Department of Hawaiian Home Lands

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

June 12, 2020

 

(Kapolei, Oʻahu) – As the State continues to reopen, the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands (DHHL) will open its main office doors in Kapolei, Oʻahu to the public on Monday, June 15, and on the neighbor islands beginning on Wednesday, June 17.

Beneficiaries seeking transfers, successorships, or other services will be handled on an appointment-only basis. To schedule an appointment, beneficiaries should call their respective island offices.

Walk-in payments and deliveries will also be accepted beginning on June 17, except at the Kaua`i District Office, where an appointment will be needed. Office hours are from 7:45 a.m. through 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.

“We are pleased to return to in-person services again,” said Hawaiian Homes Commission Chairman William J. Ailā, Jr. “We’ve taken precautionary sanitation and social distancing steps in all of our offices in the interest of the health and safety of those we serve as well as our staff.”

DHHL closed its doors on March 17 as the State faced the threat of COVID-19. Limited services have remained operational with limited in-office staff and through staff teleworking arrangements.

Beneficiaries visiting the Department should expect noticeable changes along with the requirement of wearing a face covering and the practice of social distancing, in coordination with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines.

During the State’s Stay at Home Order, DHHL implemented several efforts to provide relief to beneficiaries, including the implementation of a rental relief program for those on the Department’s Waiting List and the deferral of mortgage payments for those with Department issued direct loans. Rental relief options for qualified lessees, licensees, and permittee tenants on lands managed by DHHL were also approved by the Hawaiian Homes Commission. The above relief options remain available to those impacted by COVID-19.

To make an appointment for service or to learn more about DHHL’s COVID-19 relief efforts and other information related to the Department’s COVID-19 operations, visit dhhl.hawaii.gov/covid-19.

About the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands:
The Department of Hawaiian Home Lands carries out Prince Jonah Kūhiō Kalanianaʻole’s vision of rehabilitating native Hawaiians by returning them to the land. Established by U.S. Congress in 1921, with the passage of the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act, the Hawaiian homesteading program run by DHHL includes management of over 200,000 acres of land statewide with the specific purpose of developing and delivering homesteading.

Media Contact:
Cedric Duarte
Information and Community Relations Officer
Department of Hawaiian Home Lands
(808) 620-9591
[email protected]