80TH CONGRESS HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 2d Session REPORT No. 1673 RATIFYING SECTIONS 1 AND 2 OF JOINT RESOLUTION 7 ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE TERRITORY OF HAWAII IN ITS REGULAR SESSION OF 1947 APRIL 7, 1948.-Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union and ordered to be printed Mr WELCH, from the Committee on Public Lands, submitted the following REPORT [To accompany H. R. 3635] The Committee on Public Lands, to whom was referred the bill (H. R. 3635) to ratify sections 1 and 2 of Joint Resolution 7 enacted by the Legislature of the Territory of Hawaii in its regular session of 1947, having considered the same, report favorably thereon without amendment and recommend that the bill do pass. The purpose of this bill is to give congressional approval to sections 1 and 2 of Joint Resolution 7 enacted by the Legislature of the Territory of Hawaii in its regular session of 1947. The effect of these two sections is to fix at 4 percent the maximum interest chargeable upon the balance of the purchase price of public lands procured for homestead, residence, or other purposes; to reduce from 6 percent to 4 percent the interest rate a freeholder must pay on the balance of the purchase price under a cash freehold agreement; and to reduce .to 4 percent the interest rate on all special sale and homestead agreements made prior to the date of enactment of this act. At hearings held on H. R. 3635 before a subcommittee of the Committee on Public Lands, the Public Lands Commissioner of the Territory of Hawaii testified that in his opinion an interest rate of 4 percent is more consistent with present money rates than is the 6 percent prevailing rate. At the request of the Territorial legislature the Commissioner is actually charging only 4 percent on new sales. Those persons who have already taken up public lands, thus establishing a better market, should not be penalized because of their earlier purchases. The Commissioner further stated that he knows of no opposition to this bill in the Territory. Approval of H. R. 3635 was given by the Under Secretary of the Interior in his letter dated March 5, 1948, addressed to Hon. Richard J. Welch, chairman of the Committee on Public Lands, which is set forth below and is made a part of this report. The Committee on Public Lands unanimously recommend the enactment of this legislation. UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, Hon. RICHARD J. WELCH, Chairman, Committee on Public Lands, House of Representatives. MY DEAR MR. WELCH: This is in response to your request for an expression of my views on H. R. 3635, a bill to ratify sections 1 and 2 of Joint Resolution 7 enacted by the Legislature of the Territory of Hawaii in its regular session of 1947. Section 1 of Joint Resolution 7 amends section 4565 of chapter 78 of the Revised Laws of Hawaii, 1945, so as to fix at 4 percent the maximum interest chargeable upon the balance of the purchase price of public lands purchased for homestead, residence, or other purposes, and amends section 4601 of chapter 78 so as to reduce from 6 percent to 4 percent the interest rate a freeholder must pay on the balance of the purchase price under a cash freehold agreement. Section 2 of Joint Resolution 7 reduced to 4 percent the interest rate on all special sale and homestead agreements made prior to the date of enactment of this act. The reduction of interest rates is one of the steps that can be taken to make possible the purchase of homes by veterans and other interested buyers at a reasonable cost, and thereby to contribute to the alleviation of the acute housing shortage in Hawaii. In view of the imminent consideration of H. R. 3635 by your committee, this report has not been submitted to the Bureau of the Budget for its consideration. Therefore, I am unable to state the relationship of the views expressed herein to the program of the President. Sincerely yours, OSCAR L. CHAPMAN, Under Secretary of the Interior. O 80TH CONGRESS HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 2d Session { REPORT No. 1674 AMENDING SECTIONS 207, 209, 213, 215, 216, 220, 222, AND 225, OF TITLE 2 OF THE HAWAIIAN HOMES COMMISSION ACT, 1920, AS AMENDED APRIL 7, 1948.-Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union and ordered to be printed Mr. WELCH, from the Committee on Public Lands, submitted the following REPORT [To accompany H. R. 3680] The Committee on Public Lands, to whom was referred the bill (H. R. 3680) to amend sections 207, 209, 213, 215, 216, 220, 222, and 225, of title 2 of the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act, 1920, as amended, having considered the same, report favorably thereon with amendments and recommend that the bill as amended do pass. The amendments are as follows: Page 4, line 3: Strike out the word "plan" and insert in lieu thereof the word "fund”. Page 10, line 17: Strike out the word "paragraph" and insert in lieu thereof the word "paragraphs". Change the title to read A bill to amend sections 207, 213, 215, 216, 220, 222, and 225, of title 2 of the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act, 1920, as amended. EXPLANATION OF THE BILL The purpose of this bill is to amend certain sections of title 2 of the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act, 1920, as amended, in order to afford a more realistic administration of the act. Enactment of this legislation would not involve any appropriation of Federal funds. Primarily, it is intended to liberalize the granting of leases, create a Hawaiian home-operating fund to be used for revenue-producing improvements, increase the amount of loans that can be made to homesteaders, and simplify the procedure for repayments on such loans. Under the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act of 1920, approximately 200,000 acres of land in the Territory were set aside for home steading by people of Hawaiian ancestry. The administration of these lands has been vested in a body known as the Hawaiian Homes Commission. This Commission passes on all applications for homesteads and makes loans for improvements and homes from its revolving fund which has been built up from moneys derived from leases and from water licenses. This revolving fund now stands at almost $2,000,000, and contains no Federal funds. The administration of the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act by the Commission has proved most successful. However, its operations are strictly limited by the wording of the act, which can be changed only through initiation by the Territorial Legislature. Since the legislature holds biennial meetings, the Commission is handicapped by lack of elasticity in the wording of the act to meet changing economic and social conditions. This hardship is particularly severe in view of the fact that any changes authorized by the Territorial legislature have to be submitted to the Congress for approval, which further delays the Commission in putting new practices into effect. The enactment of H. R. 3680 would broaden the authority of the Commission and permit more flexible administration of the act. This measure is supported by the Territorial legislature and by the Governor of Hawaii. At hearings held before a subcommittee of the Committee on Public Lands, it was testified that there is no known objection to the legislation. It was stated that this bill is based on the experience gained in the administration of the existing law and that it is felt the suggested amendments to the present law would strengthen and improve it. H. R. 3680 has been amended by the committee to correct three typographical errors. Favorable consideration of this bill is asked by the Under Secretary of the Interior in his letter of July 2, 1947, addressed to Hon. Richard J. Welch, chairman, Committee on Public Lands, which is herein below set forth and is made a part of this report. The Committee on Public Lands unanimously recommend the enactment of this legislation. Hon. RICHARD J. WELCH, Chairman, Committee on Public Lands, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, House of Representatives. MY DEAR MR. WELCH: This is in reply to your request for my views on H. R. 3680, a bill "to amend sections 207, 209, 213, 215, 216, 220, 222, and 225 of title 2 of the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act, 1920, as amended." I recommend favorable consideration of this measure. Under the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act, 1920, approximately 200,000 acres of land in the Territory were originally set aside by the Congress for homesteading by people of Hawaiian ancestry. The administration of these lands has been vested in a Hawaiian Homes Commission. The purpose of H. R. 3680 is to make a number of changes in the Homes Commission Act, which would broaden the powers, duties, and functions of the Commission. H. R. 3680 would liberalize the granting of leases, create a Hawaiian homeoperating fund to be used for revenue-producing improvements, increase the amount of loans that can be made to homesteaders, and simplify the procedure for repayments on such loans. All amendments proposed in the bill have been prompted by the experience gained in the administration of the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act, and they would improve and strengthen that law. The measure is supported by both the Territorial legislature and the Governor of Hawaii. Its enactment, moreover, would not involve the appropriation of any Federal funds. It is noted that the bill does not contain any amendment of section 209 of the Homes Commission Act, although that section is listed in the title of the bill |