91直播 leaders push Pentagon for bigger role in military land leases
Office of 91直播an Affairs leaders spent three days in Washington, D.C., last week, holding talks with congressional lawmakers and Pentagon officials on the future of military-leased lands in 91直播.
“This was a highly productive and timely engagement,” said OHA Board of Trustees Chair Kai Kahele in a news release Friday. “There is clear recognition in Washington that 91直播’s unique circumstances — and the historical, cultural, and legal framework governing these lands — require thoughtful collaboration with Native 91直播ans moving forward.”
The Army, Navy and Air Force all have leases on state lands that have been used for what they consider to be critical multinational training exercises and weapons testing. The leases are set to expire between 2028 and 2031. Leases on lands the Army holds, including a parcel at its Pohakuloa Training Area on 91直播 Island, will be the first to expire in 2029. The military obtained its decades-long leases during the 1960s for $1. The leases are on former 91直播an crown lands, also known as ceded lands, that were seized after the overthrow of the 91直播an monarchy in 1893 and became part of the public land trust when Congress passed the 1959 Admission Act that established statehood for 91直播.
OHA was created by the 1978 91直播 State Constitutional Convention with duties and powers that include stewardship of trust lands.
“As these leases approach expiration, we face a once-in-a-generation decision point,” said interim OHA Administrator and CEO Summer Sylva, who accompanied Kahele, in the news release. “This moment requires a just outcome and a decisive break from a history of exclusion. Native 91直播an leadership must be central to what comes next.
“OHA’s co-trustee role is as a principal decision- maker, ensuring the interests of our lahui are foundational. We will engage in good faith to secure fair and equitable terms and remain accountable to our beneficiaries while rejecting any effort to marginalize Native 91直播an voices in the process,” Sylva said. The OHA delegation met with the leadership of the Senate and House Armed Services committees and held meetings with individual lawmakers from both parties.
OHA said in the release that it is focusing on getting language included in the next iteration of the annual National Defense Authorization Act “to ensure that Native 91直播an voices — historically excluded from these talks — are central to future decisions, and continuing education and outreach to key federal decision-makers throughout the remainder of this Congress.”
The OHA delegation also sat in on the public portion of a House Armed Services Committee hearing Wednesday on strategy and military readiness in the Pacific.
As the hearing came to an end, U.S. Rep. Jill Tokuda, D-91直播, pressed Adm. Samuel Paparo, commander of the U.S. Indo- Pacific Command headquartered at Camp H.M. Smith on Oahu, on his testimony Tuesday to the Senate Armed Services Committee that he hopes for a “consensus” solution to the leases. His response was in reply to a question by U.S. Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-91直播.
Paparo reiterated for Tokuda that he was “confident that we together can find a solution.”
“I know you’re confident, and I know you’re committed, but I also know you’re not the key one negotiating right now,” Tokuda told him. “My basic question is, can there be any kind of consensus reached if condemnation continues to be the threat? In my humble opinion, this is coercion; this is not consensus that we’re talking about.”
After the state Board of Land and Natural Resources rejected the Army’s environmental impact statements on lease renewals last year, Army Secretary Dan Driscoll said he hoped to expedite the process, and Gov. Josh Green said Pentagon officials told his staff they were considering using eminent domain to take the land.
When asked if such a seizure should be “taken off the table” for negotiations, Paparo said: “I think finding a consensus solution is important, and it’s above my pay grade, these terms.” He added that “our relationships within 91直播 are really critical for the operation of the joint force, and it’s our home.”
Paparo, who has been stationed in 91直播 since 2021, when he initially arrived as commander of the Navy’s Pacific Fleet, told Tokuda that he believes it’s important that members of the local community, including Native 91直播ans, be involved in the negotiation process.
When asked if Native 91直播an groups and organizations like OHA have “had a seat at the table,” Paparo responded: “I think we can work harder at it.”
Tokuda further pressed Paparo, “If we take a look at the area in question for the leasehold, the vast majority of the land being bombed right now was taken as a result of the illegal overthrow and Admission Act. Can we agree that we are talking about, right now, stolen land?”
Paparo paused before responding, “Are you asking me? I’m not going to answer that — that’s beyond my remit.”
Tokuda noted the federal land used at Pohakuloa was seized by the U.S. government at no cost and that the leased state parcel was taken for just $1.
“For the small portion that we are engaging with now, I want to remove the threat of condemnation for that,” she said. “I would like to see a real, robust renegotiation with real advocates, real beneficiaries sitting at the table (and) their rights, their perspectives, their views, their history shared and part of an agreement.”
