STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2670

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    GOV. MSG. NO. 312

Honorable Colleen Hanabusa

President of the Senate

Twenty-Fifth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2010

State of Hawaii

Madam:

     Your Committee on Water, Land, Agriculture, and Hawaiian Affairs, to which was referred Governor's Message No. 312, submitting for study and consideration the nomination of: 

Legacy Land Conservation Commission

G.M. No. 312

ROBERT J. SHALLENBERGER, for a term to expire 6-30-2014,

begs leave to report as follows:

     Your Committee has reviewed the personal history, resume, and statements submitted by the nominee, and finds Robert J. Shallenberger to have the necessary qualifications to be nominated to the Legacy Land Conservation Commission.

     Testimony in support of the nomination of Robert J. Shallenberger was submitted by one state agency, one organization, and two individuals.  Written testimony presented to the Committee may be reviewed on the Legislature's website.

     Dr. Shallenberger received his Bachelor's degree from Whitman College in Biology, and his Master's degree and Doctor of Philosophy in Zoology from the University of California – Los Angeles.  His doctoral research focused on the biology of Hawaiian seabirds, and he has since conducted additional research on Hawaiian forest birds, dolphins, Hawaiian monk seals, reef fish, and aquaculture species.  Dr. Shallenberger is presently employed as the Hawaii Island Conservation Director for The Nature Conservancy of Hawaii. 

     Dr. Shallenberger is presently a member of the Legacy Land Conservation Commission, and serves as a person possessing scientific qualifications.  For more than two decades, he managed national wildlife refuges, including the Hawaiian and Pacific Islands National Wildlife Refuge Complex and the Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge, and spent seven years as Chief of Refuges for the United States Fish and Wildlife Service in Washington D.C.  Dr. Shallenberger has travelled and worked across the Hawaiian island chain, and in more than twenty-five countries, in large part as a professional naturalist and nature tour guide.  His expertise on conservation land acquisition and management, combined with his expertise in Hawaiian ornithology, will continue to be a valuable asset to the Legacy Land Conservation Commission. 

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Water, Land, Agriculture, and Hawaiian Affairs that is attached to this report, your Committee, after full consideration of the background, experience, and qualifications of the nominee, has found the nominee to be qualified for the position to which nominated and recommends that the Senate advise and consent to the nomination.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Water, Land, Agriculture, and Hawaiian Affairs,

____________________________

CLAYTON HEE, Chair