Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 7, Number 3, 1 Malaki 1990 — OHA, Waihee agree on ceded lands [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

OHA, Waihee agree on ceded lands

By Deborah Lee Ward Editor, Ka Wai Ola O OHA The Office of Hawaiian Affairs and Gov. John Waihee announced on Feb. 8 a joint agreement whieh establishes a formula for calculating the past due and future ineome that OHA is entitled to for native Hawaiians as its 20 percent pro rata share from state ceded lands revenues. Announcement of the agreement culmiinates more than two years of painstaking, eomplicated negotiations between OHA and the Governor's office as the key responsible parties under law. An executive bill containing the terms of the agreement had been introduced as eompanion bills HB2896and SB3104. Ajoint hearing washeld Feb. 13 by the House Committee on Eeonomie Development and Hawaiian Affairs (chair Rep. David Y. Ige) and the Senate Committee on Housing and Hawaiian Programs (chair Sen. Mike Crozier).

At press time the house committee indicated that their bill would be reported out of committee without amendment to the house finance committee. The senate committee held its bill and will wait for the house version to cross over. Sen. Crozier announced he will schedule hearings on that bill in mid-March. This early notice is to allow more time for community review of the bills and for public input. Trustee Frenchy DeSoto complimented Rep. Ige for the strength of his support. She also said: "Senator Crozier's action is an essential part of a successful legislative strategy. Mike has, by hisaction made passage both simpler and more likely."

The legislation clarifies the State of Hawaii's legal obligations, through OHA, to native Hawaiians of 50 percent or more Hawaiian blood as they are specified in Chapter 10 of the Hawai'i Revised Statutes. The joint agreement represents a crucial first step toward resolving all controversies relating to state trust obligations to Hawaiians and native Hawaiians.

The proposed legislation would clarify: • whieh lands comprise the public land trust • whieh types of revenues, coming from the trust lands, will be shared with OHA • what process is to be followed to determine actual amounts due and a plan for repayment. The first draft legislation establishes two types of revenues from ceded lands, "sovereign" and "proprietary." Sovereign ineome is the money the state raises through its sovereign power to tax the population. OHA does not have a elaim on this sovereign ineome. "Proprietary ineome" comes from lease rents ' and similar uses of the land. It is on this proprietary ineome only that the claims for OHA's past-due 20 percent ineome will be calculated.

The legislation provides that the past due amount for native Hawaiian beneficiaries will be arrived at through a year-by-year evaluation of the type and form of gross ineome, plus interest, eompounded annual!y. In the next fiscal year the amount due OHA under the proposed bill would be $8.5 million. This would be an increase of $7.2 million over the $1.3 million OHA now rereivesfor native Hawaiian beneficiaries. The state Office of Management and Budget will determine the total amount of past due ineome owed retroactively to OHA. The determination will be based on terms of this joint agreement as applied year-by-year from June 14, 1980 through the 1990-1991 fiscal year. The proposed legislation makes clear it is not intended to replace or affect the claims of native continued page 8

Gov. John Waihee receives a symbolic kauiia plant from OHA Chairman of Trustees Thomas Kauiukukui Sr. following presentation of the ceded lands proposed settlement at the state Capitol.

Ceded land /rom page 1

Hawaiians and Hawaiians to reparations from the federal government. OHA and the state government will eonhnue discussions for beneficiaries of the OHA trust who are Hawaiians of less than 50 percent native blood. They hope to present a proposal before the 1991 legislature convenes.