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. 2954 entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to provide incentives and funding for irrigation repair and maintenance and to transfer non-agricultural park lands and agricultural marketing duties from the Department of Agriculture (DOA) to the Agribusiness Development Corporation (ADC).

Your Committee noted that a number of testimonies submitted expressed strong support for the irrigation repair and maintenance incentives and funding. However, those same testimonies also expressed strong opposition to the remainder of the bill, which transfers marketing duties and the jurisdiction of non-agricultural park lands from DOA to ADC. This type of testimony was submitted by DOA, the Dean of the University of Hawaii's College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources, Alluvion, the Big Island Farm Bureau, Castle and Cooke Hawaii, the East Kauai Water Users' Cooperative, the East Oahu Farmer's Association, the Hawaii Agriculture Research Center, the Hawaii Beekeepers' Association, the Hawaii Coffee Association, the Hawaii Crop Improvement Association, the Hawaii Farm Bureau, the Hawaii Tropical Fruit Growers Association, the Kona County Farm Bureau, the Maui County Farm Bureau, Saiva Siddhanta Church, and the Waimanalo Agricultural Association.

Testimony in opposition to this measure was submitted by ADC; the Department of Taxation; the Office of Hawaiian Affairs; the County of Maui's Department of Water Safety; Earth Justice; the Hawaii Cattlemen's Council; the Hawaii Food Manufacturers Association; Hawaiian Sunshine Nursury, Inc.; Kahuku Brand Matsuda-Fukuyama Farms, Inc.; and one individual. Comments were submitted by the Department of Land and Natural Resources; Alexander & Baldwin, Inc.; and the Land Use Research Foundation of Hawaii.

Your Committee finds that the agricultural industry is an important component of the State's economic and social well-being, and based on the testimony received, your Committee has amended this measure by:

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. 2954, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2954, S.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.