What's Being Discussed

• Approval of meeting minutes from the October 7, 2026 session.
• Repatriation support letter: A discussion about a letter the Council issued supporting the return of the remains of Carolyn Sue Harp and family to Kaloko-Honokohau National Historic Park.
• Six inadvertent discoveries of Native Hawaiian skeletal remains, most exposed by coastal erosion, at locations across North and South Kona, including Old Airport Beach, Kamakahonu Beach, Honokohau, Kohanaiki, Honaunau, and Kealakekua Bay. The Council will receive status updates on each case.
• Burial Sites Working Group report from a meeting held October 28, 2026.
• Lineal descendancy application: A review of an application by Chase K. Keliipaakaua seeking recognition as a lineal descendant connected to a specific burial site.

Decisions Expected

• A vote to approve the October 7, 2026 meeting minutes.
• A determination on the lineal descendancy application — the Council will decide whether to approve the applicant's claimed connection to a Native Hawaiian burial site.
• Possible guidance or actions related to the ongoing inadvertent discovery cases.

Who Should Pay Attention

• Native Hawaiian communities and families with ancestral ties to burial sites on Hawaiʻi Island, particularly in the Kona region.
• Lineal descendancy applicants and their families.
• Landowners and developers near areas where inadvertent discoveries have occurred.
• Anyone interested in the repatriation of Native Hawaiian remains to Kaloko-Honokohau National Historic Park.

The meeting runs from 9:30 AM to 1:30 PM on November 4, 2026. The public may attend in person in Hilo or join online via Zoom (Meeting ID: 929 0847 1498, Passcode: HIBC26).