STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2083

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.B. No. 2254

       S.D. 1

Honorable Donna Mercado Kim

President of the Senate

Twenty-Seventh State Legislature

Regular Session of 2014

State of Hawaii

Madam:

     Your Committee on Hawaiian Affairs, to which was referred S.B. No. 2254 entitled:

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

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to:

     (1)  Establish a candidate advisory council to present nominees to the Governor for the appointment of individuals to serve on the Hawaiian Homes Commission;

     (2)  Require all members of the Hawaiian Homes Commission to be of Hawaiian ancestry; and

     (3)  Require the members of the commission, rather than the Governor, to select a chairperson from among the members of the commission to serve a one-year term commencing on July 1 and expiring on June 30.

     Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubs.  Your Committee received testimony in opposition to this measure from the Department of the Attorney General, Auamo I Na Alaka‘i, and Waimanalo Hawaiian Homes Association.  Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands.

     Your Committee finds that, recently, the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands has attracted increased scrutiny for program deficiencies uncovered by the press as well as departmental audits.  As a consequence, certain communities, including those of Hawaiian ancestry, are wary of the selection process for Hawaiian Homes commissioners, including the chairperson.  This measure assures that all commissioners selected for the Hawaiian Homes Commission, including the chairperson, are vetted and approved by a broad range of stakeholders and beneficiaries, rather than only the Governor and Senate.

     Your Committee has amended this measure by:

     (1)  Requiring one member, rather than two members, of the candidate advisory council to be appointed by the Sovereign Councils of the Hawaiian Homelands Assembly;

     (2)  Requiring one member of the candidate advisory council to be appointed by Auamo I Na Alaka‘i;

     (3)  Requiring one member of the candidate advisory council to be appointed by the Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubs;

     (4)  Requiring two members, rather than one member, of the candidate advisory council to be appointed by the Hawaiian Homes Commission;

     (5)  Inserting an effective date of July 1, 2050, to encourage further discussion; and

     (6)  Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for the purposes of clarity and consistency.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Hawaiian Affairs that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2254, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2254, S.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Hawaiian Affairs,

____________________________

MAILE S.L. SHIMABUKURO, Chair