Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2006

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committees on Water, Land, and Agriculture and Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs, to which was referred H.B. No. 2177 entitled:

beg leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to propose an amendment to Article VII, Section 12 of the Hawaii State Constitution to authorize special purpose revenue bonds to assist agricultural businesses on important agricultural lands.

Testimony in support of this measure was submitted by the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Budget and Finance, the University of Hawaii's College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources, the Hawaii Agriculture Research Center, the Hawaii Farm Bureau Federation, and the Land Use Research Foundation of Hawaii.

Your Committees find that Hawaii's agriculture industry has the ability to be globally competitive in developing high-value products that take advantage of Hawaii's brand identity. Your Committees further find that encouraging agricultural development will pay not only financial dividends to the State, but environmental and social dividends as well. This measure proposes an amendment to Article VII, Section 12 of the Hawaii State Constitution, authorizing the State to issue special purpose revenue bonds and use the proceeds from the bonds to assist agricultural businesses operating on important agricultural lands.

As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Water, Land, and Agriculture and Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 2177, and recommend that it pass Second Reading and be referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.