Bill Text: HI SB2557 | 2018 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Relating To Hawaiian Home Land Beneficiaries.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2018-02-16 - Report adopted; Passed Second Reading, as amended (SD 1) and referred to JDC. [SB2557 Detail]
Download: Hawaii-2018-SB2557-Introduced.html
THE SENATE |
S.B. NO. |
2557 |
TWENTY-NINTH LEGISLATURE, 2018 |
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STATE OF HAWAII |
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A BILL FOR AN ACT
RELATING TO HAWAIIAN HOME LAND BENEFICIARIES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:
SECTION 1. The legislature recognizes that the State has a fiduciary duty to support the rehabilitation of the Hawaiian people, including those who were adopted into a Hawaiian family, in part by ensuring long-term tenancies to beneficiaries and successors of beneficiaries of the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act, 1920, as amended.
The legislature finds that some descendants of lessees of Hawaiian home lands do not qualify due to their status of being adopted. This disruption creates undue hardships of displacement and interferes with families' abilities to maintain the equity of their homes and businesses.
The legislature further finds that allowing those who were and are adopted into Hawaiian families to become successors of Hawaiian home lands will respect the Hawaiian tradition of hanai and allow children who may not meet the Hawaiian blood requirement for lessees, but whose parents do meet the requirement, to benefit from the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act, 1920, as amended. This reform will encourage current lessees to maintain and invest in their residences, as the lessees anticipate that their descendants will be able to make use of the properties for many generations to come.
The purpose of this Act is to allow Hawaiian home land beneficiaries to pass along their homestead leases to their adopted children; provided that both parents of the adopted children meet the minimum Hawaiian blood quantum requirement.
SECTION 2. Section 209 of the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act, 1920, as amended, is amended by amending subsection (a) to read as follows:
"(a) Upon the
death of the lessee, the lessee's interest in the tract or tracts and the
improvements thereon, including growing crops and aquacultural stock (either on
the tract or in any collective contract or program to which the lessee is a
party by virtue of the lessee's interest in the tract or tracts), shall vest in
the relatives of the decedent as provided in this paragraph. From the following relatives of the lessee
who are (1) at least one-quarter Hawaiian, husband, wife, children,
grandchildren, brothers, or sisters, [or] (2) native Hawaiian, father
and mother, widows or widowers of the children, widows or widowers of the brothers and sisters, or nieces and
nephews, or (3) adopted children; provided that both parents meet the
minimum Hawaiian blood requirement set forth in this section--the lessee
shall designate the person or persons to whom the lessee directs the lessee's
interest in the tract or tracts to vest upon the lessee's death. The Hawaiian blood requirements shall not
apply to the descendants of those who are not native Hawaiians but who were entitled to the leased lands under section
3 of the Act of May 16, 1934 (48 Stat. 777, 779), as amended, or under section
3 of the Act of July 9, 1952 (66 Stat. 511, 513). In all cases that person or persons need not
be eighteen years of age. The
designation shall be in writing, may be specified at the time of execution of
the lease with a right in the lessee in similar manner to change the
beneficiary at any time and shall be filed with the department and approved by
the department in order to be effective to vest the interests in the successor
or successors so named.
In case of the death of any lessee, except
as hereinabove provided, who has failed to specify a successor or successors as
approved by the department, the department may select from only the following
qualified relatives of the decedent:
(1) Husband or wife; or
(2) If there is no husband
or wife, then the children[;], including adopted children; or
(3) If there is no husband, wife, or child, then the grandchildren; or
(4) If there is no husband, wife, child, or grandchild, then brothers or sisters; or
(5) If there is no husband, wife, child, grandchild, brother, or sister, then from the following relatives of the lessee who are native Hawaiian: father and mother, widows or widowers of the children, widows or widowers of the brothers and sisters, or nieces and nephews.
The rights to
the use and occupancy of the tract or tracts may be made effective as of the
date of the death of the lessee.
In the case of the death of a lessee
leaving no designated successor or successors, husband, wife, children,
grandchildren, or relative qualified to be a lessee of Hawaiian home lands, the
land subject to the lease shall resume its status as unleased Hawaiian home
lands and the department is authorized to lease the land to a native Hawaiian
as provided in this Act.
Upon the death of a lessee who has not designated a successor and who leaves a spouse not qualified to succeed to the lease or children not qualified to succeed to the lease, or upon the death of a lessee leaving no relative qualified to be a lessee of Hawaiian home lands, or the cancellation of a lease by the department, or the surrender of a lease by the lessee, the department shall appraise the value of all the improvements and growing crops or improvements and aquacultural stock, as the case may be, and shall pay to the nonqualified spouse or the nonqualified children as the lessee shall have designated prior to the lessee's death, or to the legal representative of the deceased lessee, or to the previous lessee, as the case may be, the value thereof, less any indebtedness to the department, or for taxes, or for any other indebtedness the payment of which has been assured by the department, owed by the deceased lessee or the previous lessee. These payments shall be made out of the Hawaiian home loan fund and shall be considered an advance therefrom and shall be repaid by the successor or successors to the tract involved. If available cash in the Hawaiian home loan fund is insufficient to make these payments, payments may be advanced from the Hawaiian home general loan fund and shall be repaid by the successor or successors to the tract involved; provided that any repayment for advances made from the Hawaiian home general loan fund shall be at the interest rate established by the department for loans made from the Hawaiian home general loan fund. The successor or successors may be required by the commission to obtain private financing in accordance with section 208(6) to pay off the amount advanced from the Hawaiian home loan fund or Hawaiian home general loan fund."
SECTION 3. This Act shall apply to all valid, future leases issued pursuant to section 207 of the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act, 1920, as amended, and all valid leases issued pursuant to section 207 of the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act, 1920, as amended, on or before the effective date of this Act.
SECTION 4. The amendments made by this Act to the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act, 1920, as amended, are declared to be severable, and if any section, sentence, clause, or phrase, or the application thereof to any person or circumstances is held ineffective because there is a requirement of having the consent of the United States to take effect, then that portion only shall take effect upon the granting of consent by the United States, and effectiveness of the remainder of these amendments or the application thereof shall not be affected.
SECTION 5. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.
SECTION 6. This Act shall take effect upon its approval by the governor of the State of Hawaii with the consent of the United States Congress.
INTRODUCED BY: |
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Report Title:
Hawaiian Homes Commission Act; Hawaiian Home Lands; Successors; Blood Quantum; Adopted Children
Description:
Allows Hawaiian homestead lessees who meet the minimum Hawaiian blood quantum requirement who have adopted children to pass their homestead lease to their adopted children.
The summary description
of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is
not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.