OHA urges completion of public lands trust working group before SB903 settlement baseline; committee adopts technical amendments

The Office of Hawaiian Affairs told the joint Senate Committee on Hawaiian Affairs and the Senate Committee on Ways and Means that the public lands trust working group should finish its scope of work before any baseline for settlement discussions is set, as lawmakers moved to adopt technical amendments to Senate Bill 903.

Lena Alalei, director of advocacy for the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, told the committees she would “stand on our written comments,” and stressed the need for the working group to complete its scope of work before settlement baselines are established. Her testimony came during the committees’ decision-making on SB903.

The chair recommended technical amendments to the bill, including blanking the appropriation and defecting the effective date to June 30, 2059. With no further discussion recorded, the Senate Committee on Hawaiian Affairs adopted the recommendation; Chair Richards and several members voiced “aye,” while Vice Chair San Buenaventura and Senator Ihara were recorded as excused during that roll call. The Ways and Means committee recorded the same recommendation and the chair’s vote as “aye.”

The Office of Hawaiian Affairs’ position was recorded as standing on written testimony and emphasizing completion of the public lands trust working group as necessary groundwork for settlement discussions. The committee record does not show additional details about how the working group’s scope would affect the bill text or timeline.

SB903 was carried forward by committee action with the technical amendments and the adjusted effective date noted by the chair. The transcript does not list the bill’s full text, appropriation amount, or subsequent steps beyond the committees’ vote.

The committees did not specify next steps for implementing or monitoring the working group’s scope in connection with SB903 during the recorded session.