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r 1 f +q~~ e~..' 93- .Ya ~ a ~ ~ +]ua C~.i~icE ~EVE+C ~ y )fl l'1 aC R u ~ ~ 7 IR+I L• 1 i 1 L ~ia 'OU"*c E evRCes so n"c am° °ceaN R~. . ~ C°NSERVa00N ae'C RE$OUFJE$ cNFpq[c4EVi STATE OF HAWAII r'!" ~ `°""E""""~ Cw,~li ~,.r.+.,~. RoRESrev.NOwi~ouEE DEPARTMENT OF LAND AND NATURAL RESOURCES ~~sr°R;c PAESERVa.~oN .amc orois~oN mR"s P.O. BOX 621 .va,ERRESOUace",aNace~+En- HONOLULU, HAWAII 96809 October 13, 1999 Ref LD-DSM The Honorable Stephen Yamashiro Mayor County of Hawaii 25 Aupuni Street, Room 215 Hilq Hawaii 96720 Dear Mayor Yamashiro: Subject: Legal Interpretation of the Definition of "Public Highway" under Sectio? 264-1(a), Hawaii Revised Statutes (HRS) This letter provides you and your staff with an update on the State's position with regard to paper roads under the definition of "public highways" pursuant to §264-1(a), HRS. In the past, the Department considered paper roads unencumbered State lands under the jurisdiction of the Board of Land and Natural Resources (BLNR). The Department has recently amended its position on paper roads after consulting with the Department of Attorney General (DAG). We now are of the view that homestead paper roads are public highways which have been laid out by the government and fall under §264-I(a), HRS. In their opinion of July 21, 1999 (attached), the DAG concluded that "a paper road which has been delineated or laid out on a subdivision map and originally created by either the State or a county, is a public highway, and, in general, is owned by the county in which the highway lies." Thus, in most instances, the homestead paper road would be a county public highway. The DAG went on to advise us that the BLNR should no longer grant easements over county public highways, including paper roads, and that applicants should be referred to the respective county for appropriate action. Consequently, we would like to inform you that the BLNR will ?o longer issue easements, deeds or other conveyance instruments for county paper roads. We may, however, make an exception where the issuance of a quitclaim deed by the BLNR is specifically requested by the county and required to clear title for the conveyance of the road from the county to a private party. Accordingly, proceeds from the sale of abandoned county public highways may be retained by the county pursuant to §264-3, HRS.