CONFERENCE COMMITTEE REP. NO. 140

Honolulu, Hawaii

                 , 2009

RE:    S.B. No. 1202

       S.D. 2

       H.D. 2

       C.D. 1

Honorable Colleen Hanabusa

President of the Senate

Twenty-Fifth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2009

State of Hawaii

Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Fifth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2009

State of Hawaii

Madam and Sir:

     Your Committee on Conference on the disagreeing vote of the Senate to the amendments proposed by the House of Representatives in S.B. No. 1202, S.D. 2, H.D. 2, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO TRANSPORTATION ENERGY INITIATIVES,"

having met, and after full and free discussion, has agreed to recommend and does recommend to the respective Houses the final passage of this bill in an amended form.

     The purpose of this measure is to lay the foundation necessary to develop an electric vehicle infrastructure in Hawaii.

     Specifically, this measure:

     (1)  Makes fostering the research and development of nonfossil fuel and energy efficient modes of transportation one of the State's economic growth objectives;

     (2)  Requires the designation of parking spaces for electric vehicles in public, private, and government parking lots;

     (3)  Establishes penalties for parking a non-electric vehicle in parking spaces reserved for electric vehicles;

     (4)  Requires State and county agencies that purchase new vehicles to seek vehicles with reduced dependence on petroleum-based fuels, in accordance with a priority list;

     (5)  Establishes a transportation energy transformation grant fund to provide grants for the acquisition of electric vehicles, the installation of electric vehicle charging infrastructure, and innovative programs that diversify transportation energy sources in the State;

     (6)  Establishes two full-time temporary positions in the Department of Business Economic Development, and Tourism to carry out the purposes of the transportation energy transformation grant fund;

     (7)  Appropriates an unspecified sum for purposes of the transportation energy transformation grant fund; and

     (8)  Directs the development of a battery and charging outlet plan to expedite permitting and installation of battery exchange stations and electric vehicle charging outlets throughout the State.

     Your Committee on Conference has amended this measure by:

     (1)  Designating that by December 31, 2011, one per cent of the parking spaces in all public, private, and government parking facilities available to the public shall be for electric vehicle use; provided that this percentage shall increase to two per cent when at least 5,000 electric vehicles are registered in the State, and thereafter by one per cent for each additional 5,000 electric vehicles registered in the State, up to a maximum of ten per cent;

     (2)  Clarifying with respect to the penalties established for parking a non-electric vehicle in an electric vehicle only parking space that beginning January 1, 2012, a warning shall be issued to violators, and beginning July 1, 2013, violators will be guilty of a traffic infraction;

     (3)  Deleting provisions relating to the battery charging and outlet plan;

     (4)  Appropriating for each year of the 2009-2011 fiscal biennium from available and appropriated federal funds, $20,000,000 for the purposes of the transportation energy transformation grant fund; and

     (5)  Changing the effective date to July 1, 2009.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the managers of your Committee on Conference that is attached to this report, your Committee on Conference is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 1202, S.D. 2, H.D. 2, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Final Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 1202, S.D. 2, H.D. 2, C.D. 1.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the managers:

ON THE PART OF THE HOUSE

ON THE PART OF THE SENATE

____________________________ HERMINA MORITA, Co-Chair	____________________________ J. KALANI ENGLISH, Chair
____________________________ JOSEPH M. SOUKI, Co-Chair	____________________________ MIKE GABBARD, Co-Chair
____________________________ ANGUS L.K. MCKELVEY, Co-Chair	____________________________ DONNA MERCADO KIM, Co-Chair
____________________________ MARCUS R. OSHIRO, Co-Chair