HRS Chapter 6E
HRS Chapter 6E is Hawaiʻi's state historic-preservation law. It requires that projects be reviewed for their effect on historic properties — archaeological sites, historic buildings, and cultural resources — before ground is disturbed, through the State Historic Preservation Division (SHPD).
The core review provision is HRS §6E-42: before any agency approves a project that may affect historic property, it must give SHPD an opportunity to review and comment. In practice that means most permits touching undeveloped or historically significant land route through SHPD.
Where the review concludes a project may affect significant historic properties, SHPD can require further study — commonly an Archaeological Inventory Survey (AIS) — and, if sites are found, a mitigation or preservation plan. Chapter 6E also governs the treatment of inadvertent discoveries and of burial sites through separate provisions.
Chapter 6E is a state law and applies broadly to state and county actions; it is distinct from the federal Section 106 process under the National Historic Preservation Act, which applies where there is a federal permit, license, or funding.
If a parcel carries historic-property sensitivity, §6E review is a step to plan for early — it can add time and, where a survey is required, cost. Screening for it up front lets you sequence the archaeological work as a design input rather than a mid-construction surprise.
A permit or approval for a project that may affect historic property. The reviewing agency must give SHPD an opportunity to comment before approving; where significant properties may be affected, SHPD can require an inventory survey and mitigation.
No. Chapter 6E is Hawaiʻi's state historic-preservation law; Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act is the parallel federal process that applies when a project has a federal permit, license, or funding. A project can be subject to one, both, or neither.
This is a plain-language reference, not legal advice. KILO is a pre-development screening tool, not a system of record — confirm any determination with the agency of jurisdiction.