REPORT TITLE:
Watershed Protection


DESCRIPTION:
Establishes a watershed protection trust fund to fund public and
private watershed management projects benefiting water quality;
water quantity, and general watershed values within designated
watershed areas.  Establishes a review board to identify
watershed management areas.  Imposes a watershed protection tax.
Effective July 1, 2001.  (HB2835 HD1)

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                        2835
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES                H.B. NO.           H.D. 1
TWENTIETH LEGISLATURE, 2000                                
STATE OF HAWAII                                            
                                                             
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                   A  BILL  FOR  AN  ACT

RELATING TO WATERSHED PROTECTION.



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

 1      SECTION 1.  Chapter 174C, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
 2 amended by adding a new part to be appropriately designated and
 
 3 to read as follows:
 
 4                               "PART
 
 5                  WATERSHED PROTECTION TRUST FUND
 
 6      §174C-A  Findings and purpose.  The legislature finds that
 
 7 Hawaii's forests function as critical watersheds and are the
 
 8 primary source of fresh water for the islands.  Hawaii's native
 
 9 forests in particular have evolved into efficient ecosystems that
 
10 capture and store appreciably more water than any other natural
 
11 milieu.  The forested watersheds, both native and non-native, are
 
12 vital recharge areas for Hawaii's underground aquifers and a
 
13 dependable source of clean water for its streams.
 
14      The legislature finds that the relationship of Hawaii's
 
15 forested uplands to a dependable supply of clean fresh water was
 
16 recognized over a century ago.  During that period, public and
 
17 private interests recognized that years of extensive cattle
 
18 grazing and other land use practices contributed significantly to
 
19 the degradation of the forests.  Public and private concerns
 
20 about water supply and quality were the impetus for placing the
 

 
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 1 forests into reserves and undertaking massive reforestation at
 
 2 the turn of the century.  The legislature finds that since then,
 
 3 public and private investment in watershed protection and
 
 4 management has increasingly diminished and, once again, our
 
 5 forested watersheds are steadily degrading.  Moreover, over the
 
 6 last one hundred years, Hawaii has lost half of its native
 
 7 forests.
 
 8      The legislature recognizes that fresh water is not an
 
 9 infinite resource and that its high quality, quantity, and
 
10 sustainability are essentially linked to the existence of
 
11 forested watersheds.  The legislature finds that there are
 
12 presently approximately two million acres of major watershed
 
13 areas statewide.  The purpose of this chapter is to establish a
 
14 dedicated source of funds to protect, preserve, and enhance
 
15 important watershed areas as an essential and sustainable source
 
16 of fresh water.  The legislature finds that the protection,
 
17 preservation, and enhancement of important watershed areas and
 
18 any appropriations, expenditures, and levying of taxes for the
 
19 purpose of this chapter are in the public interest and of
 
20 statewide concern and vital to the future welfare of the State
 
21 and its people.
 
22      §174C-B  Definitions.  The following terms, wherever used or
 
23 referred to in this part, shall have the following meanings
 

 
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 1 unless a different meaning clearly appears from the context:
 
 2      "Board" means the watershed protection trust fund review
 
 3 board.
 
 4      "Trust fund" means the watershed protection trust fund.
 
 5      "Watershed management area" means a non-regulatory
 
 6 designation used to identify a watershed area, on public or
 
 7 private land, which contributes to domestic water supplies and
 
 8 where public or private management activities are needed to
 
 9 enhance, protect, and manage the vegetative cover and soil,
 
10 retard rapid runoff of storm flows, prevent soil erosion, and
 
11 improve infiltration of water though the soil to optimize or
 
12 recharge the surface and groundwater supplies.
 
13      §174C-C  Watershed protection trust fund established.(a)
 
14 There is established within the state treasury a watershed
 
15 protection trust fund to be administered by the commission on
 
16 water resource management to implement the purposes of this part.
 
17      (b)  The purpose of the trust fund is to fund public and
 
18 private watershed management projects and activities benefiting
 
19 water quality, water quantity, and general watershed values
 
20 within designated watershed management areas.  The trust fund
 
21 shall be used to fund:
 
22      (1)  Projects or activities that manage and protect
 
23           watershed management areas including watershed
 

 
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 1           maintenance and enhancement projects within watershed
 
 2           management areas, including erosion prevention and
 
 3           control, reforestation, alien species control and
 
 4           eradication, exclusion of stock, and control of feral
 
 5           animals;
 
 6      (2)  Water and watershed resources monitoring efforts,
 
 7           including stream and rainfall gauging, well and ground-
 
 8           water monitoring, and water quality and stream aquatic
 
 9           resources studies; and
 
10      (3)  Administrative costs. 
 
11      (c)  Appropriations, contributions, grants, and donations
 
12 from public and private sources and any other moneys designated
 
13 by law may be deposited into the trust fund. Interest accrued and
 
14 earnings on the investment of the assets of the trust fund shall
 
15 be credited to and become a part of the trust fund.  Any balance
 
16 in the trust fund at the end of a fiscal year shall be carried
 
17 forward to the next fiscal year.
 
18      (d)  In consultation with and after consideration of the
 
19 recommendations of the watershed protection trust fund review
 
20 board, the commission shall designate watershed management areas.
 
21 The commission shall approve watershed management projects and
 
22 activities to be funded by the trust fund based on
 
23 recommendations submitted to the commission by the board.
 

 
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 1      (e)  Pursuant to chapter 91, the commission shall adopt
 
 2 rules to carry out the purposes of this part.
 
 3      §174C-D  Watershed protection trust fund review board;
 
 4 established.(a)  There is established under the commission on
 
 5 water resource management a watershed protection trust fund
 
 6 review board.  The board shall consist of nine members who shall
 
 7 be appointed in the manner and serve for the term set forth in
 
 8 section 26-34.  Two members shall be persons possessing
 
 9 professional qualifications as evidenced by an academic degree in
 
10 hydrology or geology.  Two members shall be persons possessing
 
11 professional qualifications as evidenced by an academic degree in
 
12 fields such as biology, ecology, or forest management.  Each
 
13 county water agency shall appoint a member to the board.  The
 
14 chairperson of the board of land and natural resources or a
 
15 designated representative shall serve as an ex officio voting
 
16 member of the board.
 
17      (b)  The members of the board shall serve without
 
18 compensation but shall be reimbursed for expenses, including
 
19 travel expenses, necessary for performance of their duties.
 
20      §174C-E  Watershed protection trust fund review board;
 
21 powers and duties.  In addition to any other powers and duties
 
22 granted by this part, the board shall:
 

 
 
 
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 1      (1)  Identify and recommend to the commission watershed
 
 2           management areas;
 
 3      (2)  Develop and recommend to the commission criteria for
 
 4           eligible watershed management projects;
 
 5      (3)  Develop and recommend to the commission procedures and
 
 6           criteria for selecting eligible watershed management
 
 7           projects;
 
 8      (4)  Review watershed management project proposals for
 
 9           funding from the trust fund;
 
10      (5)  Recommend to the commission for approval watershed
 
11           management projects within watershed management areas
 
12           and the amount of funds from the trust fund to allocate
 
13           for such projects.
 
14      (6)  Analyze problems and issues encountered in the
 
15           equitable levy, assessment, and collection of the
 
16           watershed protection tax;
 
17      (7)  Identify water users that are not addressed under this
 
18           chapter and are not contributing to the watershed
 
19           protection trust fund; and
 
20      (8)  Make recommendations to improve the equitable
 
21           collection of the watershed protection tax pursuant to
 
22           chapter     ." 
 

 
 
 
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 1      SECTION 2.  The Hawaii Revised Statutes is amended by adding
 
 2 a new chapter to be appropriately designated and to read as
 
 3 follows:
 
 4                             "CHAPTER
 
 5                     WATERSHED PROTECTION TAX
 
 6      §   -1  Imposition of tax.(a)  There shall be levied,
 
 7 assessed, and collected a watershed protection tax on the use of
 
 8 all water from municipal and private water systems at the rate of
 
 9 five cents per one thousand gallons of water used.
 
10      (b)  The watershed protection tax on water from the
 
11 municipal water systems shall be collected by the county water
 
12 agency as part of its regular billing to its customers.  The
 
13 public utility commission shall collect the tax on water from
 
14 public utility companies whose water rates are regulated by the
 
15 public utility commission.
 
16      §   -2  Disposition of taxes.  All taxes collected under
 
17 this chapter shall be paid into the watershed protection trust
 
18 fund established in section 174C-C."
 
19      SECTION 3.  Pursuant to article VIII, section 5, of the
 
20 Hawaii state constitution, the State shall share in the cost
 
21 incurred by the county water agencies in the collection of the
 
22 watershed protection tax established under chapter   , Hawaii
 
23 Revised Statutes.
 

 
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 1      SECTION 4.  In codifying the new part added to chapter 174C,
 
 2 Hawaii Revised Statutes, by section 1 of this Act, the revisor of
 
 3 statutes shall substitute appropriate section numbers for the
 
 4 letters used in the designations of those new sections.
 
 5      SECTION 5.  This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2001.