STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2817

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.B. No. 2421

       S.D. 2

Honorable Colleen Hanabusa

President of the Senate

Twenty-Fourth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2008

State of Hawaii

Madam:

     Your Committee on Ways and Means, to which was referred S.B. No. 2421, S.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO LAND ACQUISITION,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this measure is to authorize the Department of Land and Natural Resources to acquire lands owned by the Galbraith Estate in central Oahu through purchase, cooperative agreement, or eminent domain.

     Testimony in support of this measure was submitted by the Hawaii Farm Bureau Federation.  Comments on this measure were submitted by the Department of Land and Natural Resources and the Trust for Public Land.

     Your Committee finds that much of the land in the Galbraith Estate is valuable and productive agricultural land.  Its acquisition by the State would be an investment in a sustainable agricultural future.  In addition, your Committee finds that acquisition of lands in the Galbraith Estate is in furtherance of the essential public policy of preserving natural resources.

     Accordingly, your Committee has amended this measure as follows:

     (1)  By replacing the appropriation with a blank amount to facilitate further discussion on this measure; and

     (2)  By making technical nonsubstantive amendments for the purposes of clarity, consistency, and style.

     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. 2421, S.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2421, S.D. 2.

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

____________________________

ROSALYN H. BAKER, Chair