SR73

WHEREAS, many beneficiaries under the Hawaii Homes Commission Act, 1920, as amended, are reporting increased illegal activities in homesteads areas across the State; and

WHEREAS, because Hawaiian homestead lands are generally not subject to zoning requirements, and are managed by the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands (the Department), state law enforcement officers and county police officers often seek permission from the Department before entering homestead lands to investigate illegal activity; and

WHEREAS, state law enforcement officers and county police officers respond inconsistently to requests for law enforcement services within homestead lands, and the Department often fails to respond to law enforcement requests in a timely manner; and

WHEREAS, due to the foregoing issues, illegal activities within homestead lands have festered and become worse; and

WHEREAS, due to confusion among first responders and the inaction of the Department, many homesteaders have mobilized and organized themselves to protect their communities by becoming homestead Neighborhood Security Watch (NSW) volunteers; and

WHEREAS, the NSW program is primarily a crime prevention program that is designed to produce results when residents and human service organizations participate in improving the community and their environment; and

WHEREAS, NSW volunteers work with law enforcement officers to pursue, apprehend, and incapacitate criminals in their

designated areas and homesteads; and

WHEREAS, NSW volunteers and other community residents collaborate with law enforcement officers to develop solutions for crimes committed in their neighborhoods; and

WHEREAS, each NSW is intended to protect the quality of life by addressing community problems and supporting economic and educational growth; and

WHEREAS, NSW volunteers are organized, trained, and consistently scheduled to walk and inspect the communities in which they live, work, and go to school; and

WHEREAS, after residents in Kanehili Homestead faced two years of persistent crime and multiple delays in response from governmental officials, an NSW intervened and assisted in successfully shutting down a known gambling house, reducing theft, reducing illegal drug activities, and reducing graffiti; and

WHEREAS, if the Department had given the Kanehili NSW the authority to permit state and county first responders to enter homestead areas and investigate illegal activity, crime would have subsided at a faster rate; and

WHEREAS, although the Kanehili NSW was ultimately successful, the Department has no real solutions to address illegal activity; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Thirty-second Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2024, that the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands is urged to adopt and implement a Neighborhood Security Watch in each homestead area, beginning with the Kanehili Neighborhood Security Watch; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Chairperson of the Hawaiian Homes Commission and Chairperson of the Board of Trustees of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs.

	OFFERED BY:	_____________________________

Report Title:

Hawaiian Home Lands; Crime; Safety; Neighborhood Security Watch

THE SENATE	S.R. NO.	73
THIRTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2024
STATE OF HAWAII