Ka Paʻakai Analysis
The Ka Paʻakai analysis comes from the Hawaiʻi Supreme Court's decision in Ka Paʻakai O Ka ʻAina v. Land Use Commission (2000). It requires a state agency making a discretionary land-use decision to make specific findings protecting traditional and customary Native Hawaiian rights before it acts.
The court set out a three-part framework the agency must address: (1) identify the valued cultural, historical, or natural resources in the area and the extent to which traditional and customary Native Hawaiian rights are exercised there; (2) determine the extent to which the proposed action will affect those resources and rights; and (3) specify the feasible action the agency will take to reasonably protect those rights if they are found to exist.
The obligation runs to the AGENCY, not to the applicant directly — but it commonly attaches to discretionary approvals such as a Conservation District Use Permit, a decision on Hawaiian Home Lands, a county Special Management Area permit, or historic-property review at heightened sensitivity. Where it applies, it shapes the record the agency must build and the conditions it may impose.
A Ka Paʻakai obligation can add analysis, consultation, and time to a discretionary approval — and can lead to conditions on a permit. Knowing early whether a parcel's approval pathway is likely to carry one lets a project plan for the cultural-impact analysis rather than discover it mid-process.
A three-part analysis a Hawaiʻi agency must make before a discretionary land-use decision: identify the cultural/natural resources and rights exercised in the area, determine the action's effect on them, and specify feasible protections.
The state or county agency making the discretionary decision — not the applicant. It commonly attaches to Conservation District, SMA, Hawaiian Home Lands, and heightened §6E review pathways.
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.