The State of Hawaiʻi Office of the Auditor published a report following up on the recommendations of the Follow-up Audit of the Management of Mauna Kea and the Mauna Kea Science Reserve. The July 2017 report found that the University of Hawaiʻi and the Department of Land and Natural Resources had partially implemented and had made progress in completing four of the eight recommendations from the auditorʻs 2014 report.
UH anticipates that one of the recommendations not yet implemented (to approve conditions and a fee schedule for commercial tour operators) will be approved concurrently with the final administrative rules governing public and commercial activities on Maunakea. UH completed drafting these administrative rules and was prepared to begin the necessary public hearings. However, as the report notes, “…at the request of the governor, who must authorize the initiation of public hearings for the draft rules, UH has temporarily halted the process of finalizing such rules.”
The report also stated that of the other 2014 recommendations not yet implemented, one is no longer applicable, one is still pending due to lease renegotiations and one is in dispute.
Read the full 2017 report. (PDF)
Read the full 2014 report. (PDF)
