STAND. COM. REP. NO. 407-04
Honolulu, Hawaii
, 2004
RE: H.B. No. 2285
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 Committees on Agriculture and Water, Land Use, and Hawaiian Affairs, to which was referred H.B. No. 2285 entitled:
"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO AGRICULTURE,"
beg leave to report as follows:
The purpose of this bill is to preserve agricultural activities and a lifestyle that benefits the Waialua area of Oahu by:
(1) Requiring the Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) to enter into land exchange negotiations with private landowners of land in Waialua to obtain title to agricultural lands in the area;
(2) Transferring control and title to obtained lands from DLNR to the Agribusiness Development Corporation (ADC); and
(3) Establishing an agricultural region subcommittee (Subcommittee) for the area to advise corporations on management of the lands.
The Hawaii Agriculture Research Center, HPC Foods, Ltd., The North Shore Country Market, and numerous concerned individuals submitted testimony in support of this measure. DLNR, Kamehameha Schools, and Life of the Land opposed this measure. The Agribusiness Development Corporation offered comments.
Your Committees have amended this bill by:
(1) Clarifying that the purpose of the bill is to ensure that certain lands, except those held by a trust for educational purposes, remain available and are managed according to the State's responsibility to agricultural lands, pursuant to Section 3 of Article XI of the State Constitution;
(2) Removing language establishing a Subcommittee because it is a type of prohibited special legislation and likely unconstitutional;
(3) Clarifying that particular exchanges of public land for private land shall not be made except for public purposes; and
(4) Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for clarity, consistency, and style.
As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Agriculture and Water, Land Use, and Hawaiian Affairs that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 2285, as amended herein, and recommend that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 2285, H.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Finance.
Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committees on Agriculture and Water, Land Use, and Hawaiian Affairs,
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____________________________ EZRA R. KANOHO, Chair |
____________________________ FELIPE P. ABINSAY, JR., Chair |
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