HB2182

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.B. NO.	2182
TWENTY-FOURTH LEGISLATURE, 2008
STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

SECTION 1. The legislature finds that the continued viability of reservoirs, dams, and ditch systems in Kauai county is necessary, since they are a part of the water infrastructure needed by agriculture. Additionally, water from the reservoirs is used by the fire department to suppress brush and wild fires and to recharge the aquifer.

The passage of the Hawaii Dam and Reservoir Safety Act (Act 262, Session Laws of Hawaii 2007) enlarged the State's authority to regulate dams and reservoirs, adopt rules and standards for dams and reservoirs, and create new fees and penalties for owners in violation.

With the increased exposure to penalties and liability, owners of reservoirs, dams, and ditch systems in Kauai county are considering decommissioning. If the systems are decommissioned, the county will lose convenient and affordable sources of water for agriculture and firefighting, and it will also lose control of water runoff. Decommissioning may also place additional burdens on the county's water supply.

In many regions around the world, entities have been created to manage, operate, and maintain water storage and distribution facilities for the benefit of agricultural users. These entities are particularly necessary when the owners do not have an incentive to maintain the facilities because they do not need to use them to store or transmit the water for their own purposes.

The legislature finds that the creation of an entity to provide countywide or statewide operation and maintenance of reservoir, dam, and ditch systems could have beneficial results. For example, a management entity may be able to obtain insurance coverage unavailable to individual owners, and such an entity could provide an efficient operation and maintenance program across the State.

The purpose of this Act is to appropriate moneys for a feasibility study on the creation of a private or governmental entity to manage, operate, and maintain reservoirs, dams, and ditch systems in Kauai county. This entity would enter into voluntary agreements with reservoir, dam, and ditch owners to assume the responsibility to operate and maintain their systems and distribute water to users. While the study would focus on Kauai, the results could be utilized by other counties to address similar issues.

SECTION 2. There is appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $350,000 or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2008-2009 for a feasibility study on the creation of a private or governmental entity to manage, operate, and maintain reservoirs, dams, and ditch systems in the county of Kauai.

SECTION 3. The sum appropriated shall be expended by the county of Kauai for the purposes of this Act.

SECTION 4. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2008.

INTRODUCED BY:	_____________________________