STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2590

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.B. No. 2946

       S.D. 2

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Twenty-Eighth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2016

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Water, Land, and Agriculture, to which was referred S.B. No. 2946, S.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO INDIGENOUS HAWAIIAN ARCHITECTURE,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to authorize indigenous Hawaiian architecture on agricultural lands to be used for farm worker housing.

     Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from Ho‘omana Pono, LLC; and six individuals.  Your Committee received testimony in opposition to this measure from the Department of Agriculture and City and County of Honolulu Department of Planning and Permitting.

     Your Committee finds that indigenous Hawaiian architecture is significant to Hawaiian history and culture.  Your Committee finds that utilizing indigenous native Hawaiian architecture for housing will help to preserve the Hawaiian culture and provide communities with low-cost housing alternatives using available local resources.  However, your Committee notes the concerns of the Department of Agriculture regarding the safety, potential for abuse, and unintended consequences of this measure and believes this measure should, at this time, apply only to Hawaiian home lands with the intent to ensure that indigenous native Hawaiian architecture be permitted for agricultural purposes, including farmer housing.

     Your Committee has therefore amended this measure by:

     (1)  Deleting language that would have required each county to adopt ordinances to allow indigenous native Hawaiian architectural practices, styles, customs, techniques, and materials in the county's building code on land that is used for farming operations as defined in section 165-2, Hawaii Revised Statutes;

     (2)  Deleting language that would have allowed in agricultural districts indigenous Hawaiian architecture to be constructed and used to support agricultural activities or indigenous Hawaiian architecture used for farm worker housing;

     (3)  Inserting language to require the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands to adopt rules to allow for indigenous native Hawaiian architectural practices on subsistence agricultural lots to be used for agricultural purposes, including for use as farmer housing;

     (4)  Amending section 1 to reflect the amended purpose; and

     (5)  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, Land, and Agriculture that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2946, S.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2946, S.D. 2.

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

________________________________

MIKE GABBARD, Chair