The Circle Is Widening: A Senate proposal and OHA Join the Fight to Protect Haleakalā

Two significant developments this week show that opposition to the U.S. Air Force's proposed AMOS STAR telescope facility is no longer just a Maui community story. It has become a statewide democratic reckoning.

A Proposed State Senate Bill Calls on the Air Force to Stop

On March 5, 2026, a proposed Senate Resolution was sent to our team urging the U.S. Air Force to cease all development of the AMOS STAR facility atop Haleakalā.

The proposed resolution pulls no punches. It names the project's real character: a military space-tracking system that extends well beyond scientific research, situated on sacred conservation land within Haleakalā's State Conservation District. It acknowledges the cumulative damage of decades of telescope and military infrastructure on the summit. And it calls out the Air Force directly for failing to adequately incorporate community feedback and for producing an Environmental Impact Statement that falls short.

This matters because it adds the weight of the State Legislature to a verdict that is already overwhelming: the Maui County Council passed Resolution 24-103 unanimously opposing the project. 89% of public comments submitted oppose it. Hundreds packed hearings in Kihei and Pukalani — so many that people ran out of time to testify and were turned away.

If the proposed bill passes that verdict now has a statewide voice.

OHA Trustees Hear the Case — and Move Toward Action

Representatives from Protect Haleakalā, Kākoʻo Haleakalā, and Kilakila ʻO Haleakalā presented directly to the Office of Hawaiian Affairs Board of Trustees. The OHA briefing transcript documents what was shared: the sacred geography of Haleakalā as a living ancestral system from sea to summit; the 133-year arc of Hawaiian resistance to illegal overthrow and ongoing dispossession; and the specific, documented failures of the AMOS STAR environmental review process.

Gallery of Presentation Slides

The presenters, Hina Kneubuhl and Tiare Lawrence were clear about what they needed: OHA to submit formal agency comments before the March 16th comment period closes, and OHA to stand publicly with the lāhui.

The board's response was substantive. Trustees noted that OHA's compliance staff are already working on agency comments. One trustee moved to recommend that OHA's administration seek support from the Native Hawaiian Legal Corporation on behalf of the Maui groups — a significant signal that legal pathways are being actively considered.

Trustee confirmed the timeline plainly: "It closes on March sixteenth, so time is of the essence."

What This Means

The Air Force has worked hard to frame opposition to AMOS STAR as a local, parochial concern — one that can be managed through procedurally adequate consultation and a well-produced EIS. These two developments make that framing untenable.

Consider this:

• →The Maui County Council on record in opposition (Resolution 24-103)
• →The Maui County has a hearing scheduled Friday 6 March 2026 to reinforce Resolution 24-103.
• →The Proposed Hawaii State Legislature Bill urging the Air Force to cease the project
• →OHA moving toward formal agency opposition and potential legal support
• →89% of all public comments opposing the project in 2024
• →99% of all verbal testimony opposing the project in 2026, hundreds of community voices documented in Kihei and Pukalani hearings — many of whom were denied time to speak

This is not a fringe opposition. This is a statewide democratic verdict.

The Comment Period Closes March 16th — Submit Yours Now

The Draft Environmental Impact Statement public comment period closes in days. Every comment submitted becomes part of the formal administrative record — material the Air Force must respond to, and that any future legal challenge can draw upon.

If you have not yet submitted a comment, now is the time. You can review the Draft EIS and submit comments through the Air Force's formal process.

"For generations, our kupuna have protected Haleakalā, not because it was easy, but because it was sacred. The question before us is simple: Will we protect Haleakalā now, or explain to our children why we didn’t?"

Haleakalā is not empty land waiting for development. The summit is a sacred place that belongs to the future for all of us, not just the military.

Mahalo for standing with us.