HCR221 HD1

WHEREAS, sections 3 and 10 of article XI of the Constitution of the State of Hawaii mandate the support and promotion of diversified agricultural activities and agricultural self-sufficiency for the state; and

WHEREAS, Act 183, Session Laws of Hawaii 2005, establishing a process for important agricultural lands, declared that the policy of the State is to:

(1) Conserve and protect agricultural lands;

(2) Promote diversified agriculture;

(3) Increase agricultural self-sufficiency; and

(4) Assure the availability of agriculturally suitable lands;

and

WHEREAS, numerous concurrent efforts are proposing other ways, means, and incentives to promote agriculture in the state; and

WHEREAS, in spite of all these declarations and efforts, with the high value of real estate in the state, competing needs for finite amounts of water for human consumption, commercial and industrial use, and agricultural irrigation, and some of the highest labor costs in the country, our agricultural products, in many cases, cannot compete with mainland and foreign imports of agricultural products in our local, national, and international markets; and

WHEREAS, there may be more opportunities for our local agricultural products to compete in the local, national, and international markets if our agricultural products are properly processed, packaged, and assembled; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-fourth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2007, the Senate concurring, that the Legislative Reference Bureau is requested to study the feasibility of constructing a multi-purpose processing facility or facilities for the production of value-added products making use of locally grown agricultural products; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislative Reference Bureau is requested to consider the following in its study:

(1) The feasibility of using a large, multiple purpose processing facility or facilities, serving multiple users, and producing different value-added agricultural products;

(2) The type of owner-operator for the multi-purpose facility, that is, public, private, or a combination thereof;

(3) The types of packaged or finished value-added products that may be processed by the processing facility;

(4) The markets, local, national, and international, that may be targeted for products of the processing facility;

(5) The latest emerging technologies that may be used in processing and marketing Hawaii agricultural products; and

(6) Consult with the National Council of State Legislatures as to whether it is aware of any other states that have experienced a similar phenomenon of the demise of large, plantation-style agricultural industries over a relatively short period of time leaving much of the plantation lands fallow and the supporting infrastructure unused and decaying;

and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislative Reference Bureau is requested to consult with the Department of Agriculture; Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism; Department of Land and Natural Resources; Agribusiness Development Corporation; University of Hawaii, College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources; Hawaii Farm Bureau Federation; Hawaii Agricultural Research Center; Hawaii Food Manufacturers Association; National Council of State Legislatures; and other stakeholders in the agricultural industry; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislative Reference Bureau is requested to report its findings and recommendations, including proposed legislation, no later than 45 days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2008; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Director of the Legislative Reference Bureau; Director of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism; Director of Land and Natural Resources; Executive Director of the Agricultural Development Corporation; Dean of the University of Hawaii College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources; and the Chairperson of the Board of Agriculture who, in turn, is requested to transmit copies to the Hawaii Farm Bureau Federation, Hawaii Agricultural Research Center, Hawaii Food Manufacturers Association, National Council of State Legislatures, and other appropriate stakeholders in the agricultural industry.

Report Title:

Agricultural Products: Processing Facility; Legislative Reference Bureau.

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.C.R. NO.	221
TWENTY-FOURTH LEGISLATURE, 2007		H.D. 1
STATE OF HAWAII