STAND. COM. REP. NO.  545-16

Honolulu, Hawaii

                , 2016

RE:   H.B. No. 2749

      H.D. 2

Honorable Joseph M. Souki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Eighth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2016

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Health, to which was referred H.B. No. 2749, H.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO WASTE,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to establish a Sewage Infrastructure Review Task Force in the Department of Health to examine sewage infrastructure in each county.

The County of Hawaii Department of Environmental Management and City and County of Honolulu Department of Environmental Services provided testimony in opposition to this measure.  The Department of Health, Sierra Club of Hawaii, Building Industry Association of Hawaii, and Chamber of Commerce Hawaii provided comments.

     Your Committee has amended this measure by:

     (1)  Expanding the scope of the task force to include sewage runoff and changing the task force's title to the Sewage Runoff and Infrastructure Review Task Force;

     (2)  Expanding the membership of the Task Force;

     (3)  Requiring the Task Force to engage the technical expertise of the United States Environmental Protection Agency, University of Hawaii at Manoa, and United States Department of Agriculture, as appropriate;

     (4)  Adding an additional reporting requirement 20 days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2018;

     (5)  Changing the date that the task force will be dissolved to January 2, 2018; and

     (6)  Changing the effective date to July 1, 2070, to encourage further discussion.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Health that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 2749, H.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it be referred to your Committee on Finance in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 2749, H.D. 2.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Health,

____________________________

DELLA AU BELATTI, Chair