U.S. Sen.Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i), a member of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee, spoke out today against efforts to exclude Native Hawaiians from the Bringing Useful Initiatives for Indian Land Development (BUILD) Act of 2017, legislation that would reauthorize funding for native housing programs.
“By leaving out Native Hawaiians, this bill is an attack on my state and my people,” Sen. Schatz said before the Indian Affairs Committee. “It dishonors the legacies of Dan Inouye and Danny Akaka. And it threatens the future work of this committee. I strongly urge this committee to preserve the good work of this committee and the spirit of bipartisanship by changing course and including Native Hawaiians going forward.”
In his remarks, Sen. Schatz underscored the broad bipartisan support for including Native Hawaiians in similar legislation in the past and reiterated his commitment to ensuring Native Hawaiian housing programs continue to receive federal funds.
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