STAND. COM. REP. NO.  602-08

Honolulu, Hawaii

                , 2008

RE:   H.B. No. 2503

Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Fourth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2008

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Energy & Environmental Protection, to which was referred H.B. No. 2503 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO AGRICULTURAL LANDS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this bill is to permit the use of lands in agricultural land use districts for agricultural-energy facilities when the production, storage, and distribution of renewable energy are integrated with an agricultural activity.

     Hawaiian Electric Company, Inc., Maui Electric Company, and Hawaii Electric Light Company testified in support of this bill.  The Department of Agriculture supported the intent of this measure.  The Hawaii Agriculture Research Center submitted comments.

     Your Committee finds that the tight organizational linkage between:

     (1)  The agricultural-energy facility;

     (2)  The operator of the facility; and

(3)  The minimum area that is required to be placed into feedstock production,

may result in the inadvertent exclusion of similar but not qualifying agriculture-based renewable energy concepts from consideration as permissible uses, and believes that this bill should be made broader to cast a wider net to encompass these similar uses to allow and encourage more agriculture-based renewable energy alternatives.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Energy & Environmental Protection that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 2503 and recommends that it pass Second Reading and be referred to the Committees on Water, Land, Ocean Resources & Hawaiian Affairs and Agriculture.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Energy & Environmental Protection,

____________________________

HERMINA MORITA, Chair