THE SENATE	S.R. NO.	107
THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2025		S.D. 1
STATE OF HAWAII

SENATE RESOLUTION

Requesting the Attorney General to produce and provide a list of state lands currently leased to the United States of America or any federal agency.

WHEREAS, article XI, section 1, of the Hawaii State Constitution provides that "the State and its political subdivisions shall conserve and protect Hawaii's natural beauty and all natural resources . . . and shall promote the development and utilization of these resources in a manner consistent with their conservation and in furtherance of the self-sufficiency of the State"; and

WHEREAS, the State currently leases tens of thousands of acres of state land to the federal government, including various sites which have been leased to the United States military for the past sixty years at the price of one dollar; and

WHEREAS, the military has proven to be an unreliable steward of the State's land and waters, as demonstrated by the Red Hill water contamination crisis on Oʻahu, the indiscriminate bombing of Kahoʻolawe and subsequent incomplete cleanup of unexploded ordinance, and many other incidents; and

WHEREAS, the United States Army itself has acknowledged that "continued loss of ʻāina represents a disproportionate and a long term, significant, adverse impact on communities with environmental justice concerns"; and

WHEREAS, the Trump administration has taken actions that further endanger the State's natural resources, including by asserting that national parks and public lands are assets on "the nation's balance sheet," by indicating that public lands may be sold off to raise money for a new "sovereign wealth fund," and by issuing an executive order calling for the "immediate expansion" of timber production on federal lands; and

WHEREAS, these policies have had an immediate negative effect on precious state lands and resources, including by eliminating funding for critical environmental and agricultural programs across the State, and by eliminating staff and caretakers at federally-owned properties within the State; and

WHEREAS, these policies are poised to do further harm to the State, including as a result of the Secretary of the Interior's order requiring federal agencies to assess the feasibility of fracking, drilling, and mining across all public lands and waters, such as Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument; and

WHEREAS, the federal government has thus demonstrated a clear unwillingness or inability to responsibly steward state lands entrusted to it as a lessee; and

WHEREAS, the current administration's actions and stated intentions represent a clear and present danger to the conservation and protection of the State's natural beauty and natural resources; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Thirty-third Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2025, that the Attorney General is requested to produce and provide a list of state lands currently leased to the United States of America or any federal agency; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Attorney General is requested to determine whether there are any state constitutional or other legal impediments to continued leasing to the federal government or offering new leases, noting particularly whether leasing for nominal amounts is violative of any state constitutional or statutory provisions; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that any lessor of state land to the federal government is requested to furnish information to the Attorney General as necessary to assist with the tasks requested by this Resolution; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a certified copy of this Resolution be transmitted to the Attorney General.

Report Title:

Attorney General; State Lands; Leases; Federal Government