HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.R. NO.	157
TWENTY-NINTH LEGISLATURE, 2018
STATE OF HAWAII

HOUSE RESOLUTION

urging THE department of hawaiian homelands TO commit to providing housing first for Native hawaiian beneficiaries.

WHEREAS, the United States Congress passed the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act in 1921, which was authored by Prince Kuhio Kalanianaole, and which dedicated 203,000 acres of land in Hawaii to benefit Native Hawaiians; and

WHEREAS, the purpose of the Act was and is to restore the cultural link between Native Hawaiians and the land and to provide Native Hawaiians the stability, financial equity, and economic self-sufficiency that comes from land and home ownership; and

WHEREAS, since the Act was signed into law, only about 9,700 homesteads have been resettled and nearly 27,000 beneficiaries remain on the waitlist; and

WHEREAS, the Federal and State governments have contributed to the underdevelopment of this important program by not acting in the best interests of Native Hawaiians and providing insufficient funding, inadequate planning, and mismanagement; and

WHEREAS, the prevailing method of granting agricultural lots or turnkey developments is a broken "one size fits all" approach that ignores current economic realities, job markets, and the varying needs of beneficiaries; and

WHEREAS, the Department of Hawaiian Homelands continues to operate a decade behind current housing and economic trends, providing beneficiaries with unusable land, houses far away from jobs and economic centers, and often failing to provide housing or lots altogether; and

WHEREAS, for the future of Native Hawaiians and their wellbeing, the Department of Hawaiian Homelands must fulfill its purpose by being a "housing first" department, and focus its funding, personnel, and other resources toward providing housing for Native Hawaiian beneficiaries; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-ninth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2018, that the Department of Hawaiian Homelands is urged to commit to pursuing an agenda of "housing first", using all its assets, moneys, and personnel to pursue an aggressive program of homebuilding in all forms, including condos, multi-family, and single-family homes as appropriate; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Hawaiian Homelands is urged to review its grant drawdown procedures and priorities to ensure that it responsibly and effectively spends Federal grant money toward its mission of providing housing for Native Hawaiian beneficiaries; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Chairperson of the Hawaiian Homes Commission, the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and the Governor of the State of Hawaii.

OFFERED BY:

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Report Title:

Department of Hawaiian Homelands