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Hawaiian Affairs committee defers several bills, converts Mauna ʻAla bill to working group, and recommits DHHL funding bill
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Summary
In decision-making sessions Feb. 12 the Senate Committee on Hawaiian Affairs deferred multiple bills, converted SB3247 (Royal Mausoleum/Mauna ʻAla) into a DLNR working group with semiannual reports, passed several bills with amendments (including SB1112, SB1301, SB2702), and passed amendments to SB2635 to appropriate funds for DHHL and recommit the measure.
The Senate Committee on Hawaiian Affairs met Feb. 12 for a series of decision items, deferring some measures, converting others to working groups and passing amendments on several bills.
Chair remarks opened the 10:05 a.m. agenda and explained reasons for deferrals where appropriate. The committee deferred SB1406 and SB521 to avoid duplicative or premature work because companion legislative actions or county processes are already underway. The committee also deferred SB1654, SB2443 and SB2996 after discussion of ongoing processes and environmental reviews.
The committee converted SB3247, which addresses the Royal Mausoleum (Mauna ʻAla), into a working group under the Department of Land and Natural Resources. The chair outlined specific amendments that rename the commission the Royal Mausoleum Working Group, direct DLNR to host the working group, instruct the group to develop independent management policy (apart from DLNR fiscal/administrative functions), adopt proposed testimony amendments from Robert Quatero (excluding two numbered items), and submit brief progress reports to the legislature every six months with a final comprehensive report due 60 days before the 2028 session. One committee member said they initially planned to vote no but supported converting the bill to a working group to broaden stakeholder participation.
Several bills were passed with amendments intended to "defect the date" to allow continued discussion while preserving momentum: SB1112 and SB1301 were passed with amendments and recorded votes (one member registered a reservation on SB1112). SB2702, focused on Hawaiian homelands and first-refusal provisions for certain real-property tax sales to allow DHHL to acquire lands, was passed with the chair's recommended amendments.
In the 2 p.m. short-form session, the committee considered SB2635, a short-form bill that inserts provisions relating to DHHL and appropriates funds for development or purchase of lands or units for mortgage or rental subsidies and other services to address wait-list needs. The chair recommended passing SB2635 with the proposed Senate Draft 1 amendments, inserting the provisions and recommitting the bill back to the Committee on Hawaiian Affairs; the committee voted and recorded 'aye' votes, adopting the chair's recommendation.
The decision-making session recorded multiple votes and several decisions to defer, amend or convert bills, and directed reporting and follow-up timelines for the Mauna ʻAla working group and others. Committee members repeatedly emphasized stakeholder participation and accountability through semiannual reports where specified.
