STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1627

                                   Honolulu, Hawaii
                                                     , 1999

                                   RE:  S.C.R. No. 30
                                        S.D. 1




Honorable Norman Mizuguchi
President of the Senate
Twentieth State Legislature
Regular Session of 1999
State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Ways and Means, to which was referred
S.C.R. No. 30, S.D. 1, entitled:

     "SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION REQUESTING THE LEGISLATIVE
     REFERENCE BUREAU TO CONDUCT A POLICY AND ISSUE STUDY
     CONCERNING THE UNDERGROUNDING OF OVERHEAD UTILITY
     FACILITIES,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this Concurrent Resolution is to request the
Legislative Reference Bureau to conduct a study concerning the
undergrounding of overhead utility facilities.

     In particular, the Concurrent Resolution requests that the
Bureau conduct a policy and issue study on the following areas:

     (1)  The identification and compilation of a preliminary
          list of the statewide issues involved, including
          alternative policy choices, legal issues, and resource
          allocation;

     (2)  The compilation of a survey of federal, state, and
          major metropolitan area policies and statutes or
          ordinances concerning the placement of utility
          facilities; and


 
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     (3)  The identification of alternative processes for
          collecting information, and addressing the fundamental
          issues involved in evaluating whether undergrounding of
          existing and proposed overhead utility facilities
          should be required and if so under what conditions.

     Your Committee finds that there is increasing community
interest in the placement of existing and proposed overhead
utility facilities underground for a number of reasons, including
public health concerns related to electric and magnetic field
exposure; public safety concerns related to windstorms, debris,
and traffic collision damage risks; expectations of greater
systems reliability and reduced maintenance needs; and the desire
to preserve, protect, and enhance viewplanes and scenic
resources.  Your Committee finds that this study will assist
policymakers by providing the background information necessary to
make policy decisions on these and related issues.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your
Committee on Ways and Means that is attached to this report, your
Committee concurs with the intent and purpose of S.C.R. No. 30,
S.D. 1, and recommends its adoption.

                                 Respectfully submitted on behalf
                                 of the members of the Committee
                                 on Ways and Means,



                                 ________________________________
                                 CAROL FUKUNAGA, Co-Chair



                                 ________________________________
                                 ANDREW LEVIN, Co-Chair

 
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