Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 32, Number 6, 1 Iune 2015 — 2015 OHA LEGISLATIVE REVIEW [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

2015 OHA LEGISLATIVE REVIEW

By OHA Public Policy Major milestones for natural and eultural resouree proteetion and Hawai'i's food seeurity are poised to beeome law, after a largely positive session for the Offiee of Hawaiian Affairs at the Legislature this year. For the seeond eonseeutive year, none of the bills opposed by OHA passed out of the Legislature. Moreover, thanks to the support of partner organizations and eommunity members, five of OHA's seven 2015 Legislative Paekage bills sueeessfully obtained legislative approval, with two of these measures already signed into law as of this writing. As part of its mandate to advoeate for Native Hawaiians, eaeh year OHA publie poliey staff not only develop and introduee a legislative paekage on behalf of OHA's benefieiaries, but also review thousands of bills introdueed during session, and traek and testify on hundreds of measures relevant to the Native Hawaiian community. The following provides a summary of OHA priority bills that survived and died this legislative session. The governor has until July 14 to sign or veto bills or they become law without his signature. OHA 2015 Legislative Package bills are indicated with an asterisk (*).

SUGGESSFUL PRI0RITY BILLS HB 206: Hawaiian Plants* STATUS: Governor has yet to sign House Bill 206 would require a gradually increasing minimum percentage of Hawaiian plants to be used in new and renovated publicly funded landscaping projects. HB 206 would plaee the state at the forefront of promoting the use of Hawaiian plants in landscaping, helping to preserve our cultural and threatened ecological heritage and sense of plaee, as well as support our loeal nurseries and related businesses. HB 207: Native Hawaiian Law Training Course* STATUS: Governor has yet to sign HB 207 would establish a mandatory legal training course for members of certain state councils, boards and commissions that directly impact Native Hawaiian traditional and customary rights, natural and cultural resources, and the public trust. Course topics coverNative Hawaiian and Public Trust Law, and will better ensure that key government policymakers understand and make decisions consistent with the state's fiduciary obligations to the Native Hawaiian people and to the public trust.

HB 209: OHA Budget STATUS: Governor has yet to sign HB 209 represents OHA's budget for the upcoming fiscal hiennium. With the passage of this measure, OHA will receive approximately $3 million in eaeh of the next two fiscal years from the state general fund, matched by approximately $6.4 million a year in Native Hawaiian trust funds. In addition to general OHA operations, these monies will support social services, emergency assistance programs, legal services and representation for OHA beneficiaries, and other initiatives relating to OHA's priorities in the areas of education, heahh, housing and ineome to carry out OHA's mission of improving the conditions of Native Hawaiians. HB 393: Hawaiian Fishpond Restoration STATUS: Governor has yet to sign HB 393 facilitates the restoration, repair, maintenance and operation of traditional Hawaiian fishponds by waiving Hawai'i Department of Heahh water certification for fishpond projects that have been vetted through the statewide general programmatic fishpond permit process. As recognized by this measure, the fishpond SEE LEGISLATURE ON PAGE 8

GOVERNANGE To restore pono and ea, Native Hawaiians will achieve self-gover-nanee, after whieh the assets of OHA will be transferred to the new governing entity.

LEGISLATURE

Continued from page 5 revitalization movement not only celebrates our cultural heritage, but may also be key to the future food security and self-sufficiency of our islands. SB 434: Traditional Agriculture* STATUS: Act 31 Senate Bill 434 recognizes traditional Native Hawaiian farming techniques and crops and the growth and development of small farms as agricultural objectives of the state, thereby promoting our islands' food security, self-sufficiency and cultural heritage. SB 913: Children of lncarcerated Parents STATUS: Act 16 OHA collaborated with eoncerned community groups and stakeholders to proffer SB 913, whieh takes a long-awaited first

step toward identifying and addressing the unique needs of keiki with incarcerated parents, by requiring the Department of Public Safety to collect intake data relating to the children of pa'ahao. SB 1166: Traditional Hawaiian Burials STATUS: Governor has yet to sign SB 1 166 clarifies that laws relating to the abuse of a corpse do not apply to traditional Native Hawaiian methods of preparing and burying iwi, thereby supporting the perpetuation of these sacred practices. UNSUGGESSFUL BILLS HB 874: Hawaiian Language lmmersion Program* HB 874 would have provided additional funding to the Department of Education for the development of a linguistically appropriate assessment for Hawaiian Language Immersion students, and would have required the DOE to report on its progress as well as

its long-term plans for administering such an assessment. HB 874 died in conference committee at the end of session. HCR 6: PLT Revenue* House Concurrent Resolution 6 would have urged the governor to ensure that state departments fully and correctly account for the amount of revenues generated from public land trust lands, to whieh OHA is entitled a pro-rata share. Such information would be eiiheal to the future contemplated adjustment of OHA's current "interim" pro-rata share of $15.1 million per year, as established nearly 10 years ago by Act 178. This measure died after missing a key hearing deadline in the middle of session. Our success depends not only on our own efforts, but on the willingness of the community to participate in the legislative process as well. To learn more about OHA's advocacy work, and how you too ean become an agent of change, please visit www.kamakakoi.com. ■