for Congress to maintain funding for Native Hawaiian programs, while Hawaiian-serving agencies and organizations continue efforts to be more effective. We have already seen Native Hawaiians use federal investments to develop and sustain successful programs that work for our eommunity and that offer models for other indigenous peoples. Successes in Hawaiian-language immersion ('Aha Pūnana Leo), diabetes prevention (Department of Native Hawaiian Heahh, John A. Burns School of Medicine) and leadership training (MA'O Farms) are solid examples. Today, we thank the National Congress of American Indians for supporting Native Hawaiians. But tomorrow, all of us must be prepared to forcefully dismiss those who will argue that the federal government ean abandon its responsibilities to Native Hawaiians in the name of fiscal responsibility. If we do not, Hawai'i will be burdened with the federal government's responsibilities and the social and financial consequences of unfulfilled obligations. ■ Kemika Riley is the Washington, D.C., Bureau chieffor the Office of Hawaiian Affairs. This community forum, with additional information here, originally appeared in Civil Beat.

By Kawika Riley