REPORT TITLE:
Historic Preservation


DESCRIPTION:
Establishes a burial site program within DLNR to assist island
burial councils with their mandated responsibilities.  Clarifies
and strengthens various laws relating to the preservation of
native Hawaiian burial sites and artifacts.  (SD1)

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                        568
THE SENATE                              S.B. NO.           S.D. 1
TWENTIETH LEGISLATURE, 1999                                
STATE OF HAWAII                                            
                                                             
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________


                   A  BILL  FOR  AN  ACT

RELATING TO HISTORIC PRESERVATION. 


BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

 1      SECTION 1.  Section 6E-2, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
 2 amended by adding a new definition to be appropriately inserted
 
 3 and to read as follows:
 
 4      ""Burial specialist" means a person within the department or
 
 5 member of an island burial council who possesses at least three
 
 6 years experience with human skeletal remains as a result of
 
 7 inadvertent discovery, repatriation, or reinternment."
 
 8      SECTION 2.  Section 6E-11, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
 9 amended to read as follows:
 
10      "§6E-11  Penalties.(a)  It shall be unlawful for any
 
11 person, natural or corporate, to take, appropriate, excavate,
 
12 injure, destroy, or alter any historic property or aviation
 
13 artifact located upon the private lands of any owner thereof
 
14 without the owner's written permission being first obtained.  It
 
15 shall be unlawful for any person, natural or corporate, to take,
 
16 appropriate, excavate, injure, destroy, or alter any historic
 
17 property or aviation artifact located upon lands owned or
 
18 controlled by the State or any of its political subdivisions,
 
19 except as permitted by the department.
 

 
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 1      (b)  It shall be unlawful for any person, natural or
 
 2 corporate, to knowingly take, appropriate, excavate, injure,
 
 3 destroy, or alter any burial site or the contents thereof,
 
 4 located on private lands or lands owned or controlled by the
 
 5 State or any of its political subdivisions, except as permitted
 
 6 by the department.  Violators of this subsection are also subject
 
 7 to prosecution pursuant to section 711-1107, the penalties for
 
 8 which shall be imposed in addition to, and not in lieu of, any
 
 9 penalties imposed under this section.
 
10      (c)  It shall be unlawful for any person, natural or
 
11 corporate, to knowingly take, appropriate, excavate, injure,
 
12 destroy, or alter any heiau or the contents thereof, located on
 
13 private lands or lands owned or controlled by the State or any of
 
14 its political subdivisions, except as permitted by the
 
15 department.  Violators of this subsection shall be subject to
 
16 prosecution pursuant to section 711-1107, the penalties of which
 
17 shall be imposed in addition to, and not in lieu of, any
 
18 penalties imposed under this section.
 
19      [(c)] (d)  Any person who violates this section shall be
 
20 fined not more than $10,000 for each separate offense.  If the
 
21 violator directly or indirectly has caused the loss of, or damage
 
22 to, historic property, heiau, or burial site, the violator shall
 
23 be fined an additional amount determined by the court to be
 

 
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 1 equivalent to the value of the lost or damaged historic property,
 
 2 heiau, or burial site.  Each day of continued violation of this
 
 3 provision shall constitute a distinct and separate offense for
 
 4 which the offender may be punished.  Equipment used by a violator
 
 5 for the taking, appropriation, excavation, injury, destruction,
 
 6 or alteration of historic property, heiau, or a burial site, or
 
 7 for the transportation of the violator to or from the historic
 
 8 property or a burial site, shall be subject to seizure and
 
 9 disposition by the State without compensation to its owner or
 
10 owners.  Violators of this section also shall be subject to
 
11 forfeiture of the historic property, heiau, or burial site to the
 
12 State without compensation.
 
13      [(d)] (e)  Any person, natural or corporate, who knowingly
 
14 violates this section with respect to burial sites or heiau shall
 
15 also be prohibited from participating in the construction of any
 
16 state or county funded project for ten years."
 
17      SECTION 3.  Section 6E-43.5, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
18 amended by amending subsection (c) to read as follows:
 
19      "(c)  The department, in consultation with the councils,
 
20 office of Hawaiian affairs, representatives of development and
 
21 large property owner interests, and appropriate Hawaiian
 
22 organizations, such as Hui Malama I Na Kupuna O Hawai`i Nei,
 
23 shall adopt rules pursuant to chapter 91 necessary to carry out
 

 
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 1 the purposes of this section.  The council members shall serve
 
 2 without compensation, but shall be reimbursed for necessary
 
 3 expenses incurred during the performance of their duties.  The
 
 4 councils shall be a part of the department for administrative
 
 5 purposes.  The department shall establish, maintain, and support
 
 6 a burial sites program to provide administrative support to the
 
 7 councils, and to implement applicable duties and responsibilities
 
 8 relating to burial sites and human skeletal remains as stated
 
 9 throughout this chapter."
 
10      SECTION 4.  Section 6E-43.6, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
11 amended by amending subsections (b) and (c) to read as follows:
 
12      "(b)  The discovery shall be reported as soon as possible to
 
13 the department[, the appropriate medical examiner or coroner,]
 
14 and the appropriate police department.  As soon as practicable,
 
15 the department shall notify the appropriate council and the
 
16 office of Hawaiian affairs[.], where the context suggests the
 
17 remains are Hawaiian.
 
18      (c)  After notification of the discovery of multiple
 
19 skeletons, the following shall be done within two working days,
 
20 if on Oahu, and three working days, if in other council
 
21 jurisdictions:
 
22      (1)  A [representative of the medical examiner or coroner's
 
23           office and a] qualified archaeologist or burial
 

 
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 1           specialist shall [examine] inspect the remains to
 
 2           determine jurisdiction.  If the remains are the
 
 3           responsibility of the [medical examiner or coroner,]
 
 4           police department, the department's involvement shall
 
 5           end.  If the remains are historic or prehistoric
 
 6           burials, then the remainder of this section shall
 
 7           apply;
 
 8      (2)  The department shall gather sufficient information,
 
 9           including oral tradition, to document the nature of the
 
10           burial context and determine appropriate treatment of
 
11           the remains.  Members of the appropriate council shall
 
12           be allowed to oversee the on-site [examination]
 
13           inspection and, if warranted, removal; and
 
14      (3)  If removal of the remains is warranted, based on
 
15           criteria developed by the department, in consultation
 
16           with the councils, office of Hawaiian affairs,
 
17           representatives of development and large property owner
 
18           interests, and appropriate Hawaiian organizations, such
 
19           as Hui Malama I Na Kupuna O Hawai`i Nei, through rules
 
20           adopted pursuant to chapter 91, the removal of the
 
21           remains shall be overseen by a qualified archaeologist
 
22           or burial specialist and a mitigation plan shall be
 
23           prepared by the department or with the concurrence of
 

 
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 1           the department."
 
 2      SECTION 5.  Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed.
 
 3 New statutory material is underscored.
 
 4      SECTION 6.  This Act shall take effect upon its approval.