Oahu casino proposal amended
The Senate Committee on Hawaiian Affairs took testimony for nearly two hours Thursday about a bill that would authorize construction of a casino on Department of Hawaiian Homes Land near Kapolei, Oahu.
In the end, however, Sen. Maile Shimabukuro, a leeward Oahu Democrat, decided to reconvene at 1 p.m. Tuesday to consider amendments proposed by Sen. Donovan Dela Cruz, the Ways and Means Committee chairman, to give the Hawaiian Homes Commission until Dec. 31, 2026 “to conduct beneficiary consultation, exercise due diligence, and enter into a development agreement or issue a general lease.”
Dela Cruz’s amendments also include a provision that stipulates Native American tribes wanting to develop a casino in Hawaii would have to demonstrate “historical ties” to the land and receive approval from the governor.
