[5][6][7] Many Native Hawaiian individuals and organizations insist on the return of title, which would be consistent with international law and recognition of the rights of Indigenous peoples, whereas others seek back rent for the use of the land.
[10] A number of facilities, including airports and military bases, are located on former Kingdom Government and Crown lands, which contributes to controversy surrounding the issue.
[11][12] On January 17, 1893, a small group of businessmen, backed by the U.S. military and diplomatic personnel, illegally overthrew the Hawaiian Kingdom.
[19] In addition, Article XII, Section 6, of the Constitution "requires the OHA Trustees to manage and administer income and proceeds from a variety of sources, including a pro rata portion of the public land trust".
Despite this, OHA and the state remained in dispute about some categories of trust revenue, including proceeds from the Honolulu airport on ceded lands.
In 2001, the Hawaiʻi Supreme Court invalidated Act 304 in the case OHA v. State, but acknowledged the State's obligation: “it is incumbent upon the legislature to enact legislation that gives effect to the rights of native Hawaiians to benefit from the ceded lands trust.”[23] In 2006, the Legislature passed Act 178, which established the interim revenue to be transferred to OHA annually as $15.1 million.
[25] The controversy over public land trust revenue remains ongoing, and recent efforts to determine the actual amount of OHA's pro rata share have not been successful.
[32] The Court also determined that monetary payments would not suffice because of Hawaiians' intimate cultural and spiritual connection with the lands.
In 2011, a law was passed requiring a two-thirds majority approval in the Legislature for any permanent alienation of ceded lands.
[3] In August 2019, the Hawaiʻi Supreme Court published Ching v. Case, ruling that the state has an affirmative duty to preserve and protect ceded lands.
[38] The case involved the state’s lease of approximately 22,900 acres (9,300 ha) to the U.S. military at Pōhakuloa on Hawaiʻi Island.