Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 20, Number 11, 1 November 2003 — Balancing the budget to meet top priorities and needs of Hawaiian people [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Balancing the budget to meet top priorities and needs of Hawaiian people

Aloha mai kākou. The Office of Hawaiian Affairs' mission statement reads, "To malama Hawai'i's people and environmental resources, and OHA's assets, toward ensuring the perpetuation of the culture, the enhaneement of lifestyle and the protection of entitlements of Native Hawaiians, while enabling the building of a strong and healthy Hawaiian people and nation, recognized nationally and internationally." It is with this broad mission statement that I begin to ponder about the Office of Hawaiian Affair's upcoming budgeting process for the next supplemental year budget (Fiscal Year 2005). The current hiennium budget has focused a lot on nationhood and governance, but do we stay on the same path or should we revisit priorities that have been somewhat set aside while in pursuit of the creation of a Hawaiian governing entity? By the time this article is printed,

the Office of Hawaiian Affairs will have modified OHA's Native Hawaiian Trust Fund Spending Policy's Fiscal Reserve Withdrawal Guidelines. On Oct. 31, 2000, the Board of Trustees adopted OHA's Native Hawaiian Trust Fund Spending Policy. If you are interested in a copy of the spending policy, please eall my office (594-1879) to request the document. The spending policy includes a section that establishes a new fiscal reserve informally referred to as a "rainy day fund." On Oct. 9, the Board of Trustees modified guidelines to clarify what the reserve funds ean be used for and eliminated the terminology of "rainy day fund" to be replaced by "fiscal reserve". The objective of the Fiscal Reserve will read as follows: "OHA's fiscal reserve fund is designed to provide money if an 'emergency' exists. An emergency is defined as "an unforeseen combination of circumstances

calling for immediate action." So what does this mean and how does this affect OHA's budget? Well, this fiscal reserve with its withdrawal guidelines will provide an additional means of financing for the Office of Hawaiian Affairs to accomplish its broad mission. The Fiscal Reserve source is from previously budgeted monies held within the Native Hawaiian Trust Fund that were unexpended in the prior years. Years back, the Office of Hawaiian Affairs went out directly into the communities throughout the islands to see what the priorities of the Hawaiian people were. OHA also through a telephone survey a few years ago polled the community on its top priorities and needs for Hawaiians. In both instances, the eommon themes that surfaced were Education, Culture, Housing, Health and Human Services. With the many priorities at hand and the threat of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs losing everything to the

mounting lawsuits, what's the best remedy to satisfy all sides? These are the issues that I often contemplate as your trustee. To keep the scales balanced we need to work towards building a nation of strong and healthy Hawaiians so that we ean be recognized nationally and internationally. The current priorities of nationhood and governance ean and should be balanced out with the incorporation of Education, Culture, Housing, Health and Human Services as co-equal priorities. The 2005 supplemental budget should attempt to satisfy eaeh category within the resources available. Finally, as always, my staff and I invite your advice and counsel on the above or any other eoncerns within our purview. My OHA access numbers are: phone 594-1854, fax 594-0210 and email address - dantec@oha.org. A hui hou, aloha pumehana. ■

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Dante Keala Carpenter Trustee, O'ahu