From: CNHA Mailing List [mailinglist@hawaiiancouncil.org]
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Subject: CNHA's NewsClips - May 11, 2005

Bringing you today’s stories on issues important to Native communities. NewsClips is a complimentary service of the Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement. Please save the dates for our Fourth Annual Native Hawaiian Conference from August 30 - September 2 2005, at the Sheraton Waikiki Hotel. For information and updates on our training workshops and events, please visit our Web site: www.hawaiiancouncil.org.

 

 

May 11, 2005

 

 

 

 

Posted: May 06, 2005

 

Akaka: A necessary process to build a better future

 

by: Daniel K. Akaka / U.S. Senator

 

Aloha. It has been six years since my colleagues and I in Hawaii's congressional delegation worked on legislation which would extend the federal policy of self-governance and self-determination to Hawaii's indigenous peoples, Native Hawaiians. Throughout these years, I have engaged in discussions with a number of individuals, some who support the legislation and some who have expressed concerns.

My bill does three things: establishes an office in the Department of the Interior to serve as a liaison to Native Hawaiians and to provide permanency to the reconciliation process; establishes an interagency coordinating group composed of federal officials from agencies with programs and services impacting Native Hawaiians; and provides a process for the reorganization of the Native Hawaiian governing entity for the purpose of a federally recognized government-to-government relationship with the United States.

Since its conception, I have reviewed all of the input received on this bill, whether it has been through oral or written testimony, letters, meetings, or phone calls. In some instances, I have made the recommended changes. This is my responsibility as the principal author of this legislation - to ensure that as I address the many comments, I preserve the intent of the legislation which is to extend the federal policy of self-governance and self-determination to Native Hawaiians. It is my responsibility to ensure that, following discussions with all sides, we have a bill that can be enacted.

Federal legislation takes a number of years to enact. The Apology Resolution, for example, was considered for five years before it was enacted in 1993. After six years of negotiations and responding to input on S. 147, we are now negotiating time for debate and a roll call vote on the floor. Holding additional hearings in Hawaii at this time would place us at the beginning of the process we started in 2000.

I agree that continued input on the bill is necessary. This is why educational briefings on federal recognition by organizations, such as the Office of Hawaiian Affairs (OHA), Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement (CNHA), Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubs, and State Council of Hawaiian Homesteaders, are so important. These gatherings provide opportunities for Native Hawaiians and non-Native Hawaiians to understand and discuss the legislation. They are helping to lay the groundwork for the bill's implementation upon enactment.

For me, what distinguishes this bill is that its aim is not a predetermined outcome but a process: a process that furthers empowerment and reconciliation. I have been approached by many people - opponents and proponents alike - who want me to add provisions that would predetermine the outcome of the reorganization process for the Native Hawaiian governing entity. The federal policy of self-governance and self-determination is based on the concept that Native people are best able to manage their resources for themselves.

Following the recognition of the Native Hawaiian governing entity, negotiations between the entity and the federal and state governments will begin to address the potential transfer and control over lands, natural resources and assets and the exercise of governmental authority by the Native Hawaiian governing entity. This is the structured process that we have needed in the past to address longstanding issues resulting from the overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawaii.

This discussion has been avoided for far too long because we have not known how to address the emotions that arise when these matters are discussed. There has been fear as to what the discussion would entail, causing people to avoid the issues. Such behavior has led to high levels of anger and frustration as well as misunderstandings between Native Hawaiians and non-Native Hawaiians. This structured process, which is inclusive and empowers the people of Hawaii, is necessary to alleviate the growing mistrust, misunderstanding, anger, and frustration about these matters. This process will unite rather than divide the people of Hawaii.

I am saddened by the efforts of those who have tried to garner opposition to the bill by exploiting the fear and frustration about these matters of individuals who are not familiar with the bill. I am proud of the delicate balance the bill achieves between providing structure and allowing flexibility for Native Hawaiians to determine the outcome of their reorganized governing entity and interested parties to be represented in the negotiations process mentioned. State and federal laws will need to be amended to implement the outcome of the negotiations.

As I have stated over and over, this bill sets up a process - one that is inclusive, one that empowers citizens, and one that fully utilizes our democratic system. It is wrong for us to predetermine the outcome of this process. For that reason, I have rejected suggestions to include provisions which would, for example, limit jurisdiction, determine membership criteria in the entity, or address land issues. I have confidence that this bill is flexible enough to provide for appropriate participation by all interested parties in a process that will move us all forward as we strive to provide a better future for the children of Hawaii.

 

 

 

Thursday, May 05, 2005

Charter schools getting shorted on funding, officials say

 

By Dan Martin
dmartin@starbulletin.com

Hawaii's first charter schools turn 5 years old today but don't feel they're getting much of a birthday gift.

Despite a slight rise in funding in the state budget passed Tuesday, public charter school advocates expressed anger and frustration over funding levels that they consider woefully inadequate, and are bracing for another two years of scraping by.

"They'll be stuck in survival mode, which limits your ability to focus on instruction, and the direct impact of that underfunding is on the kids," said Jim Shon, executive director of the Charter School Administrative Office.

The state budget allocates about $31 million in operating funds in each of the next two years for Hawaii's 27 quasi-independent charter schools, up from $28 million in the current fiscal year.

But school administrators say far more is needed to make up for funding that has for years fallen short of levels mandated by state law.

Charter schools are public schools that enjoy autonomy from the state Department of Education on curriculum, spending and personnel decisions but have struggled to make do with per-pupil funding amounting to about half that of regular public schools.

They had hoped to take a step toward equity through a new funding formula passed this session, which Shon said obliges the Legislature to provide about $45 million in each of the next two years. But a series of public-employee pay raises left no money for that.

"What's that supposed to mean, that we don't deserve equity? That our kids are not worth as much?" said John Thatcher, principal of Connections charter school in Hilo, one of the first group of five charter schools established five years ago.

Two positive developments for charter schools are provisions in the law that relieve them of having to use their own operating funds to pay for employee benefits and the recent 10 percent raises for public-school teachers.

"Paying for the fringe benefits has been a real detriment to charter schools, so that appears to be a positive. But until we get the check, we don't know for sure," said Curtis Muraoka, co-director of West Hawaii Explorations Academy in Kona.

However, charter schools are growing rapidly, and Thatcher said he expects the schools will have to ask for more money during the next legislative session.

A report by the CSAO projects charter school enrollment to grow each year, rising from 4,964 during the current school year to 7,335 by 2009, with nearly all the new students coming from regular public schools.

Legislators' hands were tied this session, said Roy Takumi (D, Pearl City-Pacific Palisades), chairman of the House Education Committee.

"We did what we could, but there wasn't any more money available," said Takumi, who questioned why Gov. Linda Lingle, a supporter of charter schools, was not more prudent in negotiating the new teacher salary deal.

"She was saying (raises for government employees) would break the state, and then she goes out and negotiates an even bigger raise for the teachers. You've got to wonder about that," he said.

Despite charter schools' rapid growth, some school administrators say a lingering lack of understanding of such schools hampers them in the biennial competition for state funding.

A recent survey by the Washington-based Center for Education Reform said that only one in five people in the country was even aware that charter schools were part of the public school system.

But Connections' Thatcher said charter school performance speaks volumes: Charter school students scored higher on state achievement tests last year than their peers in regular public schools.

"If we turned that around, you could say charter schools are doing a pretty good job of educating their kids, at half the cost of what the DOE spends per student," he said. "Maybe we should be talking about massive conversion to charter schools."

 

 

Posted: May 09, 2005

Liu adds to legacy through HUD 184 expansions

by: Mark Fogarty / Today correspondent

WASHINGTON - The federal government's top Indian housing official initiated a series of rapid expansions in programs during his last month in office.

A fourth set of tribes has expanded the areas in which the Housing and Urban Development Section 184 guaranteed mortgage can be offered, while the first loan under the 184A program for Native Hawaiians has been guaranteed.

Michael Liu, HUD's assistant secretary for Public and Indian Housing, was set to leave HUD at the end of April, but acted aggressively in the last weeks of his tenure to increase the scope of the HUD 184.

Most importantly, he approved applications by six tribes to increase the ''Indian area'' where HUD 184s can be extended to tribal members. Until just last year, tribes could offer HUD 184 mortgages only to those members on reservations or the ''Indian areas'' of states without reservations, like Alaska and Oklahoma.

Now, they can petition to be allowed to facilitate loans to tribal members living in areas where the tribe has a traditional presence, or where significant numbers of tribal members live now.

Four Midwest tribes added the states of Michigan, Indiana and Minnesota to their territories in the most recent of these expansions.

They are the Bay Mills Indian Community of Michigan and the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, both of which are expanding their Indian areas to the whole state of Michigan.

The Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians now will be allowed the entire state of Indiana as its Indian area, and the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe will now have the entire state of Minnesota for HUD 184s.

The Pascua Yaqui tribe of Arizona recently expanded its HUD 184 territory to the entire state of Arizona, while the Ho-Chunk Nation of Wisconsin also recently expanded its area. The first tribe to take advantage of this expansion, the Seminole Tribe of Florida, late last year expanded its territory to the entire state of Florida.

One of the expanded territory provision's clear targets is urban Indians. To date, the cities of Miami, Chicago, Minneapolis and Phoenix have been added to eligible areas.

HUD announced its current total of 2,159 home loans guaranteed by the HUD 184, for $216 million in finance, making it by far the most successful government mortgage program in Indian country.

HUD guaranteed $64 million of HUD 184s in fiscal 2004, and set a goal of $100 million for this fiscal year, which ends Sept. 30. The expansions should help it meet its aggressive goals. Fiscal 2004 volume was nearly triple that recorded in fiscal 2003.

Tom Wright, a former housing official with the Grand Traverse Band, is the current head of HUD's loan guarantee program, which includes the HUD 184 and the lesser-used Title VI loan program.

It is unclear who will replace Liu, who served as assistant secretary of Public and Indian Housing since September 2001.

The HUD 184 guarantees 100 percent of a private lender's outlays to eligible Indians, tribes, or tribally-designated housing entities. It can be used for new construction, rehabilitation or refinancings. The Title VI program guarantees 95 percent of outlays and is collateralized by tribes' federal housing block grant money. It has been used for construction and infrastructure funding.

Liu, in an exit interview, said he hoped the states of California, Nevada and New Mexico can also be opened up to the HUD 184.

He also suggested tribes get involved in creating a ''secondary'' market for HUD 184s. In a secondary market, a mechanism buys the loans from the originating lender, giving the lender more funds they can use to make additional loans.

There is already a nascent secondary market for the HUD 184, as they can be packaged into Government National Mortgage Association securities, which are sold to investors. The conduit Liu suggested would be in addition to, and compete with, Ginnie Mae.

Liu, who is partly Native Hawaiian, was also able to announce before leaving office that HUD is guaranteeing its first loan under the HUD 184A program in Hawaii.

The construction loan from Wells Fargo Home Mortgage will build 20 units for Natives through the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands in Waiohuli, Maui.

In another positive development, HUD 184 loan limits have been lifted in high-cost places like Alaska. Limits have been lifted to match those used by the Federal Housing Administration's Section 214 loan programs. For single-family homes, that means a boost in eligible prices from $290,000 to $435,000; and for two-family homes, from $372,000 to $558,000.

In addition, Liu said there will be no problem in combining public housing section 8 subsidies with the 184 program to help low-income families off-reservation.

 

 

 

Thursday, May 05, 2005

 

Illegal vacation rentals make tight market worse

 

Neighbor islanders, especially, are priced out by landlords who solicit tourists for the homes they used to rent to long-term residents

 

By Gary T. Kubota and Rod Thompson
gkubota@starbulletin.com rthompson@starbulletin.com

HANA, Maui » In an area becoming known for celebrities' real estate deals and high-priced vacation rentals, Patsy Kaina has 15 children and grandchildren under her roof and sees native Hawaiian families like hers being forced out by scarce affordable housing.

"Hana is one of the last Hawaiian places," Kaina said. "How is it fair for Hawaiian people who live here to have to move?"

As on Oahu, the housing boom on the neighbor islands has enriched many residents and investors, but it also has threatened the pace and lifestyle of rural areas such as Hana. And the lack of affordable homes has forced some neighbor island workers to endure marathon daily commutes or just leave altogether.

In Maui County, officials encourage tourism and have traditionally directed visitor growth into luxury-destination areas such as Kaanapali and Kapalua in West Maui, and Wailea and Makena in South Maui. But the demand for vacation rentals and bed-and-breakfast inns has spilled over into residential, rural and agricultural areas not zoned for such use. The higher demand has translated into higher home prices, rents and property taxes.

Some Hana residents also have complained about recent celebrity land deals in East Maui.

Oprah Winfrey received a five-year conditional permit in March to operate 12 vacation rental rooms in rural Kula in Upcountry Maui, and, along with her personal trainer, Bob Greene, she has bought 102 acres in remote Hana.

While about four properties are authorized to operate visitor accommodations in Hana, about 80 others are in operation or soliciting tourist rental business illegally on the Internet, according to county and state officials.

Residents, meanwhile, say it is not unusual to find three families living in the same house in Hana, where rental homes are both scarce and expensive -- about $1,000 to $1,300 a month.

"The situation is fairly desperate as far as affordable housing," said Carl Lindquist, broker at Hana Coast Realty Inc.

Kaina said she worries that higher taxes and the lack of affordable housing will push out longtime native Hawaiian residents who comprise the majority of Hana residents.

For her the land is a link to her ancestral past and binds her family to native cultural practices.

Part of the tradition includes sharing food from the sea with neighbors and also working together to care for a 10-mile network of terraced taro patches irrigated by mountain streams.

Kaina said the communal work teaches her children and grandchildren the value of cooperation and native culture.

"What we're trying to do is to foster the interest and knowledge and pass it down to the younger generation and keep it alive," she said.

For scores of Big Island residents, the housing crunch has meant getting up to catch a 3:30 a.m. bus in Hilo in East Hawaii to work in West Hawaii.

Housing prices in Kohala and North Kona, where construction has focused on resorts and luxury homes, are beyond the income range of most service-industry workers.

Hatnat Meneky, who works as a landscaper at the Mauna Lani Bay Hotel in South Kohala, travels four hours by bus in addition to working an eight-hour day.

He said he earns $13.25 an hour and pays $1,350 in rent for a house in Puna, considerably less than it would cost him in West Hawaii. But he does not like the ride.

"Four hours on the bus is not worth it. I do it because of the money," said Meneky, who has been commuting for two years. "I'm getting tired of it."

Meneky said he would move closer to his work if he could find an affordable place.

Hawaii County transportation administrator Tom Brown said the three buses that leave in the mornings are nearly full, carrying usually more than 40 people, and the numbers are growing.

Brown said there are many houses in West Hawaii but few that are affordable to workers in service-related jobs in resort areas, forcing workers to make the roughly 85-mile commute.

"It's just outrageous, some of these prices," he said.

Housing prices also have contributed to an employment crunch on Kauai, where employers are having difficulty keeping workers for service and agricultural jobs.

Hanalei Poi Co. LLC official Hobey Beck said his business is having trouble retaining workers because of high rents.

"We do have a lot of turnover," he said. "That gets kind of frustrating."

With pay at $10 to $15 an hour, poi workers spend much of their salary for rents that can go for $600 to $800 for a single room in Lihue, about an hour by bus to the business in Hanalei, Beck said. And that is if they can find a rental at all, he added.

In Hanalei, once a community of farm families, the taro patches remain, but virtually all of the residences have been converted into vacation rentals at rates more than four times what workers pay, he said.

 

"Nobody is going to put a worker in a house when they can have a vacation rental," Beck said.

Beck recalled taking his children on Halloween door to door in Hanalei two years ago.

"We went knocking on doors. You couldn't find a resident," he said. "They were vacationers or the vacation houses were empty."

Marilyn Mohler, an official with a Kauai group that helps single parents, recalled a mother of seven children losing her house of 14 years because the owner converted it into a vacation rental.

"They cannot afford these higher rents," said Mohler, of Hui O Na Makua Ho'okahi O Kauai. "It's just a vicious cycle."

Kenneth Rainforth, a Kauai County housing official, said the shortage of affordable homes forces some to leave the island.

"We always come up short; that's why we lose part of each generation," Rainforth said. "They move out to the mainland and don't come back. At times like these, it seems worse."

Hawaii County Housing Administrator Edwin Taira said the lack of rentals on the market is partly due to few apartments being built on the Big Island since the 1970s, as opposed to resort condominiums.

To help solve the problem, neighbor island counties have increased or are looking at increasing the requirement that residential developers set aside a percentage of the units they build for affordable housing.

The Big Island increased the affordable-housing contribution requirement to 20 percent from 10 percent this year; Kauai County has been looking at raising it up to as much as 30 percent from 15 percent; and Maui has raised it to 15 percent from 10 percent.

Kauai County Council Planning Committee Chairwoman JoAnn Yukimura said affordable housing should be integrated into a proposed development to reduce the problem of providing separate roads, sewers and other services.

Yukimura said putting the affordable housing in a development is also economically and socially healthier for the island community.

"We want communities where they live together ... and we don't want to stigmatize the affordable housing," Yukimura said.

Critics note that lax enforcement of zoning laws has also contributed to the housing problem, allowing hundreds to operate bed-and-breakfast and vacation rentals illegally in residential, rural and agricultural areas.

For instance in Maui County, there are 40 authorized bed-and-breakfast businesses, but there are 273 listed on the Internet, according to state and county officials.

Maui County housing director Alice Lee said that illegal vacation rentals have definitely cut into the availability of affordable housing.

Lee said the County Council has been looking at regulating vacation rentals and at providing a partial tax exemption to property owners who rent to residents.

"We're trying to give an incentive to those who currently have a vacant unit or cottage available," she said.

Lee said several developers are planning major projects that include hundreds of affordable units in Central and West Maui and that 14 self-help housing units are planned for Hana.

Kaina said with about 800 households in Hana, many with three families, 14 units barely scratch the surface.

She said the state and county government should make the subdivision of land easier and less expensive for families who want to pass on parcels of their land to their children.

Kaina said her husband's family owns 27 acres of rural land and has been unable to subdivide it because of the development cost, this while paying close to $10,000 a year in taxes on the land.

Kaina said she thinks that the state, which owns land in the Hana District, should provide more opportunity for residential housing, and she has been talking with lawmakers about the need for more affordable housing.

"We're the generation that is fighting for the future, so that when it's the future time they're not getting the problems we're getting," Kaina said. 

 

 

Tuesday May 3, 11:14 am ET

Dutko Worldwide Expands Its Housing Practice with Addition of HUD Assistant Secretary Michael Liu

WASHINGTON, May 3 /PRNewswire/ -- Dutko Worldwide, one of the fastest- growing public policy firms in the nation, announced today the addition of Michael Liu as Senior Vice President. Liu brings years of government and private sector housing experience, including most recently serving as the Assistant Secretary for Public and Indian Housing (PIH) at the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

"Michael Liu has tremendous housing experience, having worked inside the federal government, the Federal Home Loan Banks and in the private sector," said Dutko Worldwide CEO Mark Irion. "He not only brings deep understanding of affordable housing issues, but will build a practice at Dutko that will help developers and communities and other participants in the nation's housing equation develop creative solutions in the complex world of housing development."

"Our goal is not just to represent housing sector interests, but to put Michael, Phil Musser and the rest of our team's specialized knowledge to use to speed development of better housing and communities for lower income Americans. Among the areas of focus for the housing team will be linking new value from the Nation's military, public and Native American housing resources with the financial services industry; developing viable affordable housing, and economic and community development strategies for states, localities, and tribes; providing policy expertise on changes being proposed to programs such as Section 8, public housing and community development block grants; and assisting international partners to structure effective housing programs overseas."

Irion continued, "Dutko is very focused on building the most talented team of professionals across a range of practice areas that are important to our clients. With Mike's addition, our housing group is unmatched in its level of experience, depth of insight and connections. Whether the issues are state or federal, private sector or public sector, our team has been there before."

Mike will lead the housing practice along with Phil Musser, Dutko Vice President and former Chief of Staff at HUD. The practice is focused on both helping private sector clients find innovative approaches to development opportunities and assisting public entities with the navigation of federal programs.

Mike Liu was appointed Assistant Secretary at HUD in September 2001. While there, he oversaw the administration of all public housing, Housing Choice Voucher/Section 8 rental assistance, and Native American housing programs. The scope of his authority comprised well over $20 billion, or 70 percent, of HUD's annual operating budget. Mike previously served as Senior Vice President for Community Investment for the Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago. In his native Hawaii, Mike practiced law, was a vice-president for Bank of America, and spent 10 years in the Hawaii legislature.

Dutko Worldwide provides comprehensive government affairs management and strategic counsel and helps build public-private partnerships with federal, state and international levels of government. Dutko is consistently ranked as one of the "top 10 most powerful lobbying firms" in the country by FORTUNE magazine. Dutko Worldwide's principle operating units are Dutko Global Advisors, Dutko Washington, Dutko State & Local), Dutko Research & Polling, and Dutko Government Markets. For more information go to http://www.dutkoworldwide.com or call them at 202-484-4884.

 

 

Friday, May 6, 2005

HUD backs first Native Hawaiian home loan

 

Maui News

WASHINGTON – A loan to finance the construction of 20 homes for Native Hawaiians in Waiohuli will be the first loan backed by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development through a program created to provide more housing opportunities to Native Hawaiians, the department announced Thursday.

The Department of Hawaiian Home Lands will tap into the Native Hawaiian Loan Guarantee program with its request for $3 million to finance construction of the single-family homes in Waiohuli. DHHL has broken ground on the site and the houses will be ready for occupancy in late 2005 to Native Hawaiian families.

The loan will be funded by the Native American Lending Division of Wells Fargo Home Mortgage.

The loan guarantee program was created in 2001 to help provide financing to entities like DHHL to increase housing opportunities for Native Hawaiians.

 

 

 

Posted on: Friday, May 6, 2005

 

Hawaiian psychology training provides vital connection

 

By Jan TenBruggencate
Advertiser Kaua'i Bureau

KAPA'A, Kaua'i — A 5-year-old program that trains Native Hawaiian psychology students and provides counseling at low-income clinics in rural areas with large numbers of Hawaiians is bridging significant gaps in care, organizers said.

Psychologist Beth Yano said a different approach is often needed when working with patients in the most rural parts of the state. Many won't easily accept a traditional office or an impersonal counselor, and often they want to know a little about the psychologist before they'll open up.

"We tend to greet with hugs rather than handshakes, and our sessions are more talk-story than asking pointed questions. They'll often ask about me where I went to school. If there's a personal connection, it can save a lot of time," Yano said.

Psychologist Kamana'opono Crabbe concurred. "It's important local people get to know you not only as a professional, but as a person," he said.

Yano is a Tripler Army Medical Center staff psychologist and part of a unique program aimed at providing counseling services to underserved communities in Hawai'i — generally rural, low-income areas with a high percentage of Hawaiians. Crabbe is a graduate of the program who is studying for his licensing exam.

The Native Hawaiian Psychology Training Program approaches its goal in two ways. It provides direct counseling by trained, licensed psychologists, and it provides an opportunity for new psychologists to intern and gain experience while providing direct services to clients in these areas.

"We are now in seven of the community health centers in the state," said Ray Folen, chief of behavioral medicine services at Tripler.

The Native Hawaiian Psychology Training Program, which gets about $500,000 annually in federal money, has two full-time psychologists, a half-timer and two more who work one day a week with the program.

Since it was launched in 2000, several graduates have taken full-time counseling positions at the rural health centers where they trained, he said.

The trainees get a rich on-the-job experience in the centers, Folen said. "You get everything possible walking in the door, and we're providing them with the tools that they need to adaptively function in life," he said.

Crabbe came to Western psychology with training in traditional Hawaiian ho'oponopono, a cultural process for putting things right. The combination of techniques can be effective in rural areas, he said.

"I try to use Western techniques, but provided in a local manner," Crabbe said.

Yano said some folks need help with pain management, sleeping problems, diet, anxiety, depression, substance abuse and much more. About half her patients are referred by their physicians for help with ways to approach issues related to their medical conditions.

For example, diabetes is a particular problem in the Hawaiian community, and it is often linked to being overweight. Often, a counselor needs to work with the patient's family, since how they respond has an impact on the patient.

"A lot of family and personal issues are interwoven. Some professionals from a Western modality would concentrate on the individual, but family intervention or at least meeting them can help," Crabbe said.

In another medical-related case, Yano said a dentist referred to her a child whose teeth-grinding was related to anxieties associated with family life.

Since the start of the Iraq war, Yano has seen an increased number of Vietnam veterans suffering from posttraumatic stress disorder. The new war "brought a lot of feelings back," she said.

One of the keys to the success of the Native Hawaiian Psychology Training Program is to develop techniques for approaching the people who need help in Hawai'i's most rural communities.

"Because a lot of the rural communities have not had consistent services over time, there still are stereotypes and stigmas. And because of the history of no services, the problems seem to have a long history and people seem wary of coming out about them," Crabbe said.

Reach Jan TenBruggencate at jant@honoluluadvertiser.com or (808) 245-3074.

 

 

May 10, 2005

Senator seeks to relax small business contracting guidelines

 

By Peter Cohn, CongressDaily

 

A rider attached to the $82 billion fiscal 2005 supplemental spending bill, slated for final passage Tuesday by the Senate, might pave the way for relaxed Energy Department standards for compliance with federal small business contracting requirements, a provision that has small business advocates up in arms.

While watered down from an initial version -- instead of amending the Small Business Act, the provision would direct the agency and the Small Business Administration to enter into an agreement by Sept. 30 -- critics remain baffled by the provision's inclusion in an emergency bill, largely to fund military personnel and equipment needs in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Some are calling into question the timing and motivation of the provision's sponsor, Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Chairman Pete Domenici, R-N.M., who pushed and prodded until the issue was among a handful of final sticking points on the emergency appropriations measure.

The Energy Department is preparing to accept a bid in October for a contract to run maintenance and operations at Los Alamos National Laboratory, in Domenici's home state of New Mexico. Some of the agency's largest contractors, including potential bidders for the Los Alamos contract, have lobbied for the provision, according to people involved in the discussions.

Domenici is also chairman of the Senate Energy and Water Appropriations Subcommittee, and in that capacity he has been a longtime champion of the interests of his home-state nuclear laboratories at Sandia and Los Alamos, which are among the state's main economic engines.

Domenici did not include the language at the behest of the department's contractors, a spokesman said, but rather to target a provision of law authored by Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, that awards government contracts to minority and disadvantaged businesses without competitive bidding.

Alaska native corporations have received much of DOE's small business prime contracts, Domenici's office said, even though many are multi-billion dollar interests that often subcontract with larger businesses. Stevens said he did not object to the modified language, although some Alaska native firms were involved in lobbying against the initial Domenici provision.

But one person critical of Domenici's efforts said the provision has "a very limited tangential relationship to" Alaska native corporations and is really aimed at inoculating large contractors from competition.

Defense giant Lockheed Martin Corp. currently has the maintenance and operation contract at Sandia, and is putting together a bid for Los Alamos, which until 2003 was run by the University of California since the Manhattan Project in the 1940s. The university is also preparing to re-bid for the contract. Both have expressed support for the Domenici language.

Under current law, federal agencies are supposed to award at least 23 percent of prime contracts to small businesses. The Energy Department stands at about 4-5 percent, the worst rating of any Cabinet agency for small business contracts.

Domenici argues that tabulation should also factor in subcontracts with small businesses, which are often worth billions and would be considered prime contracts at other federal agencies. If subcontracts were also counted, the department would be at or near compliance, backers say.

"We need to change the way DOE measures small business participation so that it truly reflects the small business presence in the DOE complex," according to talking points distributed prior to Senate floor action last month by the Washington offices of CH2M HILL.

The firm is considered among the potential bidders for the Los Alamos contract and is already a large DOE player, with contracts to clean up nuclear facilities in Hanford, Wash., and Rocky Flats, Colo. The Rocky Flats contract includes $1.7 billion the firm paid to small businesses, which the SBA does not count, a CH2M spokesman said.

The company at one point employed Alex Flint, who is Domenici's staff director for the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, as a lobbyist. A panel spokeswoman said he had no involvement in the small business contracting issue.

 

 

May 4, 2005

Chugach Alaska likely to take profits crown

 

PROFITS: Key to firm's success, however, may figure less in its future.

 

By PAULA DOBBYN

Anchorage Daily News

 

Five years after emerging from bankruptcy reorganization, Chugach Alaska Corp. continues to make a strong recovery, recording $700 million in revenue for 2004 and $37.5 million in profit.

 

While some Native corporations are still crunching final numbers for their bottom line, it's likely that Chugach will retain its title as Alaska's most profitable Native-owned firm, beating Cook Inlet Region Inc., Arctic Slope, Alutiiq and Chenega, firms that have historically been big players or are up-and-coming powerhouses.

 

The Chugach success story centers largely on government contracting. Because of its status as a minority firm owned by Alaska Native shareholders, the company has won government work set aside for such businesses. It also competes and is awarded contracts in competitive bids, more so all the time, Barney Uhart, chief executive, said Tuesday.

 

Chugach operates eight subsidiaries, and most of their revenue comes from government contracting, Uhart said. The company works in military base maintenance, support services, construction, information technology, telecom and environmental services across the country and overseas.

 

Chugach's 2004 profit increased by nearly 30 percent from the prior year, which itself was a good one. The firm, with some 2,000 shareholders, reported $29.6 million in profit in 2003, more than double the amount from the year before.

 

Chugach is one of 13 regional Native corporations created under federal law more than three decades ago to settle Native land claims to almost all of Alaska. Anchorage-based Chugach's region encompasses Prince William Sound.

 

Not long ago, Chugach was in bankruptcy. Downturns in the fishing and timber industries, combined with the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill and other factors, sent Chugach into a downward spiral. In 1991, it recorded losses of more than $64 million.

 

Government contracting saved the company, Uhart said.

 

It has also allowed the company to pay dividends, provide scholarships and training, and employ shareholders, he said. The typical Chugach shareholder with 100 shares received $3,100 last year in dividends.

 

The company would like to pay higher dividends, Uhart said, but it's still recovering from the hard times of the past. Because of the bankruptcy, Chugach was unable to save money and set up a Permanent Fund-style investment account as some other Native corporations have done.

 

"For years, every dollar we made went back into the company or to creditors," he said.

 

The special status that Native corporations parlay to win government work, sometimes contracts in the billion-dollar range, has drawn scrutiny of late by unions, public watchdogs, national media and others. U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, who authored legislation to get these advantages for Native firms, recently said that changes may be looming that could ratchet back the perks.

 

In the current company newsletter, Chugach executives warned about the attacks on the Native-preference programs, which its chairwoman described as critical to Chugach.

 

"We are fully engaged in protecting our rights, so we encourage you to express to us your personal testimony on the impact this program has had on your life as an Alaska Native," wrote Sheri Buretta, chairwoman.

 

Congress' General Accountability Office is auditing some contracts Native corporations have won to see how they are being handled and whether they save or cost the federal government money.

 

"I welcome that," Uhart said. "They're going to dig deep and they're not going to find anything."

 

To the contrary, Congress will "find that there have been significant savings" by outsourcing work to Native companies, he predicted.

 

The contracts Chugach has won, including sole-source and competitive ones, are highly scrutinized before, during and after the work is done, he said. Everything is an open book, Uhart said.

 

While Chugach has achieved major growth in recent years, Uhart expects that to level off in the coming years. There's more competition for government work from Native corporations, other minority and disadvantaged businesses, and mainstream firms, he said.

 

The company is scoping other business ventures beyond government contracting, he said. If a gas pipeline is built to take North Slope natural gas to market, Chugach hopes to own a piece of the project or help build or maintain it. It's also eyeing opportunities in the nongovernmental, commercial marketplace to do what it does best: run things.

 

Lots of companies make specialized products, such as computer chips or belt buckles, but they don't want to deal with the everyday chores of keeping a business going.

 

"They don't want to cut the grass or make sure the toilets flush," Uhart said.

 

Chugach does.

 

Daily News reporter Paula Dobbyn can be reached at pdobbyn@adn.com or 257-4317.

 

 

May 10, 2005

Spirit Lake Tribe receives four EPA cleanup grants totaling $800,000

 

Denver -- Revitalization efforts on the Spirit Lake Tribe Indian Reservation in east-central North Dakota were given a big boost today as EPA awarded the tribe $800,000 in Brownfields cleanup grants.

 

The Spirit Lake Tribe Indian Reservation is among communities in 44 states that will share more than $75 million in EPA Brownfields grants to help revitalize former industrial and commercial sites, transforming them from eyesores into community assets.

The $800,000 in EPA cleanup grant funds will be used by the Spirit Lake Tribe to support community involvement activities, develop cleanup plans, and assess, remediate and dispose of asbestos and lead-based paint contamination at approximately 20 relocatable homes currently staged at 7591 35th Street in the Rolling Hills area; the Old Fort Totten Hospital at 111 Second Avenue; the Old Fort Totten Community Center; and the Saint Michaels Mission School.

Buildings that housed basic community services such as the old hospital, community center, school and tribal administration building are plagued with environmental problems, including asbestos, lead-based paint and mold. Tribal resources for addressing issues such as the potential health and safety hazards of brownfields are limited. Cleanup of the reservation’s brownfields sites will allow the tribe to productively reuse existing buildings and not divert limited resources for new construction.

 

"These grants give local partnerships the ability to address environmental issues at sites that are being transformed into vital assets," said EPA Assistant Regional Administrator Max Dodson. "In addition to improving the environment, they are investments in the future that help communities achieve important economic redevelopment and social goals."


Brownfields are sites where potentially harmful contaminants may be impeding revitalization. EPA's Brownfields program promotes redevelopment of America's estimated 450,000 abandoned and contaminated waste sites. Since its inception in 1995, the program has awarded 709 assessment grants totaling over $190 million, 189 revolving loan fund grants for cleanup worth more than $165 million, and $26.8 million for 150 direct cleanup grants.

In addition to grants being announced today, participants in the Brownfields program gain access to the expertise and resources from more than 20 federal agencies. Nationwide, there are four categories of grants being awarded with 218 applicants, including three tribal nations, selected to receive 302 grants totaling $75.9 million. These include:


• 172 assessment grants, worth $33.6 million, to assess and plan for eventual cleanup at one or more brownfield sites;
• 106 cleanup grants, totaling $19.3 million, for recipients to clean up brownfield sites they own;
• 13 revolving loan fund grants, totaling $20.8 million, for communities to use to make low-interest loans for the cleanup of brownfield sites, and
• 11 job-training grants, valued at $2.2 million, for environmental training of people who live in brownfield communities.

Brownfields projects have converted industrial waterfronts to river-front parks, landfills to golf courses, rail corridors to recreational trails, and gas station sites to housing. EPA's Brownfields assistance has led to more than $7 billion in public and private investment in cleanup and redevelopment, helped create more than 31,000 jobs, and resulted in the assessment of more than 5,100 properties.

For detailed fact sheets on the individual grant recipients, visit: http://www.epa.gov/swerosps/bf/archive/pilot_arch.htm

For more information on the Brownfields program: http://www.epa.gov/brownfields/
EPA is cosponsoring a National Brownfields Conference in Denver in November of 2005. For more information: http://www.brownfields2005.org/en/index.aspx

 

 

May 8, 2005

Healthier Hawaiians

 

A five-year program aims to reduce heart failure by outfitting clinics with portable ultrasound machines

 

By Helen Altonn
haltonn@starbulletin.com

Dr. Gerard Akaka smiled as he watched his heart pumping strongly on an ultrasound image.

Now when he gets short of breath at the gym he'll know it's not from a heart problem, he said.

"It looks good," confirmed Pearl Whittaker, senior sonographer at the Queen's Medical Center.

Akaka, medical director at the Queen Emma Clinic, volunteered for the test so Whittaker could train Val Heu, a medical assistant at the clinic, to do sonograms.

The clinic is one of five participating in a five-year program aimed at reducing heart failure and improving overall health in native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders.

The Queen's Medical Center and the University of Hawaii's John A. Burns School of Medicine are conducting the program under a $6 million National Institutes of Health grant.

"The overall goal is to reduce disparities in health for patients with heart failure," said Dr. Todd Seto, cardiologist and medical director for Queen's Center for Best Healthcare Practices.

"There's good evidence that even though we do a very good job of treating patients with heart failure, there are still some inequities," he said.

Compared to other ethnic groups in Hawaii, native Hawaiians have higher rates of hypertension, diabetes, chronic lung disease and heart disease -- all conditions associated with development of heart failure, he said.

"We're trying to find the causes of heart failure," Seto said. "It seems to many people that causes of heart failure among native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders seem to be different than others."

A lot of treatments for people with heart failure are based on other populations, he pointed out. "Maybe we're providing care that has to be fine-tuned for native Hawaiians. We need more information."

Seto is working on the new program with Dr. Marjorie K. Mau, professor and chairwoman of the medical school's Department of Native Hawaiian Health.

The department was formed with a $5 million contribution in 2002 from the Queen's Health Systems to work with Queen's and other organizations on health disparity issues in native Hawaiians.

Mau said the partnership's first goal is trying to improve access to health care in the participating clinics: Queen Emma Clinic, Kalihi-Palama Community Health Center, Kokua Kalihi Valley Community Health Center, Waianae Coast Comprehensive Health Center and Waimanalo Health Center.

Two people are being trained at each site as community-based research assistants to perform simple heart ultrasounds to detect heart failure, Mau said. Each clinic will be equipped with a small hand-carried ultrasound device called SonoSite.

Chuck Braden, Waimanalo Community Center executive director, said the ability to have an ultrasound exam done at a community center "is awesome." It will keep patients from having to go to a hospital for testing, he said.

The portable system "is a major enhancement in care for our patients," he said.

Even Queen Emma Clinic doesn't have access to ultrasound technology, noted May Vawer, clinical research nurse and program manager for the grant. When patients have to make an appointment at the hospital's Echocardiograph Lab, they fall through the cracks, she said.

Mau said, "The study is about seeing if it's possible to train people and build capacity in the communities (for heart diagnosis) even when the research project is completed."

It will help doctors make decisions about whether to refer patients for a full cardiac work-up or just change their diet and lifestyle, she said. "If it does work out, it will be something perhaps other outlying clinics would be able to do in the future."

Akaka, who was at the Waianae Coast Comprehensive Health Center from 1995 to 2002, said the portable ultrasound unit and trained workers will enable the clinics to distinguish signs of heart disease from asthma and other conditions. Once the problem is diagnosed, it can be treated appropriately, he said.

Now, he said, doctors at the community centers must base their decisions on physical exams and "give it our best shot."

Whittaker said the program will reach into the communities and provide education as well as screening tools to help people recognize congestive heart failure and steps they can take to improve their health.

Cultural disparities will be examined to see how differences might pose barriers to treatment and care, she said. "We need to tailor education to the community we're dealing with."

Seto said the main question to answer with the small ultrasound system is how well the heart is pumping.

"It is a very simple, economical, safe, reliable way to look for heart failure."

A self-management education program also will be designed as part of the project that's particularly relevant to native Hawaiians, he said.

"A lot of concepts are for heart disease but this project is for heart failure," he added, explaining the program will look at how people manage food, fluid and salt intake, if they exercise and know the signs and symptoms of heart failure before getting too sick.

The researchers also will look at families with a lot of heart failure to see why it's occurring, he said. "We think it is inherited."

Detailed family histories will be done primarily through Queen Emma Clinic to look for causes of heart failure.

Research also will be done with Queen's to test effectiveness of educating patients about the care for heart failure, Seto said.

He said the program overall will provide more information and improve health outcomes. "It will really help the state and native Hawaiians."

 

 

Posted on: Friday, May 6, 2005

Rare plant gains new lease on life

By Christie Wilson
Advertiser Neighbor Island Editor

WAILUKU, Maui — The endangered ma'o hau hele, a yellow hibiscus that is the Hawai'i state flower, is blooming again on Haleakala for the first time in about a decade.

The original population of rare shrubs growing in arid Pu'u-o-Kali above Kihei was wiped out in the mid-1990s by foraging axis deer. But some of their seeds remained, and some even managed to sprout after the plants disappeared, said research biologist Art Medeiros of the U.S. Geological Survey.

Some seeds from the site were sent to the National Tropical Botanical Garden on Kaua'i for safekeeping, while the seedlings were removed and placed in the care of Maui Nui Botanical Garden and Ho'olawa Farms on Maui.

Hunters helped reduce the population of deer in the area, and a fenced enclosure within an enclosure was erected to keep the animals out. Medeiros said the seeds and seedlings were returned to Pu'u-o-Kali and planted in April 2003.

Pu'u-o-Kali, at an elevation of 800 to 1,450 feet, is one of the hottest, driest spots on Maui, and Medeiros described it as little more than a "rock pile." The land is owned by the state Department of Hawaiian Home Lands. He said the new plants were watered over that first summer, then left to survive on their own.

And survive they did, producing their first blooms this week.

"It was a miracle," Medeiros said. "After backing off on watering, you really fear for the plants. But Hawaiian plants are tough."

The biologist said it is rare when a plant can be reintroduced at one of its former sites. "So often the habitat is destroyed so completely and they never have any place to put them," he said.

Ma'o hau hele, or Hibiscus brackenridgei, was first described in 1838 from a specimen collected on West Maui. It exists on O'ahu, Lana'i, Maui and the Big Island, and possibly Kaua'i, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. It used to grow on Moloka'i and Kaho'olawe, where it was recently reintroduced.

There are about 12 populations statewide containing probably fewer than 60 individuals, the Fish and Wildlife Service said. In addition to the Pu'u-o-Kali plants, the service reported two tiny clusters on the slopes of the West Maui Mountains.

Kula retiree Bob Mikell, 59, is one of the many Maui Restoration Group volunteers who have been working at Pu'u-o-Kali and a separate forest restoration project above 'Ulupalakua. He helped plant the hibiscus seedlings and water them. About twice a month, Mikell goes down to the remote site to monitor insect activity with research biologist Erica vonAllmen, who works with Medeiros.

"It's very interesting to see the old plants come back that were gone and to watch their struggle," he said. "Some of them make it and some don't."

Medeiros said that even though the extinction of the ma'o hau hele wouldn't have major environmental impacts, there are other reasons to save the rare plant.

"This is just a beautiful symbol of Hawai'i," he said. "It was picked as the state flower and it's a thing of beauty that has a right to a life of its own."

The Pu'u-o-Kali replanting won't be considered a success until the shrubs can reproduce without human help. In the meantime, volunteers monitor the enclosures to make sure the plants are safe.

Other partners in the restoration effort are the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands, the Fish and Wildlife Service, the state Department of Land and Natural Resources, the Goodfellow Brothers construction company, the Tri-Isle Resource Conservation and Development Council, and 'Olino, a newly formed nonprofit organization dedicated to the preservation of dryland forests in Maui Nui.

Reach Christie Wilson at (808) 244-4880 or cwilson@honoluluadvertiser.com.

 

 

Published: May 6th, 2005

Native Youth Olympics kick off at Sullivan Arena

 

ON THE BIG STAGE: Crowds have gotten so big that event is now held at Sullivan Arena.

 

By RON WILMOT
Anchorage Daily News

 

Alaska's Native Youth Olympics are growing.

 

Increasingly, coaches and athletes have spread word of the traditional Native tests of strength, balance, flexibility and endurance through school presentations across the state.

 

Some high schools have made it a varsity sport.

 

So it should hardly be surprising that NYO outgrew its traditional home at the UAA sports complex. This year, the event moved to Sullivan Arena to handle bigger crowds.

 

"At UAA, they were turning people away," said Courtney Sullivan, special programs manager with Cook Inlet Tribal Council, which sponsors NYO.

 

Sullivan has worked to form new NYO teams by sending instructional material to school districts across the state, and by finding and training new coaches.

 

It's worked. Elementary level students participate in the Junior Native Youth Olympics. Two years ago, JNYO featured 70 athletes; this January, there were more than 500.

 

Likewise, the NYO attracted 300 athletes from the seventh to 12th grade two years ago. But on Thursday, 480 athletes represented 68 teams from across the state -- from Anchorage and Palmer to as far away at Point Lay and Naknek.

 

Amber Glenzel, cultural heritage director for Kenaitze Indian Tribe, said the sport has grown on the Kenai Peninsula. In the past four years, she helped form a team in Ninilchik and one representing the Salamatof tribe, as well as junior teams in Nikiski and Kenai. She said the Kenai Peninsula Borough School District recently agreed to award a half-credit to NYO participants.

 

Glenzel said the friendly aspect of NYO appeals to many students. NYO events are competitive but not in a cutthroat way. Athletes help each other during the events, giving pointers and encouragement. Judges often stop and explain a better technique.

 

"I wanted to try something other than the normal high school sports like football, basketball or baseball," said Joe Leach, a senior at Kenai Alternative School who competes for the Kenaitze team.

 

At Valdez High, Native sports have become an official varsity sport. Rod Morrison, former athletic director at Valdez and now the principal at George H. Gilson Junior High in Valdez, said a group of parents and NYO coaches approached the school district about taking Native sports varsity several years ago.

 

Athletes must maintain a minimum GPA, just like those in other sports, and sign a pledge saying they will not drink or do drugs.

 

Now, students in Valdez can earn a letter for leaping up to kick a sealskin ball as well as for hitting jump shots in basketball.

 

Morrison noted that NYO teams are open to non-Native athletes too, which has helped students gain a better understanding of Alaska's Native heritage.

 

"At least half of our team is non-Native," Morrison said. "It's really opened their eyes."

NYO continues today with the stick pull, scissor broad jump, one-hand reach and two-foot high kick. It concludes Saturday with the foot pull, one-foot high kick and seal hop.

Daily News reporter Ron Wilmot can be reached at rwilmot@adn.com or 1-907-352-6712.

 

 

 

 

May 8, 2005

 

Green is clean for Ala Wai

 

A company is using floating platforms of akulikuli plants to clear up the smelly canal

 

By Diana Leone
dleone@starbulletin.com

An unassuming native Hawaiian plant is helping to clean the water in the Ala Wai Canal. Yesterday, a company called Natural Systems Inc. started anchoring floating platforms of akulikuli (Seseveum portulacastrum) in the canal.

The plants naturally absorb organic matter, which will help increase water clarity, decrease smell and provide a more balanced habitat, said Chad Durkin, Natural Systems project manager.

"The Ala Wai is used for canoeing and kayaking and everyone hates how dirty it is and how it stinks," said Eunice Ko, an Iolani School senior who was president of the school's Phytoremediation Club this year.

When Natural Systems completes its yearlong pilot project, "I would hope people would see results and support more projects like this," she said.

The scientific name for the process Natural Systems will employ in the canal is phytoremediation, which roughly translates as "fixing with plants."

The idea comes from nature itself. Before the Ala Wai was built in the 1920s, much of Waikiki was natural wetlands. Streams spread into shallow ponds and marshy areas before emptying into the sea, Durkin said. Plants and bacteria processed the organic material that washed down from the mountains, as well as stopping much of the silt from going into the ocean.

Natural Systems now is trying to condense the natural filtering process of a wetland into 4-and-a-half-foot-wide, 100-foot-long strips of akulikuli growing on floating platforms.

A total of 6,000 linear feet of these patented platforms will be installed along the mauka bank of the Ala Wai this month, between the Kapahulu canoe put-in and the Manoa-Palolo Drainage Canal.

The fleshy-leafed ground cover grows in the wild in Hawaii and is salt-tolerant. Its purple flowers are used to make leis.

Natural Systems has received a $500,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Biosystems Technology Program, which U.S. Sen. Dan Inouye helped establish.

Subcontractors include local company Marine Agritech and Ocean Arks, a Vermont-based ecological design firm.

In a smaller but similar project at the Hualalai Hotel on the Big Island, a pond on the golf course is kept clean enough that the hotel restaurant raises seafood there. That operation by Natural Systems' predecessor company Strategic Solutions was recently recognized by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

In the four months that Natural Systems has grown akulikuli platforms in tributaries of the canal on the Ala Wai Golf Course, they have increased visibility in that water to 6 feet from about 2 feet, Durkin said.

The plants should reduce the amount of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium in the canal. And the beneficial microorganisms that live on the plants' roots also help reduce pollution.

Sampling will be done once a month and after heavy rains to measure any changes in water quality, Durkin said.

Marine Agritech Vice President Wen Hao Sun has worked on several phytoremediation projects during his 10 years in Hawaii, including projects at the Honolulu Country Club in Salt Lake, Kawa Stream in Kaneohe and at Hickam Air Force Base.

People have responded enthusiastically to the beginnings of the Ala Wai project, he said. "They see fish in the water where they couldn't see any before and that's exciting," Sun said.

 

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