Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2003

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Commerce, Consumer Protection and Housing, to which was referred H.B. No. 1453, H.D. 1, entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to amend the definition of "lot", "houselot", residential lot", and "residential houselot" in Chapter 516, Hawaii Revised Statutes (HRS), to limit its application to parcels of land zoned for residential use.

Testimony in support of this measure was submitted by Kamehameha Schools, the Small Landowners Association of Hawaii, and the Small Landowners of Oahu. Testimony in support of the intent of this measure was submitted by the Housing and Community Development Corporation of Hawaii.

Your Committee finds that Chapter 516, HRS, was never intended to allow mandatory conversion of agricultural land or mixed-use properties. However, in recent years, residential housing has been constructed in developments that are components of commercially-zoned, mixed-use projects or agriculturally-zoned projects.

Your Committee finds that this measure will help to protect leasehold agricultural and commercial lands from any Land Reform Act repercussions. For example, it will enable charitable trust landowners on those lands, with long-term leases on their non-residential properties, to continue to provide public services to Hawaii from their profits. The measure will protect those landowners from the Land Reform Act, which could forcibly break existing contractual leases and transfer rights and values to individuals for their private use and benefit, including the right to sell.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Commerce, Consumer Protection and Housing that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 1453, H.D. 1, and recommends that it pass Third Reading.