[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 90 (Wednesday, June 11, 2014)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E952]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  TRANSPORTATION, HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT, AND RELATED AGENCIES 
                        APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2015

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                               speech of

                           HON. TULSI GABBARD

                               of hawaii

                    in the house of representatives

                          Monday, June 9, 2014

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the state of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 4745) making 
     appropriations for the Departments of Transportation, Housing 
     and Urban Development, and related agencies for the fiscal 
     year ending September 30, 2015, and for other purposes:

  Ms. GABBARD. Mr. Chair, I rise today in strong support of continued 
funding for the Native Hawaiian Housing Block Grant.
  In 1921, Congress enacted the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act (HHCA) to 
help Native Hawaiians who, after the overthrow and annexation of the 
Kingdom of Hawaii, were largely disenfranchised from their traditional 
homelands. HHCA sought to provide for the rehabilitation of the Native 
Hawaiian people through a homesteading program that would reconnect 
them with former Crown Lands.
  In 1959, the State of Hawaii adopted the HHCA as a provision of its 
constitution in accordance with the Hawaii Statehood Admissions Act, 
Public Law 86-3. This reaffirmed the responsibility that this nation 
has to its indigenous people and forever embedded the mission of HHCA 
in Hawaii's modern history and society.
  The Native Hawaiian Housing Block Grant provides the financial means 
to support HHCA and its mission of promoting Native Hawaiian well-being 
through homesteading. This is an important step towards reconciliation 
for the historical injustices that underline the social and economic 
inequality of our Native Hawaiians.
  Safe and affordable housing helps to empower families to be 
productive members of society. Housing fulfills physical needs by 
providing security and shelter from weather and climate. It fulfills 
psychological needs by providing a sense of personal space and privacy. 
It fulfills social needs by providing a gathering area and communal 
space for the family. These factors combine to help ensure the well-
being of our future generations, and are why continued funding for the 
Native Hawaiian Housing Block Grant program is so important.
  Homesteading provided through this program helps to ease Hawaii's 
high cost of living and allows Native Hawaiians to remain connected to 
their traditional homelands. I strongly urge funding for the Native 
Hawaiian Housing Block Grant program, and would like to express my 
support for the Native American Housing Assistance and Self 
Determination Act as well.

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