REPORT TITLE:
Agricultural lands


DESCRIPTION:
Creates the State of Hawaii important agricultural lands
commission comprising thirteen members to identify and map prime
agricultural lands, unique lands, and other important
agricultural lands.  (HB179 HD1)

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                        179
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES                H.B. NO.           H.D. 1
TWENTIETH LEGISLATURE, 1999                                
STATE OF HAWAII                                            
                                                             
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                   A  BILL  FOR  AN  ACT

RELATING TO AGRICULTURAL LANDS.



BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

 1      SECTION 1.  The legislature finds that article XI, section
 
 2 3, of the Hawaii State Constitution requires the State to
 
 3 conserve and protect agricultural lands, promote diversified
 
 4 agriculture, increase agricultural self-sufficiency, and assure
 
 5 the availability of agriculturally suitable lands.  To achieve
 
 6 these objectives, the constitution directed the legislature to
 
 7 provide standards and criteria.
 
 8      The legislature further finds that in 1986, the State of
 
 9 Hawaii land evaluation and site assessment (LESA) commission
 
10 submitted its final report to the legislature in accordance with
 
11 Act 273, Session Laws of Hawaii 1983.  The report presented the
 
12 commission's findings, conclusions, and recommendations
 
13 concerning:
 
14      (1)  The development of the initial inventory of the State's
 
15           "important agricultural lands" (IAL);
 
16      (2)  A classification system to identify these lands; and 
 
17      (3)  A process to review requests for a change in
 
18           designation of specific parcels from IAL to urban or to
 
19           other uses.
 

 
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 1      The report also provided an implementation framework and
 
 2 recommended amendments to existing state law to execute the
 
 3 proposed LESA system.
 
 4      Since 1986, many bills have been introduced that attempted
 
 5 to implement the LESA system.  For various reasons, none of these
 
 6 bills has succeeded in meeting all the needs and objectives of
 
 7 the interested parties that are affected by these land use bills.
 
 8      Additionally, since the completion of the LESA commission
 
 9 report in 1986, the profile of Hawaii's agricultural lands has
 
10 changed dramatically.  Such events include:
 
11      (1)  The dramatic industry shift from a plantation-type
 
12           system with an emphasis on sugarcane production to the
 
13           current focus on small scale and diversified
 
14           agriculture; and
 
15      (2)  Hawaii's economic decline through the 1990s.
 
16      In the face of changing times and circumstances, the
 
17 legislature finds that there is a real need to identify important
 
18 agricultural lands and provide a mechanism by which to fulfill
 
19 the intent and purpose of article XI, section 3, of the Hawaii
 
20 State Constitution, which seeks to conserve and protect
 
21 agricultural lands.
 
22      The purpose of this Act is to create a new commission to:
 
23      (1)  Study and recommend the best way to identify important
 
24           agricultural lands;
 

 
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 1      (2)  Address the intent of article XI, section 3, of the
 
 2           Hawaii State Constitution, to conserve and protect
 
 3           agricultural lands and promote diversified agriculture,
 
 4           within the context of Hawaii's changing circumstances;
 
 5           and 
 
 6      (3)  Examine related land use issues.
 
 7      SECTION 2.  State of Hawaii important agricultural lands
 
 8 commission.  (a)  Establishment and membership.  There is
 
 9 established, within the office of the legislative reference
 
10 bureau for administrative purposes, the State of Hawaii important
 
11 agricultural lands commission comprised of thirteen voting
 
12 members as follows:
 
13      (1)  Four shall consist of the chairperson of the board of
 
14           agriculture, the chairperson of the board of land and
 
15           natural resources, the director of the office of
 
16           planning under the department of business, economic
 
17           development, and tourism, and the director of the
 
18           college of tropical agriculture and human resources; or
 
19           their designated representatives;
 
20      (2)  Four shall consist of the planning directors of each of
 
21           the counties; or their designated representatives;
 
22      (3)  Three shall be appointed by the governor, one member to
 
23           be selected from each of the following:
 

 
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 1           (A)  Land use research foundation;
 
 2           (B)  Office of Hawaiian affairs; and
 
 3           (C)  The Hawaii Farm Bureau Federation;
 
 4      (4)  One member shall represent agricultural workers.  The
 
 5           president of the senate and the speaker of the house of
 
 6           representatives shall each nominate two individuals,
 
 7           and the governor shall appoint one individual from this
 
 8           nomination list; and
 
 9      (5)  One member shall represent a conservation organization.
 
10           The president of the senate and the speaker of the
 
11           house of representatives shall each nominate two
 
12           individuals, and the governor shall appoint one
 
13           individual from this nomination list.
 
14      The chairperson of the board of agriculture shall be the
 
15 chairperson of the commission.  Any vacancy on the commission
 
16 shall be filled in the same manner in which the original position
 
17 was filled.  The members shall receive no compensation for their
 
18 services, but shall be reimbursed for travel expenses incurred in
 
19 the performance of their duties.
 
20      (b)  Purpose and operation.  The commission shall:
 
21      (1)  Identify and prepare maps of important agricultural
 
22           lands, unique lands, and other important agricultural
 
23           lands of the State based on the classification system
 
24           in section 3; and
 

 
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 1      (2)  Recommend incentives for landowners to keep their lands
 
 2           in agricultural production.  Such incentives may
 
 3           include but not be limited to tax exemptions and
 
 4           agricultural easements.
 
 5      The commission shall exclude from its examination all lands
 
 6 that, as of the effective date of this Act, are:
 
 7      (1)  Classified in the State urban land use district;
 
 8      (2)  Designated for urban use in an adopted county general
 
 9           plan, development plan, or community plan; or
 
10      (3)  Zoned by each county for urban uses.
 
11      (c)  Public participation.  The commission shall invite the
 
12 participation of the general public, particularly persons having
 
13 an interest in agricultural lands located in the State.  Public
 
14 information meetings and hearings may be held as frequently as
 
15 deemed necessary and feasible prior to submission of the
 
16 commission's report.
 
17      SECTION 3.  (a)  The commission shall identify important
 
18 agricultural lands, unique lands, and other important
 
19 agricultural lands based on the agricultural lands of importance
 
20 to the State of Hawaii (ALISH) classification system which was
 
21 adopted by the board of agriculture in 1977.
 
22      (b)  The agricultural lands of importance to the State of
 
23 Hawaii classification system shall generally conform to the
 

 
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 1 classification system of the United States Department of
 
 2 Agriculture under 7 Code of Federal Regulations Part 657.5.  The
 
 3 agricultural lands of importance to the State of Hawaii shall
 
 4 consist of three classes of important agricultural land: prime,
 
 5 unique, and other important agricultural lands.  These classes
 
 6 and the criteria for classification are described below; provided
 
 7 that the technical criteria for the classification of prime
 
 8 agricultural land in 7 Code of Federal Regulations Part 657.5
 
 9 shall be adopted herein by reference:
 
10      (1)  Prime agricultural land.
 
11           These lands are defined as lands with the best
 
12           combination of physical and chemical characteristics
 
13           for the production of food, feed, forage, fiber, and
 
14           oilseed crops, and are also available for these uses
 
15           (the lands are not urban built-up lands or a water
 
16           body).  These lands have the soil quality, growing
 
17           season, and moisture supply needed to produce sustained
 
18           high yields of crops with the least inputs when treated
 
19           and managed, including water management, according to
 
20           accepted farming methods.  Prime agricultural lands
 
21           shall meet the following general criteria:
 
22           (A)  The soils have an adequate and dependable moisture
 
23                supply and good water storage capacity;
 

 
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 1           (B)  The soils have a favorable mean annual temperature
 
 2                and growing season;
 
 3           (C)  The soils have acceptable levels of acidity or
 
 4                alkalinity for vigorous plant growth;
 
 5           (D)  The soils are permeable to water and air;
 
 6           (E)  The soils have acceptable salt and sodium content
 
 7                and are otherwise not limiting in the root zone;
 
 8           (F)  The soils are not flooded frequently during the
 
 9                growing season;
 
10           (G)  The soils are not excessively erodible;
 
11           (H)  The soils are not saturated with water for long
 
12                periods and do not have drainage problems;
 
13           (I)  The soils have less than ten per cent of the
 
14                surface layer consisting of rock fragments coarser
 
15                than three inches; and
 
16           (J)  The soils must not be thixotropic, that is, soils
 
17                that change to a semi-solid state when compacted
 
18                repeatedly, and have mean annual temperatures
 
19                between 47 and 59 degrees Fahrenheit;
 
20      (2)  Unique agricultural land.
 
21           These lands are defined as lands that do not meet the
 
22           prime agricultural land criteria that are used for the
 
23           production of specific high-value crops of significance
 

 
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 1           to the State or local economy. Unique high-value crops
 
 2           may include but not be limited to coffee, macadamia
 
 3           nuts, or other tree and bush crops, taro, rice,
 
 4           watercress, nonirrigated pineapple, and other fruits
 
 5           and vegetables.  These lands have the special
 
 6           combination of physical, soil, climatic, or other
 
 7           conditions, such as nearness to market, that favor the
 
 8           production of a specific crop of high quality and/or
 
 9           high yield when the land is treated and managed
 
10           according to accepted farming methods.  Unique lands
 
11           shall meet the following criteria:
 
12           (A)  The land is used for a specific high-value food or
 
13                fiber crop;
 
14           (B)  There is an adequate moisture supply for the
 
15                specific crop; and
 
16           (C)  The land combines factors of soil quality, growing
 
17                season, temperature, humidity, air drainage,
 
18                elevation, aspect, or other conditions, such as
 
19                nearness to market, that favor the growth of a
 
20                specific food or fiber crop;
 
21           and
 
22      (3)  Other important agricultural land.
 

 
 
 
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 1           These lands are defined as lands that do not meet the
 
 2           criteria for prime or unique agricultural land that are
 
 3           of statewide or local importance for the production of
 
 4           food, feed, fiber, forage, and oilseed crops.  The
 
 5           lands in this class are important to agriculture in
 
 6           Hawaii, yet exhibit properties, such as seasonal
 
 7           wetness, erodibility, limited rooting zone, slope,
 
 8           flooding, or inadequate moisture supply, that exclude
 
 9           them from the prime or unique classifications.  These
 
10           lands can be farmed satisfactorily by providing
 
11           irrigation, applying greater inputs of fertilizer and
 
12           other soil amendments, drainage improvement, erosion
 
13           control practices or flood protection, and produce fair
 
14           to good crop yields when managed properly.  Other
 
15           important agricultural lands shall meet one or more of
 
16           the following criteria:
 
17           (A)  Lands that would qualify as prime agricultural
 
18                land; provided the lands have an adequate moisture
 
19                supply;
 
20           (B)  Lands which have similar characteristics and
 
21                properties as unique agricultural land except that
 
22                the land is not currently in use for the
 
23                production of a unique crop;
 

 
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 1           (C)  Lands with slopes less than twenty per cent, are
 
 2                presently in crop or have cropping potential, are
 
 3                not classified as prime or unique agricultural
 
 4                land, and have soils with an adequate moisture
 
 5                supply;
 
 6           (D)  Lands with slopes less than thirty-five per cent,
 
 7                are presently used for grazing or have grazing
 
 8                potential, are not classified as prime or unique
 
 9                agricultural land, and have soils with:
 
10                (i)  A moisture regime in which the available
 
11                     water capacity is sufficient to produce fair
 
12                     to good forage yields; and
 
13               (ii)  Less than ten per cent rock outcrops and less
 
14                     than ten per cent coarse fragments coarser
 
15                     than three inches in the surface layer;
 
16           (E)  Lands with thin organic soils underlain by a lava
 
17                with adequate moisture supply and warm soil
 
18                temperatures; and
 
19           (F)  Lands in use for intensive animal husbandry.
 
20      (c)  Lands composed predominantly of soil survey map units
 
21 listed by the United States Department of Agriculture Natural
 
22 Resources Conservation Service, Honolulu, Hawaii as meeting the
 
23 soil requirements for national prime farm land shall be
 
24 classified as prime agricultural land.
 

 
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 1      SECTION 4.  Prior to the convening of the regular session of
 
 2 2000, the commission shall submit to the legislature a report of
 
 3 its findings and recommendations.  The report shall include but
 
 4 not be limited to:
 
 5      (1)  A set of maps that identifies important agricultural
 
 6           lands (according to its tax map key plat, if feasible);
 
 7      (2)  Recommended incentives for landowners to keep their
 
 8           lands in agricultural production; and
 
 9      (3)  Proposed relevant legislation.
 
10      The commission shall cease to exist on June 30, 2000.
 
11      SECTION 5.  There is appropriated out of the general
 
12 revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $         or so much
 
13 thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 1999-2000 for the
 
14 commission to carry out the purposes of this Act; provided that
 
15 funds shall also be used for geographic information system
 
16 improvements and any specialized spatial analysis necessary to
 
17 meet the mapping and analytical needs of the commission,
 
18 including equipment and data acquisition, conversion, and
 
19 interpretation.
 
20      SECTION 6.  The sum appropriated shall be expended by the
 
21 legislative reference bureau for the purposes of this Act.
 
22      SECTION 7.  This Act shall take effect upon its approval;
 
23 except that section 5 shall take effect on July 1, 1999.