Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 26, Number 9, 1 September 2009 — Obama administration backs Akaka Bill [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Obama administration backs Akaka Bill

By Lisa Asatū Public lnfurmatiun Specialist Now that the Akaka Bill was heard by coimnittees in both the U.S. House and Senate before a emeial deadline, OHA Chairperson Haunani Apoliona said she is optimistic that the bill will make it to President Obama for signature this session. "Because the bill progressed to this point before Congress' break, it makes it possible from a procedural perspective for it to go to the president this session," Apoliona said in an interview with KWO. (See Q&A starting on page 3.) "The next step is for the Hawai'i eongressional delegation to review the current legislation to consider any amendments they may wish to include as a result of the committee hearing testimonies." After that, she added, the "next step is a full tloor vote by the Senate or House. So again, by meeting this August deadline, we are optimistic that the process will proceed in a timely manner." On Aug. 6, Obama eame through on an elee-

tion promise of supporting the Akaka Bill when his administration testified in strong support of the bill that would grant fed- | eral recognition for Native Hawaiians. "The Department of Iustice strongly supports the core policy goals of this bill.

and I am very pleased to testify on this historic legisla- > _ tion today," Sam Hirsch,

leputy associate attorney general, told the Senate \ Indian Affairs Committee. Hirsch said " more than 100 federal laws expressly recog-

nize Native Hawaiian tradition and culture and provide benefit programs for Native Hawaiians similar to those provided to other native people. "None of those statutes have been struck down as unconstitutional," he said, addressing race-based concerns. The Obama administration's support of the Akaka Bill eontrasts with the Bush administration, whieh threatened to veto the bill, saying it was divisive along the lines of race and ethnicity. U.S. Sen. Daniel Akaka,

whose name has become synonymous with the bill otherwise known as the Native Hawaiian Government Reorganization Act of 2009, said: "The legislation before us today provides parity. It enables Hawai'i's indigenous people to establish a government-to-government relationship with the United States. This poliīieal and legal relationship is the same type of relationship natives of Alaska and tribes of the lower 48 states have with the United States. Further, the process is consistent with the Constitution, federal and state laws." Akaka also said the bill would provide the "necessary first step in the reconciliation process," a process called for in the Apology Resolution, whieh Congress passed in 1993 apologizing for the U.S. role in the illegal overthrow of Hawai'i's Queen Lili'uokalani in 1893. Answering a question from Akaka, Hirsch said there is absolutely nothing in the bill that would permit Hawai'i to secede. Hirsch also said the bill includes a provision protecting against potential problems of jurisdiction. "There is no risk of some jurisdictional grab by the governing entity from the state or from the United States," he said. The House has passed a version of the bill in 2000 and 2007, but the measure has stalled in the Senate. The Senate bill is sponsored by Akaka and co-sponsored by Sen. Daniel Inouye (D-Hawai'i), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Mark Begich (D-Alaska) and Committee ehainnan Byron Dorgan (D-North Dakota). OHA Chairperson Haunani Apoliona was among a delegation from Hawai'i who traveled to Washington, D.C., for the hearing. "Today the indigenous, native people of Hawai'i seek the full restoration of our native government through the enactment of S. 1011," Apoliona told the committee. "We do so in recognition of the fundamental principle that the federal policy of self-determination and self-govern-ment is intended to assure that all three groups of America's indigenous, native people - Ameriean hidians, Alaska Natives and Native Hawaiians - have equal status under federal law." Apoliona also offered suggestions for amendments to the bill. She suggested that lawmakers: align the definition of Native Hawaiian with existing federal law, remove a provision that calls for a federal commission to determine citizenship in a future governing entity, and narrow the claims section of the bill, whieh, she said, is "written so broadly as to bar any claims that might arise out of personal (injury) or death of a Native Hawaiian for whieh the federal or state govermnent or their representative bear direct responsibility." The House Natural Resources Committee heard an identical bill, H.R. 2314, on lune 11. The committees are expected to take up the bill again when Congress resumes in the fall, according to a statement by Akaka's office. ■

President Barack Obama's administratioi testified in strong support of the Akake Bill. - Photo: Bloine Fergerstron