SR103

WHEREAS, Hawaii is home to some of the world's most spectacular beaches; and

WHEREAS, these beautiful and serene beaches are becoming popular locations for wedding ceremonies for residents of Hawaii and tourists from all over the world; and

WHEREAS, Hawaii has a proud history of ensuring public access for all to its beaches and shorelines; and

WHEREAS, recently, couples planning beach weddings in Hawaii have been receiving inconsistent information on permitting procedures and requirements, often being told that permits are not required; and

WHEREAS, on several occasions, beach wedding ceremonies have been interrupted by enforcement officials from different divisions of the Department of Land and Natural Resources in an effort to enforce inconsistent permitting procedures; and

WHEREAS, the Department of Land and Natural Resources has acknowledged that uniform rules need to be adopted to address these inconsistencies; and

WHEREAS, chapter 171, Hawaii Revised Statutes, provides the Department of Land and Natural Resources with jurisdiction over public lands, which includes state-controlled beaches and small boat harbors; and

WHEREAS, the State's primary role in the shoreline area is to preserve and protect coastal resources and support public access along and below the shoreline; and

WHEREAS, generally, the counties have the primary authority and duty to develop and maintain public access to and along the shorelines; and

WHEREAS, two divisions within the State's Department of Land and Natural Resources, the Conservation and Resource Enforcement Division and the Division of Boating and Ocean Recreation, seem to have conflicting rules regarding permit requirements for beach weddings; and

WHEREAS, the Conservation and Resource Enforcement Division, with full police powers, enforces all state laws and rules involving state lands, state parks, historic sites, forest reserves, aquatic life and wildlife areas, coastal zones, conservation districts, state shores, as well as county ordinances involving county parks; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Twenty-fourth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2007, that the Department of Land and Natural Resources is requested to establish uniform rules and permitting procedures for weddings on state-controlled beaches and to ensure consistent intra-agency enforcement of the rules; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Land and Natural Resources is requested to cooperate with the counties in establishing appropriate rules and permits for beach weddings; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Land and Natural Resources is requested adopt rules and permitting procedures that allow for the issuance of annual and daily beach wedding permits, where appropriate; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Land and Natural Resources is requested to require a beach wedding permit when twenty-five or more chairs are to be set-up on the beach and unattended for thirty minutes or more; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Land and Natural Resources submit a report on the actions taken pursuant to this measure to the Legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the 2008 Regular Session; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Chairperson of the Department of Land and Natural Resources, the Administrator of the Division of Boating and Ocean Recreation, the Administrator of the Conservation and Resource Enforcement Division, the Mayor of Honolulu, Mayor of Hawaii, Mayor of Kauai, and the Mayor of Maui.

	OFFERED BY:	_____________________________

Report Title:

Permits; Beach Weddings

THE SENATE	S.R. NO.	103
TWENTY-FOURTH LEGISLATURE, 2007
STATE OF HAWAII