OHA Returned $2M Of Ceded Land Revenue In 2019

The Office of Hawaiian Affairs has previously pushed to have a cap on their ceded land revenues raised.

By /

The Office of Hawaiian Affairs returned to the state more than $2 million owed to it from various departments that use certain ceded lands in Hawaii.

OHA Office of Hawaiian Affairs signage.
The Office of Hawaiian Affairs returned $2 million to a trust fund in 2019. Cory Lum/Civil Beat/2019

The returned funds exceeded an annual cap of $15.1 million.

The state departments are required to pay $15.1 million each year to OHA, but last year they transferred $17.1 million, according to a report from the Department of Land and Natural Resources.

Each year, OHA returns some of that revenue from ceded lands, former lands of the Hawaiian Kingdom, back to a state trust fund.

The departments are actually required to transfer 20% of all revenue from ceded lands to OHA.

OHA has pushed lawmakers to either raise the cap, or eliminate it and allow the office to collect the full 20% of ceded land revenues owed to it under the law.

Last year, a proposal to raise the cap to $35 million and give OHA back pay failed to clear the Legislature.

Small gifts do big things for Hawaiʻi

Smaller gifts add up and monthly donations provide reliable support that helps our reporters keep investigating the issues that matter to our community. No issue is too small to deserve attention, and no gift is too small to make a difference!

Give now and help Civil Beat raise $125,000 by September 4!

Donate

About the Author