Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 22, Number 3, 1 March 2005 — OHA bill proposals cover range of Hawaiian issues [ARTICLE]

OHA bill proposals cover range of Hawaiian issues

By Derek Ferrar At the start of this year's state legislative session, the Office of Hawaiian Affairs submitted a package of 22 bills and resolutions on issues affecting the Hawaiian eommunity, including ceded lands revenues, environmental issues, educational initiatives, appointments to land and natural resource boards, OHA fiscal autonomy and preliminary design work for building a Hawaiian cultural center and new OHA headquarters. "I think OHA's role as an advocate on Hawaiian issues comes to the forefront with this package," said OHA Chairperson Haunani Apoliona of the proposed legislation. "And I think it also asserts our seriousness about having a policy say; we're very resolved to get a stronger role for OHA as we anticipate the creation of the Hawaiian nation." As of Ka Wai Ola press time, most of the bills remained alive in legislative

committees. Among the key proposals in OHA's legislative package are: Ceded lands • Ceded lands revenue (Senate Bill 0911, House Bill 0459). This bill would clarify the technical definition of ceded lands and hopefully help resolve the long-running dispute over exactly what revenues from these lands are due to OHA for the betterment of Hawaiians. The debate over this issue has long prevented OHA from receiving its full revenue stream and resulted in the cessation of all ceded land revenue payments from 2001 to 2003. • Sale of ceded lands (SB 0913, HB 0457). This bill would prohibit the state from selling, trading or otherwise disposing of ceded lands without the consent of OHA' s trustees. When a similar bill was up for consideration last year, native rights attorney Melody Mackenzie commented, "The state should not sell or otherwise transfer these lands until the

elaim of the Native Hawaiian people is addressed and resolved. The ceded lands are the land base for a re-established Native Hawaiian government and should be held intact for the Hawaiian people."

Land and water boards Four of OHA's bills would set up input from the agency's Board of Trustees into appointments

to the Land Use Commission, the Board of Land and Natural Resources, the Commission on Water Resource Management and the coastal zone management advisory board. The bills would require the govemor to appoint at least one member of eaeh r»f frr»m

a list of nominees submitted by the Office of Hawaiian Affairs. "Hawaiians have a tremendous stake in issues involving land and water resources in Hawai'i, and yet there is currently no designated representation of Hawaiian interests on any of these boards," said OHA Native Rights Lead Advocate

Jonathan Likeke Scheuer. "These bills would help Hawaiians have more of a voice on these emeial issues." OHA autonomy One key measure (SB 0923, HB 0447)

would give OHA greater autonomy to issue its own checks and payments, rather than having to go through the added bureaucracy of the state's financial system.

rnairperson Apoiiona has frequently named this kind of increased autonomy as a major goal for the agency. "Wherever legally permissible, OHA needs to begin to operate as the quasi-independent organization, the fourth arm of government, that was envisioned by the

framers of the Hawai'i State Constitution in 1978," she said in her State of OHA address in December. "With the support of my fellow trustees, we will begin this process of creating an OHA with less statutory or regulatory constraints - retaining accountability and See BILLS on page 13

"OHAk role as an advocate on Hawaiian issues comes to the forefront with this paekage. We're very resolved to get a stronger role for OHA as we anticipate the creation ofthe Hawaiian nation." — OHA Chairperson Haunani Apoliona

BILLS from page 1 prudent decision-making, but moving closer to enabling the paradigm of native govemance fashioned by Native Hawaiians." OHA building and Hawaiian community center One measure (SB 0920, HB 0451) would authorize the state to issue bonds to finance initial planning for a possible OHA building and Hawaiian cultural center. Currently, OHA leases its office space from a private company. The vision for such a facility is a "one-stop" location with office space for a wide variety of Hawaiian service organizations, as well as facilities for native cultural events, displays and meetings. "Having different agencies and facilities that serve Hawaiians in one building would reinforce the point that we have to collaborate to maximize opportunities for our people," said Apoliona. Environment A number of the bills proposed by OHA deal with environmental protection and access issues, including: • Shoreline certification (SB 0928, HB 0442). This bill would require that shoreline boundaries would have to be certified by a qualified state professional, and that adequate notice would have to be given for puhlie input into the process. This is important to Hawaiians, said OHA Native Rights Policy Lead Advocate Heidi Kai Guth, because "it would help assure that Hawaiians would continue to have access to shorelines, and that the state government could not shrink the width of a heaeh by applying laws poorly." • Lunding of state Natural Area Reserves (SB 0919, HB 0452). Currently, there is no dedicated funding for management of these protected areas, whieh contain many of the most intact native ecosystems under state

control, and whieh are located primarily on ceded lands. This bill would assure funding by setting aside a permanent portion of the conveyance tax - whieh is paid whenever real estate is bought or sold - to fund the state Natural Area Reserve System. Education Several of OHA's bills are intended to address the ongoing disparity in educational statistics for Hawaiian students, including a measure (SB 0927, HB 0443) that would set up a special school district for Hawaiian-culture-based charter schools. When a similar bill was up for consideration last year, proponents said it could help with education of Hawaiian charter-school students through increased autonomy, especially in funding. Specifically, the bill would create a "host culture district eouneil" that would be able to submit budget requests separately from the state's Department of Education. Other bills would seek an increase in the number of charter schools statewide, provide financial assistance for alternative licensing methods for Native Hawaiian teachers (see story on page 8) and promote early childhood education for Native Hawaiian preschoolers. Among the other bills and resolutions proposed by OHA are measures that would: • Authorize OHA's state-funds budget for fiscal years 2006 and '07. Included in the $3 million-per-year budget request is increased OHA funding for the Hawaiian service organizations Alu Like, Nā Pua Noe'au and the Native Hawaiian Legal Corp. • Begin the process of creating a licensing and regulation procedure for archaeologists working in Hawai'i. To find out more about OHA's legislative package and track the progress of individual bills, visit OHA's website at www.oha.org. i