Bill to replace University of Hawaii stewardship of Mauna Kea advances

Three state House committees advanced a bill Wednesday that would create a new entity to oversee the state-managed lands of Mauna Kea, including the world-class observatories atop Hawaii’s tallest mountain.

All three committees voted in favor of the proposal to boot the University of Hawaii from its role as manager of the lands and replace it with an independent Mauna Kea Stewardship Authority following a transition period.

House Bill 2024, which was modified with several amendments following a public hearing two weeks ago, now goes to the full House.

The measure reflects the findings of the Mauna Kea Working Group established in 2021 by House lawmakers to come up with an alternative form of management for the state lands above 6,500 feet.

If approved, the legislation would replace UH oversight with a governing board tasked with developing a plan for managing land uses, human activities, access, stewardship and overall operations on the mountain, among other things.

The bill requires the new entity to develop a framework to limit astronomy development and create a plan to return the summit to its natural state.

Rep. David Tarnas (D, Kaupulehu-Waimea-­Halaula), chairman of the House Committee on Water and Land, said the proposal seeks to find a path forward that offers a role to Native Hawaiians in managing the mountain and provides a stable future for astronomy.

While each of the committees — Water and Land, Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs, and Finance — approved the measure Wednesday, a number of members voted with reservations, saying the process seemed rushed and designed to limit testimony from the public.

“This is the biggest supercommittee I’ve seen in my six years in the Legislature, and there’s no opportunity for public input after this,” said Rep. Matt Lopresti (D, Ewa Villages-Ocean Pointe-Ewa Beach).

“It’s not enough that we had one hearing and then we made some changes. And then we don’t wait and get more testimony as to whether or not these changes make sense? I think that’s a fatal flaw in the process,” he said.

One key change to the bill affects a provision to eventually restore the summit to its original state. As amended, it now indicates that wouldn’t happen until ground-based observatories are rendered obsolete due to developments in space-based astronomical technology.

However, Rep. Bertrand Kobayashi (D, Diamond Head-Kaimuki-Kapahulu) noted there’s a lot of room for interpretation.

“For some people, ground-level observatories are already obsolete, at least technically. They are far less superior than space-based telescopes,” he said. “But ground-based observatories are still useful.”

Another change to the bill allows the governing board to decide whether to limit commercial activity. The previous version made prohibiting certain types of commercial use mandatory.

Yet another amendment adds an additional member to the governing board representing the UH president.

The original bill called for an authority with nine voting members, seven who would be appointed by the governor and two ex-officio members. Members would include representatives from the state Department of Land and Natural Resources and the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, plus three Native Hawaiians and others with various backgrounds, including two people with experience on Hawaii island.

Rep. Angus McKelvey (D, Lahaina­-Kaanapali-Honokahau) said he was voting “with serious reservations,” in part because the governing board would operate in a vacuum with no checks and balances.

“Further down the road, 10 to 20 years from now, it may come up with decisions that profoundly cut counter to both the community and the stakeholders, to which there may be no recourse,” McKelvey said.

The Mauna Kea community of telescopes and the university have drawn the spotlight of controversy for the greater part of a decade, with largely Native Hawaiian protesters blocking the planned next-generation Thirty Meter Telescope.

Following Wednesday’s meeting, Rich Matsuda, W.M. Keck Observatory associate director for external relations and the Maunakea Observatories’ representative to the Mauna Kea Working Group, said there are multiple pathways forward for the governance of Mauna Kea, whether it’s through UH or shifting to a new management structure as proposed by HB 2024.

“That decision lies with our elected officials and our community,” he said in a statement. “For astronomy to continue on Maunakea, we work toward two essential priorities: land authorization to continue to do our mission and strong relationships with our community. We support Native Hawaiian perspectives at the governance table, and we seek to be helpful collaborators.”