STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2092

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.B. No. 2181

Honorable Donna Mercado Kim

President of the Senate

Twenty-Seventh State Legislature

Regular Session of 2014

State of Hawaii

Madam:

     Your Committee on Energy and Environment, to which was referred S.B. No. 2181 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO RENEWABLE PORTFOLIO STANDARDS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to increase the renewable portfolio standards to seventy percent by 2040 and one hundred percent by 2050.

     Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Sierra Club of Hawaii, Life of the Land, Blue Planet Foundation, Hawaii Solar Energy Association, Hawaii Renewable Energy Alliance, and Hawaiian Electric Company, Inc.  Your Committee received testimony in opposition to this measure from four individuals.  Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs; Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism; and Public Utilities Commission.

     Your Committee finds that Hawaii pays the highest electricity prices in the United States, and its gasoline costs are among the highest in the country.  Reducing the State's fossil fuel dependence and the consequent price volatility, as well as attaining energy security and independence are critical.

     Your Committee further finds that the current renewable portfolio standard was established by Act 155, Session Laws of Hawaii 2009.  Act 155 set targets through 2030, mandating that forty percent of each electric utility company's net electricity sales will come from renewable sources by December 31, 2030.  More importantly, this target remains achievable.  For 2012, Hawaii Electric Light Company, Inc., reported that renewable generation accounted for approximately forty-seven percent of electricity sales, while Maui Electric Company, Limited, reported approximately twenty-one percent, Hawaiian Electric Company reported approximately eight percent, and Kauai Island Utility Cooperative reported approximately nine percent.  In the interest of energy security and energy independence for Hawaii, it is time to articulate the next step and provide guidance for long-term energy planning by establishing renewable portfolio standards to be achieved by 2040 and 2050.

     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. 2181 and recommends that it pass Second Reading and be referred to the Committee on Commerce and Consumer Protection.

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

____________________________

MIKE GABBARD, Chair