STAND. COM. REP. NO. 333

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.B. No. 1372

       S.D. 1

Honorable Donna Mercado Kim

President of the Senate

Twenty-Seventh State Legislature

Regular Session of 2013

State of Hawaii

Madam:

     Your Committee on Water and Land, to which was referred S.B. No. 1372 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO THE ACQUISITION OF RESOURCE VALUE LANDS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to authorize the issuance of general obligation bonds and appropriate funds for the Department Of Land and Natural Resources, in consultation with Hawaiian Islands Land Trust, to engage in efforts to acquire the parcel of land located at Lipoa Point.

     Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Land and Natural Resources and seven individuals.

     Your Committee finds that Lipoa Point-Honolua on the island of Maui is one of the most iconic landmarks in Hawaii.  Honolua is rich in marine resources and historical and archaeological sites and is one of the most popular recreational areas for locals and tourists alike, offering some of the best snorkeling and surfing conditions on the island of Maui.  Nationally recognized as a marine preserve, it has attracted federal funding and programs for having some of the highest fish assemblage characteristics of all the Hawaiian islands.  Additionally, Honolua is considered to have one of the most diverse, unique, and abundant reef formations, providing a habitat for rare coral species.

     According to testimony of the Department of Land and Natural Resources, Maui Land and Pineapple Company, Inc., is a willing seller, and the Hawaiian Islands Land Trust is hiring an appraiser to provide a letter of appraisal and eventually a full appraisal of the subject property.  Hawaiian Islands Land Trust intends to apply for state grant funding for the due diligence process.  The Department is continuing discussions with the Hawaiian Islands Land Trust regarding the acquisition of the subject property subject to approval of the Board of Land and Natural Resources under section 171-30, Hawaii Revised Statutes.

     Your Committee has amended this measure by:

     (1)  Mandating the Department of Land and Natural Resources to invite participation of the appropriate government agencies and nonprofit organizations to achieve the acquisition and protection of Lipoa Point through collaborative partnerships; and

     (2)  Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for the purposes of clarity and consistency.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Water and Land that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 1372, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 1372, S.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.

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

____________________________

MALAMA SOLOMON, Chair