HB2943

SECTION 1. In 1978, voters approved article XI, section 3, of the Constitution of the State of Hawaii, which sets out the framework for state policies to promote agriculture and the conservation of productive agricultural lands in the State.

The State is mandated to conserve and protect agricultural lands, promote diversified agriculture, increase agricultural self-sufficiency, and ensure the availability of agriculturally suitable lands. Lands that are necessary for these purposes are identified by the State as important agricultural lands. Important agricultural lands cannot be reclassified by the State or rezoned by its political subdivisions without meeting established standards and criteria.

The standards and criteria are codified under part III of chapter 205, Hawaii Revised Statutes. Currently, under section 205‑49(d)(2), Hawaii Revised Statutes, the land use commission must wait three years after the enactment of legislation establishing incentives and protections before it can designate lands as important agricultural lands and adopt maps for designation, pursuant to the county process for identifying and recommending lands. In addition, a county land use decision‑making authority may reclassify lands less than fifteen acres presently in the rural and urban districts and lands less than fifteen acres in the agricultural district that are not designated as important agricultural lands.

The purpose of this Act is to accelerate the process of designating important agricultural lands by:

(1) Removing the three year limitation imposed on the land use commission; and

(2) Authorizing a county land use decision‑making authority to reclassify lands less than fifty acres presently in the rural district and lands less than thirty acres in the agricultural district one year after the county transmits its important agricultural lands designation maps to the land use commission pursuant to section 205‑47, Hawaii Revised Statutes.

SECTION 2. Section 205-3.1, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsection (b) to read as follows:

"(b) Any department or agency of the State, and department or agency of the county in which the land is situated, or any person with a property interest in the land sought to be reclassified may petition the appropriate county land use decision-making authority of the county in which the land is situated for a change in the boundary of a district involving lands less than fifteen acres presently in the rural and urban districts and lands less than fifteen acres in the agricultural district that are not designated as important agricultural lands[.]; provided that one year after a county transmits the important agricultural lands maps to the land use commission pursuant to section 205‑47, the appropriate county land use decision-making authority of the county in which the land is situated may reclassify lands less than fifty acres in the rural district and less than thirty acres in the agricultural district that are not designated as important agricultural lands. At that time, with regard to a county that has transmitted the important agricultural land maps to the land use commission, subsection (c) shall be interpreted by substituting fifty or thirty acres, as the case may be, for fifteen acres."

SECTION 3. Section 205-4, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsection (a) to read as follows:

"(a) Any department or agency of the State, any department or agency of the county in which the land is situated, or any person with a property interest in the land sought to be reclassified, may petition the land use commission for a change in the boundary of a district. This section applies to all petitions for changes in district boundaries of lands within conservation districts, lands designated or sought to be designated as important agricultural lands, and lands greater than fifteen acres in the agricultural, rural, and urban districts, except as provided in section 201H-38[.] and section 205‑3.1(b). The land use commission shall adopt rules pursuant to chapter 91 to implement section 201H-38."

SECTION 4. Section 205-49, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsection (d) to read as follows:

"(d) The land use commission may designate lands as important agricultural lands and adopt maps for a designation pursuant to:

(1) A farmer or landowner petition for declaratory ruling under section 205‑45 at any time; or

(2) The county process for identifying and recommending lands for important agricultural lands under section 205-47 [~~no sooner than three years~~],

after the enactment of legislation establishing incentives and protections contemplated under section 205-46, as provided in section 9 of Act 183, Session Laws of Hawaii 2005."

SECTION 5. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 6. This Act shall take effect upon its approval.

INTRODUCED BY:	_____________________________

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.B. NO.	2943
TWENTY-FOURTH LEGISLATURE, 2008
STATE OF HAWAII