STAND. COM. REP. NO. 487

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.B. No. 132

       S.D. 1

Honorable Shan S. Tsutsui

President of the Senate

Twenty-Sixth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2011

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Energy and Environment, to which was referred S.B. No. 132 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO LEAF BLOWERS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to prohibit the use of leaf blowers in an urban land use district for more than a specified amount of time per day per parcel of property.

     Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from Thomas Smyth, Downtown Neighborhood Board No. 13, City and County of Honolulu; Chris Dacus, Landscape Industry Council of Hawai‘i; Bishop, Bishop's Landscaping Maintenance; Norman Allen; Valere McFarland; Linda Wong; Ann S. Freed; Gail Schaffer; Marcie; Michael Clare; Darla Thomas; Dianne Lee; James F. Merritt; Bob Kern; Karen Lucas; Mark Dougherty; Raymond Madigan; Henry Lau; Ruben Perez; Jan Mitchell; Narottam Bishop; Elizabeth Kamis; and Richard Kamis.  Your Committee received testimony in opposition to this measure from Loretta Fuddy, Department of Health; William J. Aila, Jr., Department of Land and Natural Resources; Gary B. Cabato, City and County of Honolulu, Department of Parks and Recreation; Steven Connolly, Aloha Arborist Association; Wayne Hu, Eager Beavers LLC; Norman Wilhoite, Ohana Lawn Service; Matt Lyum, Performance Landscapes; Steve Newman, Da Kine Trim; Randy Liu, Starwood Hotels and Resorts, Waikiki; Mark Leon, Sunshine Landscapes; Lee McIntosh; and Cory Blumerick.

     Your Committee finds that leaf blowers cause a great deal of noise that, over an extended period of time, becomes an extreme nuisance which is disruptive to many individuals' daily schedules and interferes with their quality of life.  This measure aims to strike a balance between the use of leaf blowers and the needs of nearby individuals.

     Your Committee has amended this measure by inserting a time period of fifteen minutes per one-quarter acre per parcel within which leaf blowers may be operated during certain days and certain times of day.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Energy and Environment that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 132, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 132, S.D. 1, and be placed on the calendar for Third Reading.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Energy and Environment,

____________________________

MIKE GABBARD, Chair