STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1194

                                   Honolulu, Hawaii
                                                     , 1999

                                   RE:  H.B. No. 235
                                        H.D. 2
                                        S.D. 1




Honorable Norman Mizuguchi
President of the Senate
Twentieth State Legislature
Regular Session of 1999
State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committees on Water, Land, and Hawaiian Affairs and
Judiciary, to which was referred H.B. No. 235, H.D. 2, entitled: 

     "A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO THE HAWAIIAN HOMES
     COMMISSION,"

beg leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this measure is to provide for an elected
Hawaiian Homes Commission to oversee the Department of Hawaiian
Home Lands (DHHL).

     Testimony in support of the measure was received from the
Office of Hawaiian Affairs, the State Representative of the 43rd
Representative District, the Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubs,
the Nanakuli Hawaiian Homestead Community Association, the
Ahupua`a Maui Island, the Ahupua`a O` Oahu, the Ahupua`a O`
Kauai, the Waimea Hawaiian Homesteaders' Association, the State
Council of Hawaiian Homestead Associations, the Waianae Kai
Homestead Association, Hui Kako`o `Aina Ho`opulapula, and a
private citizen.  A private citizen testified in opposition to
the measure.  The Attorney General, Department of Hawaiian Home
Lands, Office of Elections, the City and County of Honolulu's
Office of the City Clerk, and the County of Maui's Office of the
County Clerk took no position but offered comments on the
measure.

     The measure provides that commissioners would be elected in
a special election held in conjunction with the general election

 
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for four year terms.  To ensure that there is continuity on the
elected commission, the measure requires that in the inaugural
special election, the four commissioners with the highest vote
totals will serve for four year terms.  The other two
commissioners will serve for two years.

     Members of the elected Commission may be re-elected without
restriction as to the number of terms and would receive salaries,
benefits, and expenses in the same amount and manner as is
provided by law for the Trustees of the Office of Hawaiian
Affairs.  The measure also empowers the elected commission to
elect its chairperson and to advise and consent to the Governor's
appointment of the director of the DHHL.

     The measure establishes commissioner eligibility
requirements as follows:

     (1)  The person must be:

          (A)  A "native Hawaiian" as defined in section 201 of
               the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act (HHCA);

          (B)  A successor to a lessee as defined in section
               209(a) of the HHCA; or

          (C)  (i)  A descendant of the aboriginal peoples
                    inhabiting the Hawaiian islands previous to
                    1778, that exercised sovereignty and
                    subsisted at that time and thereafter
                    continued to reside in Hawaii; and

              (ii)  Maintains the person's residence on "Hawaiian
                    home lands" as defined in section 201 of the
                    HHCA;

     (2)  The age of eighteen years or will have attained that
          age within one year of the date of the next election of
          commissioners; and

     (3)  Otherwise qualified to register to vote in the State.

     The proposed geographic representation for an elected
Hawaiian Homes Commission would be as follows:

     (1)  The island of Oahu shall have four members, all of whom
          shall be residents and registered voters on the island
          of Oahu;


 
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     (2)  The districts of Puna, South Hilo, North Hilo, and
          Hamakua shall elect one member who shall be a resident
          and registered voter in one of those districts;

     (3)  The districts of North Kohala, South Kohala, North
          Kona, South Kona, and Ka`u shall elect one member who
          shall be a resident and registered voter in one of
          those districts;

     (4)  The island of Maui shall elect one member who shall be
          a resident and registered voter on the island of Maui;

     (5)  The islands of Lanai and Molokai shall elect one member
          who shall be a resident and registered voter either on
          the island of Lanai or Molokai; and

     (6)  The island of Kauai shall elect one member who shall be
          a resident and registered voter on the island of Kauai.

     To be eligible to vote in the special election to elect
Hawaiian Homes Commissioners, a person must:

     (1)  Be a descendant of the aboriginal peoples inhabiting
          the Hawaiian islands previous to 1778, that exercised
          sovereignty and subsisted at that time and thereafter
          continued to reside in Hawaii;

     (2)  Have attained the age of eighteen years or will have
          attained such age within one year of the date of the
          next election of commissioners; and

     (3)  Otherwise be qualified to register to vote in the
          State.

     Your Committees have amended the measure by:

     (1)  Clarifying that the election for commissioners shall be
          held as a part of the general election;

     (2)  Deleting the specific numbers of commissioners to be
          elected from each area;

     (3)  Broadening the requirements for representation from the
          island of Hawaii to require that the elected
          commissioners need only reside and vote on the island
          of Hawaii, rather than reside and represent specific
          geographic locations;


 
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     (4)  Enabling qualified residents of Niihau to vote in the
          election of a commissioner that would represent both
          Kauai and Niihau;

     (5)  Allowing for the election of one at-large member;

     (6)  Restricting and conforming the eligibility requirements
          for candidacy and to vote for candidates for the
          Commission by deleting persons who are not "native
          Hawaiian" as defined in section 201 of the HHCA or
          successors to leases as defined in section 209(a) of
          the HHCA;

     (7)  Clarifying that candidates and eligible voters must be
          at least eighteen years of age at the time of the
          election;

     (8)  Allowing qualified nonresident native Hawaiians to run
          for the at-large commission seat and to vote in the
          election of an at-large commissioner;

     (9)  Establishing that the at-large commissioner shall be
          the chairperson of the Commission;

    (10)  Deleting the requirement that any person wishing to
          register as a candidate for a seat on the Commission
          submit to an examination under oath by the clerk of the
          appropriate county as to the person's qualifications;

    (11)  Delaying the inaugural election of commissioners under
          the measure from the 2000 election to the 2002
          election;

    (12)  Adding a section that amends section 213(f), HHCA, to
          allow for the use of moneys in the Hawaiian Home
          Administration Account to pay for the salaries and
          benefits of elected commissioners and to defray
          election costs;

    (13)  Adding a section that instructs the 2001
          reapportionment commission to review and make
          recommendations on the appropriate apportionment of
          commissioner districts to the 2002 Legislature;

    (14)  Deleting the section that appropriates funds from the
          the general fund to pay for the salaries and benefits
          of elected commissioners; and


 
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    (15)  Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for
          purposes of style and clarity and to reflect
          recommended drafting style.

     Your Committees believe that the amended measure adequately
addresses the numerous concerns raised by testifiers while
concomitantly providing for fair representation for native
Hawaiian beneficiaries.  Your Committees further believe that an
elected Hawaiian Homes Commission would be more truly
representative of the beneficiaries of the Hawaiian Home Lands
Trust, thereby making the Commission more responsive to the needs
of its constituency.

     As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your
Committees on Water, Land, and Hawaiian Affairs and Judiciary
that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord
with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 235, H.D. 2, as amended
herein, and recommend that it pass Second Reading in the form
attached hereto as H.B. No. 235, H.D. 2, S.D. 1, and be referred
to the Committee on Ways and Means.

                                   Respectfully submitted on
                                   behalf of the members of the
                                   Committees on Water, Land, and
                                   Hawaiian Affairs and
                                   Judiciary,



____________________________       ______________________________
AVERY B. CHUMBLEY, Co-Chair        COLLEEN HANABUSA, Chair



____________________________
MATTHEW M. MATSUNAGA, Co-Chair

 
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