OHA to vote today on
free UH tuition proposal

By Pat Omandam
Star-Bulletin

The board of trustees of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs today is expected to approve a resolution that supports free tuition for Hawaiians at the University of Hawaii.

But that support must come in such a way that it would not affect negotiations taking place between OHA and the state, says trustee Herbert Campos, in a memo last week to Chairwoman A. Frenchy DeSoto.

The OHA board meets today at the Holiday Inn Sunspree Resort in Lihue.

OHA's Legislative and Governmental Affairs Committee, after hearing from the UH Native Hawaiian Advisory Council on Oct. 15, has recommended the board support tuition waivers for current and future students of Hawaiian ancestry who attend the university system.

In the proposed resolution, trustees say Hawaiians remain poorly served by the university, despite UH control of more than 16,000 acres of ceded lands that were once part of the Hawaiian monarchy. Those lands include urban, rural, agricultural, submerged and natural reserve areas, such as those under Haleakala and Mauna Kea observatories.

They claim the 16,000 acres may be so valuable it is almost impossible to calculate the revenue it has generated.

"What is very clear is that the indigenous people of Hawaii have never received benefits and entitlements from the university that can even begin to compensate for the use of ceded land over the past 92 years," the resolution stated.

If approved, a copy will be sent to the UH Board of Regents. Regent Wayne Panoke has been advocating free tuition for Hawaiians -- a long-standing issue at the university -- since he was appointed to the board earlier this year.

Panoke wanted OHA to include free tuition in its negotiation with the state over past-due ceded land revenue, although trustees felt it might compromise their bargaining position.

According to Act 304 of 1990, the state law that defines ceded land revenues, OHA is not entitled to 20 percent of revenue from money received by any public educational institution, including the University of Hawaii. Also excluded are UH tuition, registration fees, meals, books, grants and scholarships.

UH President Kenneth P. Mortimer last week said a study shows it would cost the university roughly $5 million a year to give free tuition to all Hawaiians. But he said there are so many variables to the equation that could drastically change the figure.