STAND. COM. REP. NO. 367-04
Honolulu, Hawaii
, 2004
RE: H.B. No. 1953
H.D. 1
Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say
Speaker, House of Representatives
Twenty-Second State Legislature
Regular Session of 2004
State of Hawaii
Sir:
Your Committee on Economic Development and Business Concerns, to which was referred H.B. No. 1953 entitled:
"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO COASTAL ZONE MANAGEMENT,"
begs leave to report as follows:
The purpose of this bill is to protect Hawaii's coastal resources by:
(1) Providing definitions of "seawall" and "groin";
(2) Increasing shoreline setbacks (setbacks) from 40 to 100 feet inland from the shoreline; and
(3) Banning the construction of new seawalls and groins.
The Hawaii Audubon Society and the Hawaii Chapter of the Sierra Club submitted testimony in support of this measure. Verizon Hawaii supported this measure with amendments. The Department of Transportation (DOT), Waikiki Improvement Association, Land Use Research Foundation of Hawaii, and Kamehameha Schools opposed this measure. The Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism and Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) offered comments.
Your Committee respectfully requests your Committee on Water, Land Use, and Hawaiian Affairs to look into exempting the Natural Energy Laboratory of Hawaii Authority from this measure.
Your Committee has amended this bill by:
(1) Establishing setbacks at a distance inland from the shoreline equal to 50 times the annual erosion rate for the area except for setbacks for the purposes of DOT and public utilities, since there is no definite rate which applies to all areas; and
(2) Banning the new construction of seawalls and groins except for variances granted by DOT or DLNR.
As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Economic Development and Business Concerns that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 1953, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 1953, H.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Water, Land Use, and Hawaiian Affairs.
Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Economic Development and Business Concerns,
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____________________________ BRIAN SCHATZ, Chair |
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