Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 14, Number 4, 1 April 1997 — Page A8 Advertisements Column 2 [ADVERTISEMENT]

Lobbyists Create A $1.2 Billion Myth Previous Legislative Reports have explained how Circuit Judge Daniel Heely ruled last summer fhat Hawaiians must be paid a larger share of ceded lands revenue. Soon after, the Airlines Committee of Hawai'i, an airline industry lobbying group, held a "press briefing" in the Govemor's office, and began quoting settlement figures as high as $1.2 hillion. The Airlines Committee of Hawai'i has since claimed that they do not "take any position on the pending lawsuit between OHA and fhe state." The impact of their actions, however, would seem to contradict this assertion, since the Airlines Committee's estimates have been quoted repeatedly in the press in opposition to the Judge Heely decision. Further, the Airlines Committee, while acknowledging their estimates are only a "worst case scenario", continue to use the $1.2 hillion figure, and as a result the number has been re-quoted countless times by the administration and legislators. The problem, says OHA Chair Clayton Hee, is that the $1.2 billion figure is a complete myth, a eoncocted number that is not based on facts. He calls it a "scare tactic" directed at the legislature and the community. "This is really nothing more than trying to halanee the state's budget on the backs of Hawaiians." Hawaiians receive a portion of airport revenues because part of Honolulu International Airport is built on ceded lands. In its ealeulation, the Airlines Committee used

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