SB2857.DOC

SECTION 1. The legislature finds that Act 9, Special Session Laws of Hawaii 2007, enacted the current law on service fees and charges for agricultural inspection, quarantine, and eradication. Act 3, Special Session Laws of Hawaii 2008, amended Act 9 to clarify the liability for paying the fee as well as the amount of the fee. Section 1 of Act 3 stated the legislature's intent concerning the importance of adequate inspections:

The legislature finds that the unchecked spread of invasive species is the single greatest threat to Hawaii's economy, natural environment, and the health and lifestyle of Hawaii's people. Invasive pests can cause millions of dollars in crop losses, the extinction of native species, the destruction of native forests, the spread of diseases, and the quarantine of exported agricultural crops.

Island ecosystems are particularly vulnerable to the destructive power of invasive pests. In Guam, the accidental introduction of the brown tree snake has resulted in widespread devastation. Without natural predators or competition for food, brown tree snake populations have grown exponentially, causing mass extinctions of endemic birds. Where there were once bird songs, the silent forests of Guam are now home to as many as fifteen thousand snakes per square mile. Just one new pest like the brown tree snake could forever change the character of the Hawaiian islands.

Despite our ongoing efforts to detect and eradicate invasive species, our fragile island ecosystems are constantly at risk from insects, disease-bearing organisms, snakes, weeds, and other invasive pests.

Conference Committee Report No. 142-08 to Act 3 reiterated the importance and urgency of protecting Hawaii's fragile ecosystem and environment through assessment and collection of inspection fees:

Your Committee on Conference recognizes the potential difficulties in implementing the provision requiring the transportation companies to collect the inspection fee and forward the payments to DOA (Department of Agriculture). To provide additional time for DOA to work with the transportation companies in planning and designing a feasible collection system, your Committee on Conference has allowed additional time before this measure takes effect.

In spite of the foregoing, the legislature finds that most airlines are not paying the inspection, quarantine, and eradication service fee and charge, and the department of agriculture reportedly is having a difficult time collecting the fees. In a time of depressed state tax revenue and a shrinking state budget, the revenues derived from the fees would have avoided the elimination of agricultural inspector positions to balance the budget. The legislature finds that more stringent measures are necessary to force the airlines to pay these statutorily-required fees.

The purpose of this Act is to provide for revocation of operation and use privileges of any carrier of air freight that has not been issued a certificate of clearance from the department of agriculture that certifies the carrier to be current in the payment of the inspection, quarantine, and eradication service fee and charge.

SECTION 2. Section 150A-5.3, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

"§150A-5.3 Inspection, quarantine, and eradication service fee and charge. (a) There is imposed a fee for the inspection, quarantine, and eradication of invasive species contained in any freight, including but not limited to marine commercial container shipment, air freight, or any other means of transporting freight, foreign or domestic, that is brought into the State. The fee shall be paid by the person responsible for paying the freight charges to the transportation company, who shall collect the fee and forward the payment to the department at the port of disembarkation; provided that the transportation company shall not be liable for any fee that is not paid by the person responsible for paying the freight charges to the transportation company. The department shall deposit the fee into the pest inspection, quarantine, and eradication fund under section 150A-4.5.

The fee shall be assessed on the net weight of the imported freight computed on the basis of 50 cents for every one thousand pounds of freight brought into the State, or part thereof.

(b) A carrier of air freight that is not current in the payment of the inspection, quarantine, and eradication service fee to the department under subsection (a) shall be subject to the revocation of the operation and use privilege under section 261-7. Beginning December 31, 2010, upon request of a carrier of air freight, the department shall issue an annual certificate of clearance to the carrier, if the carrier is current in the payment of inspection fees. The department shall transmit a copy of the certificate of clearance to the department of transportation for purposes of section 261-7."

SECTION 3. Section 261-7, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsection (a) to read as follows:

"(a) In operating an airport or air navigation facility owned or controlled by the department of transportation, or in which it has a right or interest, the department may enter into contracts, leases, licenses, and other arrangements with any person:

(1) Granting the privilege of using or improving the airport or air navigation facility or any portion or facility thereof or space therein for commercial purposes; provided that the department may revoke the privilege if a carrier of air freight has not been issued an annual certificate of clearance as provided in section 150A-5.3;

(2) Conferring the privilege of supplying goods, commodities, things, services, or facilities at the airport or air navigation facility;

(3) Making available services, facilities, goods, commodities, or other things to be furnished by the department or its agents at the airport or air navigation facility; or

(4) Granting the use and occupancy on a temporary basis by license or otherwise any portion of the land under its jurisdiction which for the time being may not be required by the department so that it may put the area to economic use and thereby derive revenue therefrom.

All the arrangements shall contain a clause that the land may be repossessed by the department when needed for aeronautics purposes upon giving the tenant temporarily occupying the same not less than thirty days' notice in writing of intention to repossess."

SECTION 4. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 5. This Act shall take effect upon its approval.

INTRODUCED BY:	_____________________________

THE SENATE	S.B. NO.	2857
TWENTY-FIFTH LEGISLATURE, 2010
STATE OF HAWAII