RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, annual parades are an integral part of the Prince Jonah Kuhio Kalanianaole commemorative celebration, the King Kamehameha celebration, and the Aloha Week festivals; and

WHEREAS, the Hawaii Tourism Authority has recognized the cultural and economic significance of these events; and

WHEREAS, floral, decorated floats have been a historic Hawaii tradition since the inception of the parades that are held during the celebrations; and

WHEREAS, non-commercial floats use donated materials from the community and are created by community volunteers; and

WHEREAS, businesses located on Hawaii's waterfront have graciously supported this community-based activity by allowing the use of their hangars; and

WHEREAS, space located on Honolulu waterfront piers have been used to decorate floats for more than fifty years; and

WHEREAS, recently the construction and decoration of floats for these parades, particularly the Prince Jonah Kuhio Kalanianaole and the King Kamehameha parades, were seriously impeded by the closure of piers at Honolulu harbor due to homeland security policies; and

WHEREAS, more than ten float entries for the 2005 King Kamehameha parade were withdrawn because of the lack of space at a reasonable cost that is within a reasonable distance of the parade start location; and

WHEREAS, cost estimates indicate that adequate space to decorate floats is available at $2,000 or more per day; and

WHEREAS, homeland security policies should consider the tradition and culture of Hawaii's activities surrounding these significant commemorative events whenever possible; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-third Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2006, the Senate concurring, that federal, state, and county officials are urged to support an exception to homeland security policies that bar certain activities on Hawaii's waterfront so that specific piers may be used by the public to decorate floral floats for these commemorative parades, as has been done for over fifty years; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to Hawaii's congressional delegation, the Governor of the State of Hawaii, the Chairperson of the Board of Directors and the Executive Director of the Hawaii Tourism Authority, the Mayor of the City and County of Honolulu, the Chairperson of the Board of Directors of the Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubs, and the Chairpersons of the Kamehameha Day Celebration Commission and the Aloha Week Festivals Commission.

Report Title:

Commemorative Celebrations; Homeland Security; Harbors; Piers