OHA board enters, reports out of executive session and announces procurement for Hawaiian registry card redesign

The Office of Hawaiian Affairs board of trustees voted May 21 to go into an executive session under the statute cited in the record and, upon reconvening, reported that no action was taken while consulting with legal counsel.

Chair Kahele moved the board into executive session; the motion passed on a roll call with eight yes votes and one trustee excused. After the closed portion of the meeting, Chair Kahele reported to the public meeting that no formal action resulted from the executive session and that the board had consulted its legal counsel on the agendized matter.

The meeting also covered routine announcements. Chair Kahele said OHA is soliciting proposals to redesign the Hawaiian registry card; proposals are due Friday, May 22. The chair invited prospective vendors to submit entries as part of a procurement process to update the card’s art and design. A trustee raised a procedural question about how designers should approach art given restrictions on the card; Kahele said the question would be handled offline because it was outside the announcements’ scope.

Kahele listed other upcoming OHA business: a permitted interaction group and technical advisers will meet Saturday, May 23 on Hawaiʻi Island; standing committee meetings are scheduled for Wednesday, May 27 (Investment/Land Management at 9 a.m., Budget & Finance at 10 a.m.); and the full board is set to meet Thursday, May 28 to ratify committee work and go into executive session. He also noted that OHA will be closed on Memorial Day, Monday, May 25.

Board counsel Kapono Keokona announced that agenda item 2(b) had been taken off today’s agenda. The chair moved to adjourn later in the meeting; the motion passed on a roll call with eight yes votes and the meeting adjourned.

The meeting was livestreamed on the OHA website and Allelo TV; the board did not take any formal public-action items during the session.