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Bill to speed historic‑preservation review draws concern that silence would become consent
Summary
SHPD supported streamlining private historic‑preservation reviews but tribal and cultural advocates warned HB 17‑10's assumed‑concurrence language risks authorizing development in places with undocumented burials; SHPD says vacancies remain and a fuller staff is needed to avoid unintended consequences.
HB 17‑10 would add timelines and an assumed‑concurrence mechanism to existing historic‑preservation review processes for certain private projects. Jessica Puff of the State Historic Preservation Division (SHPD) described the bill as aligning state review timelines with federal Section 106 practice and said SHPD had been comfortable with the language in the context of streamlining review. "We're comfortable with that language because we already live with it under the federal review process," Puff said.
Opponents including James Mayoho and representatives of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs argued the bill would shift risk to Kanaka and hamper protection of undocumented burial sites. "From a Kanaka perspective, silence is not consent, especially when the silence is caused by chronic underfunding and institutional neglect," Mayoho told the committee, urging funding and a stronger burial council instead of automatic approvals. SHPD acknowledged staffing gaps — the agency said it had filled some positions but still had vacancies and requested funding for additional specialists for islands with limited coverage.
The committee approved HB 17‑10 with amendments taken from DLNR and OHA testimony and recorded multiple member reservations; the chair said the measure would move forward with an HD 1 and specific language adjustments.
