STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2854

                                   Honolulu, Hawaii
                                                     , 2000

                                   RE:  H.B. No. 3021
                                        H.D. 1
                                        S.D. 1




Honorable Norman Mizuguchi
President of the Senate
Twentieth State Legislature
Regular Session of 2000
State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Labor and Environment, to which was
referred H.B. No. 3021, H.D. 1, entitled: 

     "A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO GASOLINE,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this measure is to protect Hawaii's
groundwater and drinking water from contamination by methyl
tertiary-butyl ether (MBTE) by:

     (1)  Prohibiting the sale of gasoline containing MBTE for
          use in motor vehicles, effective July 1, 2001; and

     (2)  Establishing fines for violations and depositing these
          fines into the Environmental Response Revolving Fund.

     Testimony in support of the measure was received from the
Department of the Attorney General, Department of Health, and
City and County of Honolulu Board of Water Supply.  Chevron
Products Company provided comments on the measure.

     Your Committee finds that since 1979 when MBTE was added to
gasoline to boost octane levels and to provide cleaner burning
fuels, traces of MBTE have appeared in groundwater.  This is
cause for concern because MBTE has been reported to cause cancer
in laboratory animals.


 
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                                   STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2854
                                   Page 2


     Your Committee agrees that until the Environmental
Protection Agency has evaluated the available information to
estimate the potential cancer risk to humans whose drinking water
may contain traces of MBTE, the sale of gasoline containing MBTE
should be prohibited.

     Your Committee amended the measure to change the effective
date to July 1, 2000.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your
Committee on Labor and Environment that is attached to this
report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose
of H.B. No. 3021, H.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that
it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B.
No. 3021, H.D. 1, S.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on
Ways and Means.

                                   Respectfully submitted on
                                   behalf of the members of the
                                   Committee on Labor and
                                   Environment,



                                   ______________________________
                                   BOB NAKATA, Chair

 
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