Throughout the 2026 legislative session, Office of Hawaiian Affairs (OHA) staff reviewed hundreds of bills to identify measures that would meaningfully advance the interests of the agency and its beneficiaries, while also working diligently to oppose legislation that could weaken longstanding protections for Native Hawaiian rights.

While several important measures advanced this session, only one of the six OHA package bills introduced to directly benefit the Native Hawaiian community was ultimately transmitted to the governor for signature. Moreover, none of the 16 nominees to the Island Burial Councils (IBCs) submitted to the governor by OHA were advanced to the senate for confirmation.

These outcomes underscore the continued importance of sustained community engagement at the capitol and the year-round advocacy and relationship-building carried out by OHA staff, beneficiaries, and community partners.

Progress

SB903 marked a historic and hard-fought victory for Native Hawaiians, passing its final reading with celebratory remarks from legislators on both sides of the aisle. This bill will release $55 million from the state’s holding account for public land trust (PLT) revenues previously identified as part of the 20% share owed to OHA. Its passage reflects decades of unwavering advocacy by beneficiaries, community leaders, and supporters committed to ensuring that the state fulfills its constitutional trust obligations to Native Hawaiians.

At a time when many federal programs serving Hawaiians face uncertainty, the legislature’s decision to honor these commitments represents a powerful reaffirmation of support for Hawaiian-serving programs, institutions, and communities. OHA extends its sincere mahalo to the legislature for this significant action.

In another important victory for community-driven stewardship, HB2218 advanced under the leadership of KUA (see the February issue of Ka Wai Ola), creating a pathway for ʻāina-based nonprofits to enter into co-management agreements with the Department of Land and Natural Resources. Native Hawaiian communities in Hāʻena, Kīpahulu, and Miloliʻi have already demonstrated the success and value of empowering communities to mālama and steward public lands.

HB2104, an OHA package measure aimed at reducing procedural barriers that prevent IBCs from meeting, was also transmitted to the governor. The IBCs remain one of the most important forums ensuring that Native Hawaiian lineal and cultural descendants have a meaningful voice in decisions regarding iwi kūpuna threatened by ground-disturbing activities.

Together, these measures reflect encouraging progress toward greater recognition of Native Hawaiian ʻike, leadership, and place-based decision-making in shaping Hawaiʻi’s future.

As in prior years, the urgent need for affordable housing was frequently cited to justify non-affordable development proposals and deregulation efforts that risk undermining critical environmental protections and safeguards for iwi kūpuna. Against this backdrop, SB2552 emerged as a welcome and thoughtful alternative.

The measure would allow individuals to save up to $20,000 annually toward a down payment without incurring state tax liability, with a lifetime contribution cap of $100,000. By directly supporting local families seeking to remain rooted in Hawaiʻi, the bill reflects OHA’s longstanding position that meaningful housing solutions must prioritize local residents and long-term stability, rather than relying solely on accelerated development.

Unfinished Work

Several measures with broad community and stakeholder support ultimately stalled near the finish line.

HB2049 which would dedicate a portion of conveyance tax revenues from high-value property transactions to the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands stalled in the senate. However, the momentum behind this measure in the house reflects the growing recognition that the state’s obligations to Native Hawaiians require reliable and sustainable funding sources.

Other measures addressing healthcare workforce shortages, housing affordability, out-of-state incarceration, and compassionate release also failed to advance, despite widespread support.

Collectively, these outcomes highlight ongoing questions about whether Hawaiʻi is prepared to invest more fully in systems rooted in prevention, community stability, restorative approaches, and long-term wellbeing, rather than maintaining longstanding status quo systems.

OHA’s advocacy team looks forward to continuing conversations with OHA beneficiaries and community members in the months ahead as work begins on developing OHA’s 2027 legislative package. We deeply appreciate the continued engagement and support of our beneficiaries and partners throughout this session.

If you have feedback or thoughts you would like to share regarding this year’s legislative session, please contact us at publicpolicy@oha.org.

Leināʻala Ley, Deja Ostrowski, and McKenna Woodward are part of OHA’s Public Policy Team.

The post Legislative Outcomes Underscore the Need for Continued Advocacy appeared first on Ka Wai Ola.

To address the housing crisis, OHA’s 2026 legislative package included a bill to cap annual rent increases at 3% (SB2539/HB2105). Similar tenant protections have been enacted in other states, especially to prevent price gouging following natural disasters such as wildfires.

Unfortunately, this bill did not receive a hearing in either the House or Senate even though rent on Moku o Keawe, Maui, and Kauaʻi increased 54%, 52%, and 23%, respectively, between 2019 and 2024.

OHA was repeatedly told by legislators that tenant protections are not feasible because developers won’t build new housing if profits are constrained.

OHA has become one of the few voices advocating for smarter regulations amid a growing chorus that posits “building more” as the only solution to Hawaiʻi’s housing crisis. But units do not naturally ʻtrickle down’ when new luxury developments are built. Rather, there is endless elasticity for mostly out-of-state investors to buy up multiple units for the sole purpose of profit, rather than as a primary or secondary residence.

This lived experience reinforces that without workforce housing mandates and affordability guardrails, housing and rent prices will continue to outpace local incomes and purchasing power.

Although OHA’s package bills died, OHA advocated for the following housing affordability measures that are advancing to conference:

SB3048 SD1 HD1

This proposal from the SPEED Task Force aims to improve agency coordination and data sharing to expedite housing construction for those who need it most without compromising environmental and cultural protections. In contrast, broad exemptions from regulatory requirements risk undermining protections required by the state constitution – including those for iwi kūpuna – without meaningful benefit to the public.

HB1741 HD2 SD1

OHA, joined by other advocacy groups like Locals In My Backyard (LIMBY), is asking the legislature to reconsider this measure, which removes or creates hurdles for the counties to mandate affordable housing. County zoning authority is an important regulatory tool for producing affordable housing for local residents, enabling flexibility to meet local demand, and providing space for innovation. Restricting county authority in this space will slow down new pilot programs and workforce housing solutions.

SB2405 SD1 HD2

OHA supported, and was added as a member to, the proposed Agricultural Workforce Housing Working Group. This working group will help to examine the need for agricultural workforce housing in each of the counties, as well as necessary guardrails to ensure loopholes aren’t exploited for “gentlemen farms” and other uses that do not support food production.

Preservation of agricultural lands for agricultural uses is not only critical for food sovereignty but also for open spaces, rural lifestyles, and watershed management.

Ultimately, new construction is not directly linked to the supply of housing accessible to the state’s residents. Rather, strong housing policies are necessary to ensure we deliver homes across a range of incomes, help those with the greatest need, and make sure we plan and build in appropriate areas where we have wai and infrastructure support, and that we don’t compromise on cultural and environmental protections to get there.

The goal is not just to build more housing; it is to ensure that the housing we build meets local needs.

The Office of Hawaiian Affairs Public Policy Team includes Leināʻala Ley, Deja Ostrowski, Imiloa Borland, Sharde Freitas, Michele McCoy, Kamaile Puluole-Mitchell, and McKenna Woodward.

The post Affordable Housing Advocacy Ongoing at the Legislature appeared first on Ka Wai Ola.

By Leināʻala Ley, OHA Chief Advocate

Aloha mai kākou. April marks the final stretch of the 2026 legislative session, and OHA’s Public Policy team continues to work diligently to ensure the voices and rights of our beneficiaries are represented at the Capitol.

This session, a handful of positive measures have advanced. Notably, HB2409 HD3 would increase funding for the Department of Hawaiian Homelands, and HB1769 HD2 would bring paʻahao (inmates) incarcerated on the continent back home to Hawaiʻi – 30 years after they were sent away (see Ka Wai Ola’s December 2025 cover story).

However, the broader legislative landscape has been deeply concerning.

For one, we’ve seen many legislators double down on a false narrative that scapegoats protections for cultural and natural resources as the primary impediment to the construction of affordable housing.

This false framing persists even though the Simplifying Permitting for Enhanced Economic Development (SPEED) Task Force, formed pursuant to Act 133 in 2025, determined that expediting housing development cannot be achieved simply by circumventing regulations. Rather, legislative support for technology upgrades and workforce development are necessary to ensure timely processing of permits.

Of urgent concern on this front are bills that would erode protections for iwi kūpuna (HB1710 HD2); limit citizen rights to sue to enforce environmental review laws (HB1979 HD3); and limit the jurisdiction of the Land Use Commission (LUC), a critical forum for protecting traditional and customary Native Hawaiian practices (HB1738 HD2).

The targeting of the LUC is particularly unfounded, given its strong record of processing affordable housing petitions within the legally mandated 45-day timeline.

At the same time, OHA’s own legislative priorities have faced significant setbacks.

None of OHA’s six package bills were heard or advanced in the Senate, and only three – HB2101 (commercial aquarium collection) , HB2103 (historic preservation review), and HB2104 (island burial councils) – successfully crossed over from the House. Their future now rests with the Senate Water and Land Committee and the Senate Hawaiian Affairs Committee.

Two additional bills, HB2582 and HB2584, remain critical to the wellbeing of the lāhui. Although not part of OHA’s package, they address longstanding issues tied to the Public Land Trust.

The Hawaiʻi State Constitution guarantees Native Hawaiians a pro-rata share of trust revenues, recognized in statute as 20%. Yet OHA currently receives just $21.5 million annually – far short of the estimated $80 million identified in a 2016 financial review due to OHA as its share.

This chronic underfunding directly limits OHA’s ability to provide essential services, programs, scholarships, and advocacy for our beneficiaries. These bills must be heard by the Senate Committee on Hawaiian Affairs to advance.

In May, we will provide a comprehensive update on the session’s outcomes. In the meantime, we strongly encourage you to stay engaged. If you have not already signed up for OHA’s action alerts, please visit oha.org/advocacy. As we approach the 2026 election, OHA will continue holding policymakers accountable through follow-up interviews, issue briefs, and continued public engagement.

To everyone who has responded to action alerts this session – mahalo nui loa for your continued support. Your voice makes a difference.

OHA welcomes your feedback at publicpolicy@oha.org and encourages you to remain engaged and involved as we move forward together.

The post 2026 Legislative Landscape Raises Concerns appeared first on Ka Wai Ola.

Na Olan Leimomi Fisher a me Kahakuhailoa Poepoe, Kuaʻāina Ulu ʻAuamo

Aia ʻelua pila e hāpai ʻia ana i kēia ʻAha Kau Kānāwai e hiki mai ana i loko o ka Hale o nā Luna Makaʻāinana o Hawaiʻi nei e ka Luna Hoʻomalu Nadine Nakamura lāua ʻo ka Pelekikena ʻAha Kenekoa Ron Kouchi, e hoʻāmana ana i ka ʻOihana Kumuwaiwai ʻĀina e komo ma nā ʻaelike hoʻomalu me nā kaiāulu.

ʻO ka manaʻolana o ia kānāwai ʻaelike hoʻomalu, e hoʻāmana ʻia aku ana ka mālama ʻāina ʻana o nā kaiaulu i ko lākou ʻāina iho nō ma Hawaiʻi nei.

ʻO ke kumu o ia pila, ʻo ia nō ka Hui Makaʻāinana o Makana (Hui), he hui ʻauhau ʻole kūloko e pūlama ana i ka ʻike kuʻuna ma o ka mālama ʻana i ka ʻāina o ka Pāka Mokuʻāina o Hāʻena, a me ko lākou noi ʻana i palapala hoʻolimalima hikiāloa no ka pāka, i hōʻole ʻia aku nei e ka Papa Kumuwaiwai ʻĀina, a ua ʻae naʻe ka Papa e komo ka Hui ma kekahi ʻaelike me ka Mokuʻāina, ʻaʻohe naʻe a lā-kou mana ma luna o ia ʻāina.

I loko nō o ka loaʻa o nā ʻaelike kaiaulu-aupuni o nā ʻano like ʻole ma ʻō a ma ʻaneʻi o ka Pae ʻĀina, ʻaʻohe kaʻina kūhelu e komo ai nā kaiaulu ma nā ʻaelike hoʻomalu me ka ʻOihana Kumuwaiwai ʻĀina, a kaupalena ʻia ka mana a nā kaiaulu, he mea ia e paʻakikī ai ka hoʻomalu pono ʻana o nā kupa ʻāina i ko lākou mau wahi.

ʻO ia ke kumu i koʻikoʻi ai ka ʻāpono ʻia ʻana o ia pila i nā ʻōiwi Hawaiʻi mālama moʻomeheu, nā mahi ʻai, nā lawaiʻa, a pēlā wale aku.

ʻIke mau ʻia ka ʻOihana Kumuwaiwai ʻĀina, he ʻoihana i hiki ʻole ke hoʻomalu hoʻokahi i nā kumuwaiwai i mālama ʻia no ka lehulehu, a ma muli o kēlā, ua makepono i nā kaiaulu, e laʻa me Hāʻena, ka ʻauamo ʻana i ka nui o nā kuleana o ka hoʻomalu ʻana i ko lākou mau wahi, me ka nele pū ʻana i ka mana ʻole e hoʻokō pono ai i ke kānāwai, e hoʻokumu ai i nā kānāwai, a e lawelawe ai i nā māhele koʻikoʻi ʻē aʻe o kā lā-kou hana o ka hoʻomalu a mālama ʻana i ko lākou mau ʻāina ponoʻī.

He mea nui ka hoʻohui pū ʻana i nā ʻōiwi Hawaiʻi, a me kā lākou mau loina o ka hoʻomalu ʻana, i ka lawelawe ʻana a ka Mokuʻāina. Pehea lā ka holomua o ia lawelawe hana hoʻomalu ke hoʻāmana ʻia nā kaiaulu e koho no ko lākou pono iho nō?

Mahalo nui loa & Aloha ʻĀina Momona Kākou!

For more information on these bills email olan@kuahawaii.org, and to sign-up for Action Alerts visit here: https://forms.gle/Sp1dkWzbVEP2D2gP8.

The post Kānāwai Hoʻomalu Kaiaulu: An Effort to Authorize Community Co-Management Agreements appeared first on Ka Wai Ola.

Na Olan Leimomi Fisher a me Kahakuhailoa Poepoe, Kuaʻāina Ulu ʻAuamo

Two companion bills this session introduced by House Speaker Nadine Nakamura and Senate President Ron Kouchi seek to explicitly authorize the Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) to enter into community co-management agreements.

Community-based biocultural resource management in Hawaiʻi would be more effective and sustainable if supported by long-term co-management agreements.

Creation of this bill was led by the Hui Makaʻāinana o Makana (Hui), a Kauaʻi-based nonprofit that perpetuates ʻike kūpuna through mālama ʻāina and other co-management activities within the Hāʻena State Park. The Hui has worked with DLNR to mālama their ancestral ʻāina in Hāʻena for decades and is widely known as a successful community-based management example in Hawaiʻi. The Hui was recently offered a concession agreement, yet has not secured a long-term community co-management agreement to address the various shared management functions between them and DLNR.

Although community-government partnerships exist through different types of arrangements, the lack of statutory authority and no formalized process makes it unnecessarily difficult for grassroots communities to best co-manage their treasured wahi pana.

It is therefore critical for active Native Hawaiian cultural practitioners, farmers, subsistence fishermen, and other mālama ʻāina experts that this bill is passed.

DLNR has long recognized that it cannot effectively manage the state’s vast public trust resources alone, and grassroots communities like Hāʻena have proven that place-based community co-management is a key solution to help carry the weight of this kuleana. To ensure the long-term health and wellbeing of our ʻāina and people, it is imperative that Native Hawaiian cultural and traditional values and practices be implemented more across Hawaiʻi.

What better way to do that than to empower those with the most personal investment in and intimate knowledge of their home – the grassroots Native Hawaiian and local communities themselves – to mālama their own places for future generations to love and enjoy?

The post Kānāwai Hoʻomalu Kaiaulu: An Effort to Authorize Community Co-Management Agreements (English) appeared first on Ka Wai Ola.

“Eō e nā ʻŌiwi ʻōlino.
Answer, o Natives, those who seek wisdom.”

Welina! This inaugural “Nā ʻŌiwi ʻŌlino” column is designed to keep our lāhui updated on the work of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs’ (OHA) Public Policy team. Mahalo to the late Aunty Mālia Craver who gifted the name to OHA in the early 2000s for its Native Rights Campaign. She shared that the intention behind the name was “to have the [lāhui] be people with knowledge and wisdom in everything they do.”

In this spirit, we will spotlight advocacy issues that OHA is currently working on and invite you to join us in taking collective action for our lāhui.

Our team advocates year-round at the county, state, and federal levels, in both agency and legislative forums, to ensure Native Hawaiian perspectives and rights inform important policy decisions.

The state legislative session that opens on the third Wednesday in January is particularly important for advancing policies that improve the conditions of Native Hawaiians and defending against attacks on Native Hawaiian rights.

For the 2026 legislative session, OHA’s trustees have approved the following six bills for our team to champion. We hope the lāhui will join us in supporting these bills.

1. Relating to Island Burial Councils
   The five Island Burial Councils (IBCs) play an integral role in implementing the state’s Historic Preservation Law (HRS Chapter 6E) and protecting iwi kūpuna, including by approving burial treatment plans and recognizing lineal and cultural descendants. Currently, several IBCs have been limited in their ability to carry out these essential functions due, in part, to difficulties recruiting candidates and meeting quorum requirements for voting. This bill proposes reducing static quorum requirements, authorizing OHA to provide per diem stipends for regional members, and extending the timeline for filling mid-term vacancies from 30 to 75 days.
2. Relating to Historic Preservation
   

   

   Act 293 (signed in July 2025) expanded an existing loophole in the state’s Historic Preservation Law by exempting projects on residential properties in so-called “nominally sensitive areas” from review. This new category of properties could be interpreted to cover large developments in areas known to contain a high concentration of iwi. The term “nominally sensitive” could be interpreted to include construction sites where work commenced prior to the enactment of legal mandates to survey or inventory properties for burials. This bill would close this loophole by removing the “nominally sensitive” language and limiting the residential exemption to projects without a ground-disturbing impact.
3. Relating to the Land Use Commission
   The Land Use Commission (LUC) is responsible for placing all land in Hawaiʻi in one of four categories (conservation, rural, agricultural, urban), and ruling on petitions to reclassify land, usually from a lower to higher classifications to enable development. This bill would mandate that at least one LUC member have expertise in water resource management and empower OHA to recommend candidates for the existing Hawaiian land use and cultural practice expertise seat. This would ensure critical water expertise informs land use decisions early in the planning process and give OHA – and beneficiaries – a role in nominating candidates to the Hawaiian expert seat.
4. Protect Reef Fishes from Commercial Aquarium Collection
   This bill would permanently prohibit extraction of Hawaiʻi’s nearshore marine life for commercial sale as aquarium pets and ornamental aquarium displays, with exceptions for scientific and educational institutions. The proposed ban is consistent with OHA’s existing duties to advance Native Hawaiian traditional and customary rights under Article XII, section 7 of the Hawaiʻi State Constitution as aquarium collection is associated with the decline of targeted fish species, including those used by Native Hawaiians for cultural and subsistence purposes.
5. Amend the Hawaiʻi State Constitution to Prohibit Live-Fire Military Training
   The public land trust is comprised primarily of former crown and government lands of the Hawaiian Kingdom. This proposed constitutional amendment gives the people of Hawaiʻi the opportunity to protect public trust land from further harm through a question on the 2026 ballot asking: “Shall the Constitution of the State of Hawaiʻi be amended to prohibit destructive live fire military training – defined as the discharge of large caliber munitions employing standard, incendiary, high explosive or inert rounds, whether portable, crew-served, or vehicle- mounted – from occurring on the public trust lands identified in Article XII, section 4?”

   Because Hawaiʻi does not have a citizen-initiated ballot process, the only way to place the live fire issue before the electorate is by passing a bill through a two-thirds supermajority of House and Senate members. If this bill passes the legislature, this question will go before voters next November.

6. Relating to Rent Stabilization
   Median rents in Hawaiʻi increased by approximately 80% between 2019 and 2023, contributing to Hawaiʻi’s affordability crisis. Unaffordable housing is a primary driver for the out-migration of residents and decreases the quality of life for the 52.5% of Native Hawaiian families in Hawaiʻi that spend more than 30% of their income on housing. This bill will establish a 3% cap on rent increases, consistent with the average annual cost of living increase received by wageworkers but provides exemptions for owner-occupied properties.

To learn more and sign up for updates on OHA’s legislative package and other important measures this 2026 session, visit oha.org/advocacy.

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