Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 23, Number 1, 1 January 2006 — Senate leaders expect to schedule Akaka Bill after holiday break [ARTICLE]

Senate leaders expect to schedule Akaka Bill after holiday break

In late December, U.S. Senate leaders pledged to work on placing the Native Hawaiian federal recognition bill, often called the Akaka Bill, on the Senate calendar when lawmakers return from the holidays. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist and Minority Leader Harry Reid both assured Hawai'i Sen. Daniel Akaka, the bilFs primary sponsor, that they would work toward getting the Senate to take action on the bill after the second

session of the 109th Congress starts in mid-January. Akaka said that his discussions with Reid and Frist were "very positive" and called their pledges "weleome news." "I commend the majority leader for his diligent efforts to proceed to consideration of this measure that is so important to the citizens of Hawai'i," Akaka said. "I look forward to working with him to bring S. 147 to the Senate floor at the earliest possible time.