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WHEREAS, the Hawai`i 2011-2015 American Community Survey estimates that 33.4% <br /> of persons in the Pahoa census tract are estimated to be living below the federal poverty level in <br /> comparison to the Hilo (Kahuku-Kaumana) census tract where 8.3% of persons are living below <br /> the poverty level; and <br /> WHEREAS, Section 2.1, Table 2-2, of the Hawai`i County General Plan 2005, as <br /> amended, states that the estimated resident population in Puna as of 2015 will be 49,801, and that <br /> Puna is now, and will continue to be, the most populous area of Hawai`i County through 2020; <br /> and <br /> WHEREAS, according to the April 12, 2017 budget presentation by Hawai`i County <br /> Police Chief Paul Ferreira, the district of Puna is being served by the fewest police officers per <br /> capita in Hawai`i County; and <br /> II <br /> WHEREAS, substandard roads in Puna cause many residents to drive for more than an <br /> hour to reach the nearest hospital; and <br /> WHEREAS, the lack of any wastewater treatment facilities in Puna is the primary <br /> challenge to the construction of a hospital in the area; and <br /> WHEREAS, the Council fmds that the access to clean drinking water for many Puna <br /> residents does not meet the standards established by the United Nations human right to water and <br /> sanitation in Resolution 64/292, in part because many residents must drive up to 40 minutes on <br /> unpaved substandard roads to access and haul drinking water from spigots; and <br /> WHEREAS, disparity in Puna is prevalent given that access to basic infrastructure and <br /> services such as limited police services, substandard roads, a lengthy distance to the nearest <br /> hospital, and lack of reasonable accessibility to clean water and sanitation, all endanger the <br /> health and well-being of residents as well as limit economic growth, creating an inequitable <br /> experience to that of neighboring districts of Hawai`i County, despite having a comparable <br /> population size and paying comparable taxes; now, therefore, <br /> BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE COUNTY OF HAWAII <br /> that it acknowledges the September 28, 2000, ruling establishing that the County of Hawai`i and <br /> the Hawai`i Department of Transportation have historically discriminated against low income <br /> and Native Hawaiian communities in Puna and Ka`u. <br /> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Council of the County of Hawai`i herein <br /> commits to addressing disparity and preventing discrimination against low income,Native <br /> Hawaiian, and other disadvantaged populations of Hawai`i County, particularly in Puna and <br /> Ka`u. <br /> 2 <br />