HB509 HD1.DOC

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.B. NO.	509
TWENTY-SEVENTH LEGISLATURE, 2013		H.D. 1
STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

RELATING TO MAKUA VALLEY.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

SECTION 1. The legislature finds that as the August 2029 termination date of the federal government's lease of seven hundred eighty-two acres of land in Makua valley from the department of land and natural resources nears, a comprehensive plan must be developed to facilitate a straightforward return of these lands to the State and address the management of the valley reserve. The plan should address cultural and environmental issues and concerns regarding toxins, unexploded ordinance, and other hazards from nearly one hundred years of military occupation of Makua valley.

The purpose of this Act is to establish the Makua valley reserve advisory committee to provide advice on any federal conveyance of lands within Makua valley to the State and to develop a comprehensive plan for restoring and preserving the valley reserve. The establishment of the advisory committee will provide a system that recognizes, reinforces, and facilitates the continuation of Makua valley's important cultural and educational significance, as well as its ecological and natural resources.

SECTION 2. Chapter 171, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new section to part I to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"§171- Makua valley reserve advisory committee. (a) There is established the Makua valley reserve advisory committee to be placed within the department for administrative purposes as provided in section 26-35. The advisory committee shall consist of seven members to be appointed and to serve subject to all provisions of section 26-34; provided that:

(1) One member shall be a member of Malama Makua;

(2) One member shall be a member of Hui Malama O Makua;

(3) One member shall be a representative of families who were evicted from the valley reserve or whose lands in the valley reserve were condemned by the federal government;

(4) One member shall be appointed by the governor from a list provided by the Waianae coast community;

(5) One member shall be a trustee on the board of the office of Hawaiian affairs or a representative of the office of Hawaiian affairs;

(6) One member shall be the chairperson of the board of land and natural resources; and

(7) One member shall be appointed by the governor from a list provided by Hawaiian organizations.

The governor shall appoint the chairperson from among the members of the advisory committee.

(b) The members of the advisory committee shall serve without compensation but shall be reimbursed for their actual and necessary expenses, including travel expenses, incurred in carrying out their duties.

(c) Any action taken by the advisory committee shall be approved by a majority of its members. Four members shall constitute a quorum.

(d) The department shall provide administrative support to the advisory committee.

(e) The advisory committee shall develop, for consideration by the department, a comprehensive plan for restoring and preserving the valley reserve. In carrying out its duties and responsibilities, the advisory committee:

(1) Shall recommend to the department criteria, policies, guidelines, and controls for permissible uses within the valley reserve;

(2) Shall participate in any planning efforts on any matters relating to the valley reserve;

(3) Shall provide advice to the office of planning and the department of the attorney general on any matter relating to any federal conveyance of lands within the valley reserve; and

(4) Upon approval by the board, may enter into cooperative agreements with qualified persons or public agencies whose powers, services, and capabilities the advisory committee deems necessary and appropriate for the development of the comprehensive plan.

(f) For purposes of this section, "valley reserve" means the area designated on the island of Oahu as Makua valley, including the three ahupua‘a of Kahanahaiki, Makua, and Koiahi."

SECTION 3. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 4. This Act shall take effect upon its approval.