STAND. COM. REP. NO. 410

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.B. No. 80

       S.D. 1

Honorable Shan S. Tsutsui

President of the Senate

Twenty-Sixth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2011

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committees on Energy and Environment and Water, Land, and Housing and Public Safety, Government Operations, and Military Affairs, to which was referred S.B. No. 80 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO THE CLIMATE CHANGE TASK FORCE,"

beg leave to report as follows:

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to extend the existence of the Climate Change Task Force until June 30, 2013, and to appropriate funds for its operations.

     Your Committees received testimony in support of this measure from William J. Aila, Jr., Department of Land and Natural Resources; The Nature Conservancy of Hawai‘i; Shannon Wood, Windward Ahupua‘a Alliance; Robert Harris, Sierra Club, Hawai‘i Chapter; and Marti Townsend, KAHEA: The Hawaiian-Environmental Alliance.  Your Committees received comments on this measure from Mary Lou Kobayashi, Office of Planning, Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism; Loretta J. Fuddy, Department of Health; and James Coon.

     Your Committees find that Hawaii is especially vulnerable to the impacts of a changing climate and that increased temperatures and rising sea levels can threaten the State's ecosystems, infrastructure, and economy.  In order to assess the potential impacts and explore strategies for mitigating and adapting to these impacts, your Committees find that representatives from government agencies, academic institutions, and environmental organizations should come together to share their knowledge and expertise while developing solutions.  Your Committees further find that the Climate Change Task Force was created by Act 20, Special Session Laws of Hawaii 2009, but that the funds appropriated for that Task Force were never released; thus, the Task Force never convened, and its important work was never performed.  Pursuant to Act 20, the Task Force will expire as of June 30, 2011.  This measure will reestablish the Task Force for another two years so that its work may be done.

     Your Committees have amended this measure by:

     (1)  Adding a new section appropriating any portion of funds allocated to the Task Force from Environmental Response, Energy, and Food Security Tax revenues specified under section 243-3.5, Hawaii Revised Statutes;

     (2)  Adding ground and surface water resources to the list of subjects that the Task Force is directed to scope as current and potential impacts of climate change; and

     (3)  Changing the effective date to July 1, 2011; provided that section 1 of this measure shall take effect on June, 29, 2011.

     As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Energy and Environment and Water, Land, and Housing and Public Safety, Government Operations, and Military Affairs that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 80, as amended herein, and recommend that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 80, S.D. 1, and be referred to the Committees on Tourism and Ways and Means.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committees on Energy and Environment and Water, Land, and Housing and Public Safety, Government Operations, and Military Affairs,

____________________________ DONOVAN M. DELA CRUZ, Chair	____________________________ MIKE GABBARD, Chair
	____________________________ WILL ESPERO, Chair