Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2004

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Finance, to which was referred H.B. No. 2314, H.D. 1, entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this bill is to authorize the Office of Environmental Quality Control (OEQC) to review an agency's determination on the need for an environmental impact statement (EIS), consult with the agency, and make a final determination on whether a conflict of interest exists where the proposing agency and the agency making an EIS determination are the same.

The Sierra Club, Hawaii Chapter, testified in support of this bill. OEQC supported the intent of this measure. The City and County of Honolulu Department of Planning and Permitting opposed this bill. The Land Use Research Foundation of Hawaii offered comments.

Your Committee has amended this bill by changing the effective date to July 1, 2010, to facilitate further discussion.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Finance that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 2314, H.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 2314, H.D. 2.