Key senator, Lorraine Inouye, wants a woman to serve on state Land Board

A state senator involved in the approval of members of the state’s Board of Land and Natural Resources wants a woman to serve on the board.

Terms expired Wednesday for three of the seven board members, and two of those positions are now open.

Aside from Suzanne Case, who chairs the BLNR and the Department of Land and Natural Resources, the board consists entirely of men, and state Sen. Lorraine Inouye (D, Kaupulehu-Waimea-North Hilo) said she wants a woman to fill one of the seats.

Samuel Gon, the Oahu member of the board, and James Gomes, its Maui member, are vacating their spots.

“I’d like to see a woman on the board, and I did express that earlier to Chair Case some time ago,” Inouye said. “For the Maui one, why don’t we see if we can get a woman?”

The governor picks nominees for the vacant board seats, but those nominees have to be confirmed by the state Senate. Inouye said BLNR nominees have to go through the Senate Committee on Water and Land, which she chairs.

Inouye said she’s asked colleagues in Maui to recruit candidates and said there has been interest, but she’s not sure who Gov. David Ige has nominated.

“I haven’t spoken with the administration to see how many they have and who are they,” she said. “I feel like it’s pretty much in the governor’s hands and the DLNR chair until … it comes to my committee.”

A spokeswoman for the governor did not disclose any potential candidates for the board last week.

“The open BLNR seat for Maui has been at the top of many people’s minds,” state Sen. Lynn DeCoite (D, Molokai-Lanai-East Maui) said in a statement. “I would love to see a woman fill this seat, however I also believe the person should be qualified; they need to understand the Public Trust Doctrine, understand water rights and usage, and should not have any conflicts of interest.“

Because the legislative session is over, Ige could appoint interim board members until the next regular session.

In addition to Gon and Gomes, Vernon Char is the third member whose term expired Wednesday.

Gov. David Ige nominated Char to another term that will end June 30, 2025, and he was confirmed by the Senate in April. He had been on the board as an at-large member since October 2019 to finish out a vacated term.

The replacements for Gomes and Gon have not been selected.

Gomes has been on the board since 2013 and can no longer serve. State law doesn’t allow board members to serve more than two consecutive four-year terms or eight consecutive years.

Gov. David Ige had nominated Gon for another term during this year’s legislative session but later withdrew his nomination after Inouye declined to give Gon’s nomination a hearing. Inouye had anticipated a debate over Gon’s reappointment.

Gon had received support for his previous nomination to the board because of his knowledge in both environmental stewardship and Native Hawaiian rights and culture. He attributed Inouye’s hesitation to hold a hearing to opponents of the controversial Thirty Meter Telescope project on Mauna Kea who did not want him reappointed.

Gon and Gomes had shown support for the construction of the Thirty Meter Telescope on Mauna Kea, and Gon received some backlash for his participation in the approval of the Na Pua Makani wind farm, a project in Kahuku also contested by many Native Hawaiians and their supporters.

Gon is eligible to fill his seat as a “holdover” until a replacement is appointed, but it’s unclear whether and how long he would be a temporary fill-in.

Ige announced in May that he was looking for nominations for the two vacancies, but has not provided an update on his search.