Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2006

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Water, Land, and Agriculture, to which was referred S.B. No. 2483 entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to appropriate interim funding for a fruit fly eradication program.

Testimony in support of this measure was submitted by the Department of Agriculture; the University of Hawaii's Center for Genomics, Proteomics, and Bioinformatics Research Initiative; the Big Island Farm Bureau; C&H Farms; Hawaii Agriculture Research Center; the Hawaii Farm Bureau Federation; and the Maui County Farm Bureau.

Fruit flies are Hawaii's most destructive agricultural pest. The economic impact of the fruit fly infestation in Hawaii amounts to more than $2,000,000 per year. Your Committee finds that recent research and programs have had good results in controlling the fruit flies in certain areas; however, more funding is needed to continue the effort. Your Committee further finds that federal funding may be available for more research; however, if appropriated, the funding will not be available until the middle of 2007. Thus, this measure appropriates interim money for the large-scale fruit fly suppression program.

Your Committee notes that it is unclear whether the federal funds will, with any certainty, be available in 2007. To date, representatives for the program could not assure your Committee that the federal funds will be forthcoming. As a result, your Committee has amended this measure by deleting the amount of the appropriation to continue further discussion on this matter.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Water, Land, and Agriculture that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2483, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2483, S.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.