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

HOUSE RESOLUTION

requesting the department of business, economic development, and tourism to conduct a study on creating a one-stop permit shop for renewable energy projects.

     WHEREAS, the Legislature finds that Hawaii's dependency on petroleum is the highest in the nation, accounting for approximately ninety per cent of the State's energy needs; and

     WHEREAS, Hawaii's high petroleum dependency makes consumers extremely vulnerable to any disruption of petroleum imports, such as oil embargos, supply disruptions, international market dysfunctions, and many other factors beyond the State's control; and

     WHEREAS, the Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism has committed to energy objectives toward achieving dependable, efficient, and statewide economic energy systems, increased self-sufficiency, greater energy security, and reduction of greenhouse gas emissions; and

     WHEREAS, Act 272, Session Laws of Hawaii 2001, was enacted to recognize the economic, environmental, and fuel diversity benefits of renewable energy resources and the need to encourage the establishment of a market for renewable energy in Hawaii, using the State's renewable energy resources; and

     WHEREAS, Act 240, Session Laws of Hawaii 2006, was enacted to provide a framework for energy self-sufficiency; and

     WHEREAS, the State has committed to meeting a renewable energy standard that requires twenty per cent of electricity sold in Hawaii to be generated from renewable resources by the end of 2020; and

     WHEREAS, the State has sought also to encourage private sector development of renewable energy projects; and

     WHEREAS, the Hawaii Integrated Energy Policy Report of 1991 found that the "permits and approvals that may be required for the development and siting of energy facilities can take up to seven years for a single project"; and

     WHEREAS, renewable energy projects are often complex, large-scale undertakings requiring a number of permits; and

     WHEREAS, the Legislature recognizes a need to streamline the permit process to provide predictability and to encourage private companies to commit the substantial amounts of capital, time, and effort necessary to develop renewable energy projects; and

     WHEREAS, the Legislature recognizes that the State needs to provide further incentives for renewable energy projects, such as grants, tax credits, and other assistance; and

     WHEREAS, the Legislature finds that renewable energy projects can provide substantial long-term benefits to the State and that developing renewable energy projects would further state policies of developing indigenous renewable energy resources and decreasing Hawaii's dependency on imported fossil fuels; and

     WHEREAS, the Legislature is committed to advancing projects that support renewable energy technology and that help meet the State's renewable energy portfolio standards; and

     WHEREAS, the Legislature recognizes that Hawaii's energy situation provides both challenges and opportunities, that the State may bridge these challenges with opportunities to partner with the private sector, that these projects may need special assistance from the State to streamline the permitting process and to provide further incentives toward meeting the State's energy objectives of achieving dependable, efficient, and statewide economic energy systems, increased energy self-sufficiency, greater energy security, and reduction of greenhouse gas emissions; now, therefore,

     BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-fourth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2007, that this body requests the Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism to conduct a study of the feasibility of creating a one-stop permit shop for renewable energy projects to expedite the permit process; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism is requested to submit a report with its findings and recommendations, including suggested legislation, to the Legislature not later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2008; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Governor and the Director of the Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism.

OFFERED BY:

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Report Title: 

DBEDT study; feasibility of one-stop permit shop for renewable energy projects.