Senate Committee on Hawaiian Affairs advises and consents to five island nominations for burial councils and Hawaiian Homes Commission

The Senate Committee on Hawaiian Affairs on April 10 advised and consented to five gubernatorial nominees for island burial councils and the Hawaiian Homes Commission, voting unanimously on each confirmation.

The committee approved nominations for Leymana Avines (GM 680) to the Big Island Burial Council; Cyrus Sato (GM 681) to the Big Island Burial Council; Shantel Freeman (GM 686) to the Big Island Burial Council; Chad Shimo Fenig (GM 763) to the Kauai and Niʻihau Burial Council; and Shaylin Ornelas (GM 773) to the Hawaiian Homes Commission. Chair recommendations to “advise and consent” were adopted for all five measures.

The State Historic Preservation Division (SHPD) testified in support of several nominees, citing cultural experience and hands‑on work with ancestral sites. Jessica Puff, administrator of SHPD, told the committee that nominees “strongly and happily support[ed] the nominations” and highlighted each…