THE SENATE

S.R. NO.

128

TWENTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2003

  

STATE OF HAWAII

  
   

SENATE RESOLUTION

 

REQUESTING THE establishment of AN ISLAND BURIAL COUNCIL TASK FORCE TO REVIEW PROCEDURES AND OPERATIONS OF THE ISLAND BURIAL COUNCILS.

 

 

WHEREAS, section 6E-43.5, Hawaii Revised Statutes, establishes five island burial councils to represent the islands of Hawaii, Maui and Lanai, Molokai, Oahu, and Kauai and Niihau and to be composed of members appointed by the Governor and confirmed by the Senate; and

WHEREAS, the island burial councils are assigned to the State Historic Preservation Division within the Department of Land and Natural Resources for administrative purposes; and

WHEREAS, the 2002 Legislature adopted Senate Resolution No. 79 (S.C.R. No. 79), that requested the Hawaii State Auditor to conduct a programmatic and financial audit of the Historic Preservation Division; and

WHEREAS, S.C.R. No. 79 directed the Auditor to consider, in part, the operations of the Historic Preservation Division to address concerns raised about frequent delays in council determinations and burial-related decisions by the Historic Preservation Division; poor documentation of the process; and a lack of administrative support for the program; and

WHEREAS, the 2002 Legislature recognized in adopting S.C.R. No. 79 that delays in decision making and recordation can impact the State’s ability to ensure the appropriate treatment of Hawaii’s historic and cultural resources, including native Hawaiian burials, without unduly hindering the use of public lands, economic development, capital improvement projects, and social programs; and

WHEREAS, the Auditor issued a report raising serious concerns about the effectiveness and management of the Historic Preservation Division, including some findings concerning the management of the Burial Sites Program which provides support to the burial councils in fulfilling their mandates; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Twenty-Second Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2003, that the Department of Land and Natural Resources is requested to convene a task force to review the concerns raised about the operations and procedures of the burial councils and their effectiveness and to recommend actions needed to support the councils in fulfilling their responsibilities; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that members of the Island Burial Councils Task Force include but not be limited to:

(1) The Chairperson of the Board of Land and Natural Resources or the Chairperson’s designee;

(2) Two representatives from each island burial council to be selected by the respective councils; and

(3) One member representing each of the following: Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Native Hawaiian Legal Corporation, private landowner interests, and an archaeological consulting firm that appears frequently before the councils, to be selected by the Chairperson of the Board of Land and Natural Resources; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Chairperson or the Chairperson’s designee convene the first task force meeting no later than 60 days after the last day of the Regular Session of 2003; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force gather and consider information provided by native Hawaiians, consultants, government agency staff, landowners, and community members that frequently appear before the burial councils and are most directly affected by council decisions and recommendations; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force convene a burial council "summit" of all current council members to discuss and finalize the task force findings and recommendations; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force objectives and recommendations include, but not be limited to:

(1) Identifying operations of the Burial Sites Program and the Archaeology Branch of the State Historic Preservation Division that are needed to support council actions and to execute council decisions and recommendations;

(2) Developing measures to ensure the appropriate and timely reburial of human remains held in the custody of the State Historic Preservation Division now and in the future;

(3) Suggesting proposals to secure federal funding or grants from private and other government sources to develop program areas needed to support council mandates;

(4) Recommending potential amendments to Chapter 6E, Hawaii Revised Statutes, and Chapter 13-300, Hawaii Administrative Rules, that would strengthen council procedures and reduce the vulnerability of council decisions to challenge;

(5) Specifying the role and responsibilities of the councils as native Hawaiian organizations for the purposes of addressing the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act and the National Historic Preservation Act;

(6) Developing procedures for recognizing cultural and lineal descendants and ensuring their participation and that of native Hawaiian organizations in the execution of the councils’ responsibilities; and

(7) Determining the status, management, and uses of the statewide inventory of unmarked Hawaiian burial sites, including those registered by request of native Hawaiian families; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Island Burial Council Task Force is requested to submit to the Legislature and the Governor a report of findings and recommendations no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2004; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Governor, the Chairperson of the Board of Land and Natural Resources, Chairpersons of each Island Burial Council, Chairperson of the Board of Trustees of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, and Executive Director of the Native Hawaiian Legal Corporation.

 

 

 
 

OFFERED BY:

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Report Title:

Island Burial Council Task Force