Office of Hawaiian Affairs submits bill package for consideration in upcoming state legislative session

The Office of Hawaiian Affairs on Friday submitted its legislative package to the Native Hawaiian Caucus of the Hawai‘i State Legislature for consideration in the upcoming 2025 legislative session.

“The [Office of Hawaiian Affairs] package contains four bills that will help address pressing issues facing Hawai‘i as well as advance [the Office of Hawaiian Affairs’] mission to improve the conditions of Native Hawaiians,” said Office of Hawaiian Affairs Board of Trustees Chairman Kai Kahele of Hawai‘i Island.

The four bills are summarized here:

Funding: Relating to the Budget of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs

OHA is requesting a $1,858,454 increase in FY26 and $1,996,208 increase in FY27 in general fund appropriations (reflected in the FY26 and FY27 biennium budget totals of $4.8M and $4.9M). These increases are necessary to adjust for the cost of inflation since 2020 when OHA began implementing its strategic plan Mana i Maoli Ola and to fund the newly created 13-member Strategy and Implementation (S&I) Team. OHA’s S&I team will leverage their subject matter expertise to develop specific tactics to reduce disparities Native Hawaiians face in health, housing, education and economic development in line with OHA’s strategic plan, and provide concrete metrics for the public and elected officials to track the impact that OHA’s program funding is making in improving Native Hawaiian social conditions, among other initiatives vital to attaining OHA’s statutory mandates.

Public Lands Inventory and Audit: Relating to the Public Land Trust Working Group

In 2022, the Legislature created the Public Land Trust Working Group (PLTWG) to: (1) account for all ceded lands in the public lands trust inventory; (2) account for all income and proceeds derived from the public land trust; and (3) determine the twenty per cent pro rata share of income and proceeds due annually to OHA from the public land trust. The PLTWG unanimously agreed to submit this bill to fund and hire an independent third party to audit and review the Department of Land and Natural Resources’ Public Land Trust Inventory System and to assess the accuracy of the related land inventory and accounting systems, as necessary for the PLTWG to determine the twenty per cent pro rata share due annually to OHA.

Kaka‘ako Makai Bill: Relating to the Hawai‘i Community Development Authority

In 2012, the Legislature conveyed certain lands valued at approximately $200,000,000 from the State to OHA (Kaka‘ako Makai lands) as settlement of past due amounts. The valuation was based on residential development as the highest use of the Kaka‘ako Makai lands. This bill would repeal the residential development prohibition on certain land parcels allowing OHA to maximize the value of Kaka‘ako Makai lands consistent with the legislative intent. This bill would also raise the residential height limit along Ala Moana Boulevard to 400 feet, subject to the provision that 50% + 1 unit in any tower would be reserved for essential workforce housing (<140% AMI); dedicate a portion of residential association fees to the maintenance of open spaces and public infrastructure preserving public access and use of the shoreline areas; and require owner occupancy of all residential units.

Protection of Iwi Kūpuna: Relating to Burial Council Composition

This bill would address longstanding quorum and composition issues by removing the designated landowner seat from the Island Burial Councils allowing the councils to meet with a quorum of seven members (with the exception of Moloka‘i which will remain at five members). OHA also anticipates supporting additional legislation to implement recommendations made by the Burial Sites Working Group convened in 2022.

Opening day of the 2025 session for the Hawai’i Legislature is Jan. 15.