STAND. COM. REP. NO. 835

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.B. No. 1705

       S.D. 2

Honorable Colleen Hanabusa

President of the Senate

Twenty-Fourth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2007

State of Hawaii

Madam:

     Your Committee on Ways and Means, to which was referred S.B. No. 1705, S.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO THE MOLOKAI IRRIGATION SYSTEM,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this measure is to improve the management of the Molokai irrigation system.

     More specifically, the bill changes the Molokai Irrigation System Advisory Board to a governing board, increases the number of members on the board, permits nomination of members from Molokai homestead stakeholder organizations, and establishes the Molokai irrigation special fund for maintenance of the irrigation system.

     The County Council of Maui and a concerned individual submitted comments in support of the bill.  The Board of Agriculture submitted comments in opposition to the bill.  The Office of Information Practices and the Office of Hawaiian Affairs submitted comments on the bill.

     Your Committee finds that currently the Molokai Irrigation System Advisory Board is too dependent on the Department of Agriculture and cannot make independent decisions about matters it is most qualified to render.

     Your Committee further finds that this bill will provide a concrete remedy that will permit the board to address all measures necessary to maintain the functionality of the pivotal Molokai irrigation system.

     The Committee amended the bill to:

     (1)  Clarify sunshine law requirements regarding board meetings;

     (2)  Change the effective date of the Act to July 1, 2050 to facilitate further discussion of the bill including the concerns raised by the Office of Hawaiian Affairs with respect to the autonomy of the board and whether there should be some transition built into the process before the advisory board achieves complete independence from the Department of the Agriculture; and

     (3)  Make technical, nonsubstantive changes for style, clarity, and consistency.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Ways and Means that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 1705, S.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 1705, S.D. 2.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Ways and Means,

____________________________

ROSALYN H. BAKER, Chair