Bill Text: HI HCR26 | 2019 | Regular Session | Introduced

Hawaii House Concurrent Resolution 26 (Prior Session Legislation)

Introduced

Bill Title: Urging The State Capitol Management Committee To Take Steps Necessary To Name The Hawaii State Capitol "the Daniel Kahikina Akaka Hawaii State Capitol".

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2019-03-14 - Re-referred to LMG, WLH, FIN, referral sheet 34 [HCR26 Detail]

Download: Hawaii-2019-HCR26-Introduced.html

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.C.R. NO.	26
THIRTIETH LEGISLATURE, 2019
STATE OF HAWAII

HOUSE CONCURRENT

RESOLUTION

urging the STATE CAPITOL MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE to TAKE STEPS NECESSARY TO name the hawai�i state capitol "the daniel kahikina akaka hawai�i state capitol".

WHEREAS, Hawai�i became a state in 1959 following the passage of an act by the United States Congress and enactment of the law by President Dwight D. Eisenhower; and

WHEREAS, Governor John A. Burns commissioned the new State Capitol to replace the former statehouse, �Iolani Palace, and construction on the new capitol began on November 10, 1965; and

WHEREAS, on March 15, 1969, the Hawai�i State Capitol was opened, and since then has become a showpiece of a distinctive style of design known as Hawaiian international architecture, an adaptation of the modernistic Bauhaus-style that was popular in the early and mid-20th century; and

WHEREAS, the design is symbolic of Hawaii's beauty and geographic features. For example, the reflecting pool that surrounds the Hawai�i State Capitol symbolizes the Pacific Ocean; the two chambers of the state legislature on the southeast and northwest sides of the building are cone-shaped to represent volcanoes; the twenty-four columns surrounding the building resemble palm trees; and the eight columns along the front and back side of the building represent each of the eight main Hawaiian islands; and

WHEREAS, the open sky atrium is distinct (as most other capitols feature a dome-shaped covered rotunda) and is reminiscent of a volcano crater, while the artistic pattern on the floor at the center of the atrium is a representation of the colors of Hawaii's coastal waters; and

WHEREAS, the Hawai�i State Capitol grounds also feature statues of Queen Lili�uokalani and Saint Damien and two large bronze seals that proclaim the State's motto: Ua mau ke ea o ka �āina i ka pono; and

WHEREAS, United States Senator Daniel K. Akaka recognized the State Capitol as the piko or the center and source of growth for Hawai�i because the capitol is where the Legislature is housed and makes decisions for the people of Hawai�i; and

WHEREAS, Senator Akaka would always return to Hawai�i and go back to the piko to provide state legislators with the latest report on issues developing in Washington D.C. that may impact the people of Hawai�i; and

WHEREAS, Senator Akaka's career was dedicated to public and community service from his tenure in the United States Army during World War II, leadership kuleana at Kawaiaha�o Church, role as a school teacher and principal at Benjamin Parker Elementary School in Kāne�ohe, his appointment to the State of Hawai�i Department of Education and the Hawai�i Office of Economic Opportunity, and his more than three decades serving in both chambers of the United States Congress; and

WHEREAS, one of Senator Akaka's longstanding initiatives was the advocacy for Native Hawaiian self-determination as evidenced by the Apology Resolution signed by President Clinton in the same year Hawai�i observed the 100th anniversary of the overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawai�i, and the subsequent legislation that sought federal recognition of a political relationship with Native Hawaiians as an indigenous group; and

WHEREAS, in honor of the late Senator Akaka, this body acknowledges his service with aloha, emblematic of Hawai�i's people, and seek to recognize his legacy with the naming of the Hawai�i State Capitol, a symbol of Hawai�i, the Daniel Kahikina Akaka Hawai�i State Capitol; and

WHEREAS, pursuant to section 6E-34.5, Hawaii Revised Statutes, the State Capitol Management Committee is vested with the oversight and management of the State Capitol and its grounds and facilities, and is the key stakeholder in determining the naming of the capitol; and

WHEREAS, the State Capitol Management Committee is composed of representatives from the executive and legislative branches of the State government, specifically the Governor's Chief of Staff, the State Controller, the Director of Public Safety, two members of the Senate, two members of the House of Representatives, and two legislative officers; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Thirtieth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2019, the Senate concurring, that the State Capitol Management Committee is urged to take steps necessary to name the Hawai�i State Capitol "The Daniel Kahikina Akaka Hawai�i State Capitol" in honor of Senator Akaka; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Governor; President of the Senate; Speaker of the House of Representatives; Comptroller; Director of Public Safety; and Chair of the State Capitol Management Committee.