Bill Text: CA SCR127 | 2015-2016 | Regular Session | Chaptered
Bill Title: Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander community.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Passed) 2016-08-17 - Chaptered by Secretary of State. Res. Chapter 105, Statutes of 2016. [SCR127 Detail]
Download: California-2015-SCR127-Chaptered.html
BILL NUMBER: SCR 127 CHAPTERED
BILL TEXT
RESOLUTION CHAPTER 105
FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE AUGUST 16, 2016
ADOPTED IN SENATE JUNE 20, 2016
ADOPTED IN ASSEMBLY AUGUST 11, 2016
INTRODUCED BY Senators Lara and Pan
APRIL 5, 2016
Relative to the Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander community.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SCR 127, Lara. Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander community.
This resolution would recognize the role that Native Hawaiians and
Pacific Islanders have played in the development of California
throughout the state's history and encourage all federal, state, and
local organizations to promote the preservation of Native Hawaiian
and Pacific Islander history and culture.
WHEREAS, Making up more than 347,000 community members, the Native
Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (NHPI) community in California has one
of the largest NHPI populations in the United States. In addition,
the NHPI population increased by 29 percent between 2000 and 2010;
and
WHEREAS, The NHPI community makes up an incredibly diverse group
comprised of a number of different ethnicities, including, but not
limited to, Guamanian or Chamorro, Native Hawaiian, Marshallese,
Fijian, Samoan, and Tongan. Outside of Hawaii, California has the
largest population of Native Hawaiians, numbering 74,932. The second
largest NHPI group is Samoan with a population of 60,876. Guamanian
or Chamorro is the next largest NHPI group in California, with a
population of 44,425. The largest Fijian and Tongan populations in
the United States are also found in California, with populations of
24,059 and 22,893, respectively; and
WHEREAS, As a result of the Spanish-American War in 1898, the
illegal overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawaii in 1893, and the
German-American conflict in Samoa in 1899, the United States came to
assume formal government control of Guam, Hawaii, and American Samoa.
Because of this, the Chamorros of Guam, the Hawaiians of Hawaii, and
the Samoans of American Samoa became part of the United States. Many
Pacific Islander migrants were men enlisted in the United States
Armed Forces, and others worked in various plantation and
entertainment industries. Today, these Pacific Islanders are American
citizens or American nationals; and
WHEREAS, An influx of NHPIs arrived in California in the 1950s
after World War II. Post World War II, military service brought
Pacific Islanders from the United States territories of American
Samoa and Guam to California. Ten percent of Native Hawaiians and 12
percent of Guamanian or Chamorro Americans are veterans, compared to
the statewide average of 8 percent. Native Hawaiians and Tongans came
to California seeking economic opportunities, with many Tongans
migrating to California via American Samoa. Mormon church activities
also brought Tongan students and other NHPI immigrants to California.
Many NHPIs initially settled in southern California cities such as
Carson, Los Angeles, Long Beach, Oceanside, and San Diego, while
others settled in Sacramento and San Francisco. Most NHPI
Californians today reside in the greater Sacramento, San Francisco,
and Los Angeles areas; and
WHEREAS, The 2010 Census Bureau data shows that NHPIs are
continuing to become a growing part of our nation's economy.
California has the greatest number of NHPI-owned businesses in the
continental United States. Between 2002 and 2007, the number of
NHPI-owned businesses increased 30 percent, while the number of
United States businesses overall increased only 18 percent. During
that same period, NHPI-owned businesses also saw a 48-percent
increase in revenue, while total business receipts for United States
businesses increased only 33 percent. Data show that about 56 percent
of all Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander businesses were
owned by people of Native Hawaiian origin in 2007; Guamanian-owned or
Chamorro-owned businesses accounted for 10 percent, Samoan-owned
businesses accounted for 8 percent, and businesses owned by people of
Other Pacific Islander descent accounted for 25 percent; and
WHEREAS, The NHPI community faces unique challenges as a result of
its distinct history and community experience. As a result, the NHPI
community organized and helped institute an update to the federal
Office of Management and Budget's Statistical Policy Directive No. 15
in 1997 to establish a specific Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific
Islander category relative to the collection of data; and
WHEREAS, The Legislature recognized the importance of requiring
state agencies, boards, or commissions collecting and reporting
demographic data on major Pacific Islander groups, including
Hawaiian, Guamanian, Samoan, Tongan, and Fijian in Sections 8310.5
and 8310.7 of the Government Code; and
WHEREAS, While NHPIs represent diverse ethnic, religious, and
political backgrounds, they all also share similar cultural values
and norms. These values include a respect and deference for elders,
appreciation for reciprocal labor and time, and an understanding of
communal and intergenerational authority; and
WHEREAS, Preserving our Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander
communities throughout California is critical to our state history
and for the preservation of Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander
culture, history, traditions, and other elements of their heritage;
now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the Senate of the State of California, the Assembly
thereof concurring, That the Legislature recognizes the role that
Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders have played in the social,
economic, and political development of California throughout the
state's history; and be it further
Resolved, That the Legislature encourages all federal, state, and
local organizations to promote the preservation of Native Hawaiian
and Pacific Islander history and culture, including the preservation
of Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander communities; and be it
further
Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit copies of this
resolution to the author for appropriate distribution.
