Bill Text: HI HCR131 | 2021 | Regular Session | Amended
Bill Title: Requesting The Establishment Of A Burial Sites Working Group To Review And Recommend Improvements To The Burial Sites Program Within The State Historic Preservation Division.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2021-04-01 - Referred to HWN/WTL. [HCR131 Detail]
Download: Hawaii-2021-HCR131-Amended.html
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES |
H.C.R. NO. |
131 |
THIRTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2021 |
H.D. 1 |
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STATE OF HAWAII |
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HOUSE CONCURRENT
RESOLUTION
REQUESTING THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A BURIAL SITES WORKING GROUP TO REVIEW AND RECOMMEND IMPROVEMENTS TO THE BURIAL SITES PROGRAM WITHIN THE STATE HISTORIC PRESERVATION DIVISION.
WHEREAS, the Legislature acknowledges the State's duty to native Hawaiians is firmly established in the state constitution in article XII; and
WHEREAS, the Legislature and the State also recognize their unique trust relationship with Native Hawaiians; and
WHEREAS, the Department of Land and Natural Resources' mission is to "[e]nhance, protect, conserve and manage Hawaii's unique and limited natural, cultural and historic resources held in public trust for current and future generations of the people of Hawaii nei, and its visitors, in partnership with others from the public and private sectors"; and
WHEREAS, within the Department of Land and Natural Resources is the State Historic Preservation Division, which strives to preserve and protect Hawaii's historic identity; and
WHEREAS, the Burial Sites Program and the Island Burial Councils within the History and Culture branch have the duty of protecting and managing traditional Hawaiian burial sites over fifty years old and most commonly unmarked according to ancient cultural protocols; and
WHEREAS, burial council members are reviewed and vetted by the Department of Land and Natural Resources and Office of Hawaiian Affairs, which each submit a list of names and qualifications of potential council members to the Governor, who nominates potential council members, subject to confirmation by the Senate; and
WHEREAS, council members take upon themselves the sworn duties and obligations to care for iwi kūpuna (ancestral bones) and moepū (funerary possessions); and
WHEREAS, the burial councils are charged with, among other things, overseeing and determining whether previously identified Native Hawaiian burial sites will be preserved in place or relocated; and
WHEREAS, when there are inadvertent discoveries of iwi kūpuna, these burial sites are under the jurisdiction of the State Historic Preservation Division; and
WHEREAS, the State Historic Preservation Division has been the subject of numerous audits and was put on probation with the National Parks Service, but has recently been moved from a high‑risk to a medium-risk recipient of federal funds; and
WHEREAS, leaders of the Island Burial Councils have criticized the State for the mismanagement of the Burial Sites Program through a lack of communication and inadequate legal counsel, among other grievances; and
WHEREAS, many within the Native Hawaiian community, especially lineal descendants, have also expressed frustration at the lack of action by the State Historic Preservation Division; and
WHEREAS, members also claim that there has been a failure to enforce burial site violations while not developing an adequate inventory of Native Hawaiian burial sites; and
WHEREAS, there is a significant divide between Native Hawaiians and the State Historic Preservation Division, a branch of government meant to provide guidance on significant cultural and historic issues; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Thirty-first Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2021, the Senate concurring, that a Burial Sites Working Group is requested to be established to review and recommend improvements to the Burial Sites Program within the State Historic Preservation Division; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the working group is requested to determine ways to strengthen and improve historic resources and protections; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the working group include the following members:
(1) The Chairperson of the Board of Land and Natural resources or the Chairperson's designee;
(2) The Administrator of the State Historic Preservation Division;
(3) Two staff members from the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, to be selected by the Chief Executive Officer; provided that one member be selected from the Office's Compliance Enforcement Program;
(4) One representative from the Board of Trustees of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, to be selected by the Chairperson of the Board;
(5) One individual from each Island Burial Council, to be selected by a majority vote of its respective members;
(6) One staff member from the Department of the Attorney General, to be selected by the Attorney General;
(7) One Native Hawaiian cultural practitioner, to be selected by the President of the Senate; and
(8) One Native Hawaiian cultural practitioner, to be selected by the Speaker of the House of Representatives; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the working group examine the Burial Sites Program and the Island Burial Councils to determine their relationship to the State Historic Preservation Division and their management; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the working group review existing statutes and rules pertaining to the Burial Councils; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the working group discuss ways to fill current and future vacancies on each Island Burial Council; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the working group examine all State Historic Preservation Division staff duties and responsibilities to better support the Island Burial Councils; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the working group provide recommendations on the development of a statewide survey and inventory that documents historic properties where burial sites exist or may exist, including properties owned by the State or the counties; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the working group is requested to submit a report of its findings and recommendations to the Legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2022; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted the Governor; President of the Senate; Speaker of the House of Representatives; Attorney General; Chairperson of the Board of Land and Natural Resources; Chairperson of the Board of Trustees of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs; Chief Executive Officer of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs; Administrator of the State Historic Preservation Division of the Department of Land and Natural Resources; and each Chairperson of the Hawaii Island Burial Council, Kauai and Niihau Islands Burial Council, Maui and Lanai Islands Burial Council, Oahu Island Burial Council, and Molokai Island Burial Council.
Hawaiian Affairs; Burials; Burial Councils; DLNR; SHPD