STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1341
Honolulu, Hawaii
H.D. 1
Speaker, House of Representatives
Twenty-Third State Legislature
State of Hawaii
Sir:
Your Committee on Energy & Environmental Protection, to which was referred H.R. No. 200 entitled:
"HOUSE RESOLUTION REQUESTING THE ENVIRONMENTAL COUNCIL, WITH THE ASSISTANCE OF THE OFFICE OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY CONTROL AND THE UNIVERSITY OF HAWAI‘I ENVIRONMENTAL CENTER, TO DEVELOP AND PROMULGATE A GUIDANCE DOCUMENT ON INCLUDING PRINCIPLES OF ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE IN ALL PHASES OF ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW UNDERTAKEN PURSUANT TO CHAPTER 343, HAWAII REVISED STATUTES,"
begs leave to report as follows:
The purpose of this measure is to request the Office of Environmental Quality Control and the University of Hawaii Environmental Center to develop and promulgate a guidance document on including principles of environmental justice in all phases of environmental review undertaken pursuant to chapter 343, Hawaii Revised Statutes, and to request that the Legislature appropriate funds for a renewed study of the process during the Regular Session of 2006.
Your Committee finds that this measure will facilitate the Environmental Council, the Office of Environmental Quality Control, and the University of Hawaii Environmental Center in considering the environmental justice issues of proposed actions and in achieving the State's environmental goals and policies.
Your Committee has amended this measure by:
(1) Specifying that the development of the guidance document involve a wide spectrum of interested parties, including high school students;
(2) Requesting the Environmental Council to submit, in addition to the guidance document, recommendations for appropriate legislation to update chapter 343, Hawaii Revised Statutes;
(3) Requesting the Environmental Council to submit its comments, findings, and recommendations on any need to update the State's environmental impact statement process that may be discovered while conducting its review of chapter 343, Hawaii Revised Statutes, for guidance document purposes; provided that these comments, findings, and recommendations may or may not relate to the guidance document itself;
(4) Clarifying that continued evaluation and improvement of the State's environmental impact statement process may justify the commitment of state funds for a renewed study of the process; and
(5) Making technical nonsubstantive amendments for the purposes of clarity and style.
As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Energy & Environmental Protection that is attached to this report, your Committee concurs with the intent and purpose of H.R. No. 200, as amended herein, and recommends that it be referred to the Committee on Judiciary in the form attached hereto as H.R. No. 200, H.D. 1.
Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Energy & Environmental Protection,
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HERMINA MORITA, Chair |
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