Department of Hawaiian Home Lands

The Department of Hawaiian Home Lands (DHHL) administers the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act of 1920, which set aside approximately 200,000 acres of land for homesteading by Native Hawaiians with at least 50 percent Hawaiian blood. It manages the homestead waitlist — which currently spans tens of thousands of applicants — leases homestead lots for residential, agricultural, and ranching purposes, and develops infrastructure on Hawaiian Home Lands. DHHL is constitutionally mandated and its programs are directed by the Hawaiian Homes Commission.

Native Hawaiian families on the homestead waitlist — some of whom have waited decades for a lot — are directly affected by DHHL's land development priorities and award decisions. All Hawaii residents have a stake in whether the state fulfills its constitutional obligation to Native Hawaiian homesteaders.