quiet title

In the wake of a closely watched kuleana land auction on Kauaʻi last week, one faction of the family caught up in the property dispute is calling for change. A core group of Rapozo family members is demanding new policies and protections for kuleana landowners. 

Remember when Mark Zuckerberg caused public outcry on Kauaʻi after seeking land titles from kuleana property owners? Yeah, Hawaiʻi lawmakers haven’t forgotten either. A bill before the State Legislature aims to change the way these property disputes are resolved. 

A bill before the State Legislature may make it harder for new landowners in Hawaiʻi to clear title to their piece of paradise. Proponents of the bill say it would help native Hawaiians preserve ancestral lands. HPR Reporter Kuʻuwehi Hiraishi has more.

For the first time in more than a century, land titles held by Hawaiʻi’s former sugar companies are being opened to challenge. At their peak in the 1930s, sugar plantations cultivated approximately 250,000 acres across the island chain. As plantations have sold off much of those holdings, attempts by new landowners to clear title are proving more challenging than imagined. HPR’s Kuʻuwehi Hiraishi reports.