Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2002

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Water and Land Use, to which was referred H.B. No. 2536 entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this bill is to allow the Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) to continue to transfer certain management and jurisdictional directives relating to aquatic resources from specific statutes to administrative rules. This bill makes permanent the amendments and repeals of certain fishing laws that were subject to the adoption of administrative rules to replace these statutes.

DLNR testified in support of this bill.

Prior to the enactment of Act 85, Session Laws of Hawaii 1999, any changes to Hawaii's fishing laws could only take place when the Legislature was in session. As a result, sound management techniques were often implemented in an untimely fashion, significantly limiting their effectiveness. Moreover, public hearings to amend these fishing laws were generally held in Honolulu. As a result, statewide public input was limited.

Act 85 eliminated this time-consuming and cumbersome process. Currently, DLNR can schedule statewide public hearings throughout the year to receive public input on changes to its administrative rules.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Water and Land Use that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 2536 and recommends that it pass Second Reading and be referred to the Committee on Finance.