HI HR189

Hawaii House Resolution requests the U.S. President to return Fort DeRussy and the 817-room Hale Koa Hotel in Waikiki to state control, arguing these recreational facilities are no longer needed for military defense purposes under the Hawaii Admission Act and Public Law 88-233.

The resolution contends the federal government has operated the Hale Koa Hotel as a commercial resort on 9 acres of prime Waikiki beachfront while paying no transient accommodations tax, general excise tax, property tax, or rent to Hawaii or the public land trust.

Fort DeRussy's coastal defense guns were rendered obsolete by 1941, and the site was redesignated as a rest and recreation center in 1942; the resolution argues its use since then has been exclusively recreational rather than military defense.

The measure requests a comprehensive review of all federally-retained lands in Hawaii, including military recreational facilities at Bellows Air Force Station, Kilauea Military Camp, multiple golf courses, and beach cottage facilities across the islands for potential return to the state.

If returned, the lands would be incorporated into the public land trust under the Hawaii State Constitution, with the state and Office of Hawaiian Affairs developing a land use plan prioritizing cultural restoration, public shoreline access, and Native Hawaiian benefit programs.