Supporting our Native Hawaiian community throughout Hawai‘i and our country continues as one of my top priorities in Congress. I endeavor to uphold the unique special and political trust relationship between Native Hawaiians as the indigenous peoples of Hawai’i and the United States by supporting federal programs, funding and other efforts benefiting Native Hawaiians.
My focus on Capitol Hill for Native Hawaiians is grounded in the following objectives:
- Recognizing Native Hawaiians as an indigenous people of our country with a political and legal status supported by federal law and over a century of Congressional enactments, and with the same basic rights as our nation’s other indigenous peoples for the same reasons.
- Listening to our Native Hawaiian community, including cultural practitioners, educators, health providers, business owners, government representatives, housing advocates and community supporters of our ?ohana, keiki and kupuna.
- Defending, strengthening and expanding key federal laws and regulations for the benefit of our Native Hawaiian communities in areas such as health, education, business, federal contracting, housing, veterans and social services.
- Securing full and fair federal funding for Native Hawaiian-focused programs and ensuring accountability by federal agencies responsible for administering these programs.
- Building broad bipartisan support for indigenous peoples generally and Native Hawaiians directly with colleagues in Congress and across the federal government, in part by educating them on Hawai‘i and Native Hawaiians and in part by assisting them with their specific issues, all toward advancing indigenous peoples collectively and strengthening broad support of Native Hawaiians.
- Upholding opportunities for self-determination, with conversations on self-governance centered on the voices of Native Hawaiians.
- Pursuing the preservation and stewardship of our precious natural resources as central to Native Hawaiian cultural identity and practice.
- Supporting Native Hawaiian ?ohana and Native Hawaiian-serving organizations in accessing federal programs, removing administrative barriers and assisting with specific goals, questions and needs in engaging with federal agencies.
Advancing the Progress We've Made
For well over a century now, Congress has consistently acknowledged or recognized Native Hawaiians as the indigenous peoples of Hawai‘i through the enactment of over 150 Federal statutes. In coordination with my colleagues, I remain committed to safeguarding and improving many of the laws that protect and promote the rights of Native Hawaiians, such as the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Reauthorization Act, the Native Hawaiian Education Act and the Native Hawaiian Health Care Improvement Act.
I also work closely with the Office of Native Hawaiian Relations at the Department of Interior, which helps preserve and promote the federal government’s unique political and trust relationship with Native Hawaiians. This office administers federal grant programs, provides technical support services and works with federal agencies to ensure meaningful engagement with Native Hawaiians on policies and programs that could impact their lands, rights and resources. For more about this office and its role in representing the interests of the Native Hawaiian community, visit its website at https://www.doi.gov/hawaiian.
Funding Native Hawaiian-Serving Programs and Services
As a member of the House Appropriations Committee since 2019, I remain focused on strengthening and defending full funding for our federal programs that primarily benefit Native Hawaiian as well as national programs that support all indigenous peoples of the United States. For example, some of my top requests every year have been funding to support Native Hawaiian healthcare (Native Hawaiian Healthcare Systems), education (Native Hawaiian Education Program), homeownership (Native Hawaiian Housing Programs), workforce development (Indian and Native American Programs), business development (Native American-owned Businesses), senior nutrition and caregiving (Services for Native Americans) and language preservation (Native American Language Program).
I have been able to secure over $100 million in federal funding in the Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 funding bill for programs that primarily benefit Native Hawaiians. This comes after efforts by the Trump Administration to eliminate funding for these critical programs. For more information on the programs and initiatives that will directly benefit the Native Hawaiian Community, you can view my press release.
President Trump's FY 2027 Budget Request continues to attack Native Hawaiian programs as "DEI" which we all know is untrue. I continue to push back against these efforts and work with my colleagues on the Appropriations Committee on our FY 2027 funding bills to ensure that funding for Native Hawaiian programs is protected.
Parity for the Native Hawaiian Community
I am also focused on ensuring parity for Native Hawaiians, where appropriate, in federal programs and policies benefitting Native Americans and Alaska Natives. Through my membership in the Native American Caucus, I work with members who represent large groups of Native Americans and Alaska Natives to ensure that they are aware of the unique circumstances surrounding Native Hawaiians and that they are included in relevant policy proposals.
A few examples of my work, view my testimony from a September 2022 committee hearing advocating for full inclusion of the Native Hawaiian community in federal proposals to advance management of public lands and improve protection of sacred and cultural sites (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W4TU9pCmq2c). You can also view my testimony from an Appropriations Committee hearing in July 2024 advocating for restoring funds for Native Hawaiian Housing that were left out of the bill despite continued support of Native Housing overall (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lX-xS-9nwok).
You can review more details on my efforts on behalf of Native Hawaiians here.
