Beneficiary testifies on burial council vacancies, DHHL paper leases and use of Hawaiian home lands

Germaine Myers, an OHA beneficiary, testified three times during the April 2 committee meeting — on the OHA legislative matrix, during Matrix 2 testimony and again at the community‑concerns portion — pressing trustees on burial‑council vacancies, long delays converting DHHL undivided interest "paper" leases to land leases, and the use of Hawaiian home lands for energy projects.

Myers told the committee that several island burial councils have persistent vacancies that prevent quorum. Testifying about Matrix 1, she cited the Molokaʻi burial council as having five seats but with all seats vacant at times, and said the governor’s slow appointments leave councils unable to meet. "The burial council is being held ineffective by the inactions of the governor," she said, and urged trustees to press state leaders to fill seats in a timely way.

Myers also criticized DHHL land‑development practices. She testified that from roughly 1995 through 2005 the legislature provided DHHL $30 million per year for lot development, totaling $300 million, and that DHHL later received additional appropriations. She said DHHL issued large numbers of undivided interest paper leases beginning in the mid‑2000s and that many of those beneficiaries remain without converted land leases. "As of December 2024 ... 730 undivided paper leases are still waiting for land," Myers said during community concerns testimony, and she said DHHL converted only a fraction of early paper leases into full land leases.

Myers also objected to proposals to site energy projects on Hawaiian home lands and asked why state energy projects were not sited instead on other state lands (for example, Department of Land and Natural Resources or Department of Transportation land). She flagged recent legislative requests related to potable water pilot projects and expressed alarm about wind‑farm and geothermal proposals affecting homestead lands.

Why it matters: Myers’s testimony reflects persistent beneficiary concerns about access to burial‑council seats, DHHL backlog and land disposition, and proposed uses of Hawaiian home lands. Trustees heard the testimony during legislative updates and in the public‑comment period; staff responded with procedural explanations about appointment processes.

Trustee and staff responses: Committee staff explained that OHA recruits and vets burial‑council nominees and forwards names to the governor, but that the governor and the Senate have separate roles in the appointment and advice‑and‑consent process. Staff said OHA’s role ends when nominees are passed to the governor. On DHHL matters, trustees acknowledged the testimony and noted these are longstanding policy concerns often discussed in other forums.

Ending: Myers concluded by urging trustees to review agency reports and to address what she described as a failure to convert long‑standing paper leases into full land leases for beneficiaries.