STAND. COM. REP. NO.  220

Honolulu, Hawaii

                , 2017

RE:   H.B. No. 1580

      H.D. 1

Honorable Joseph M. Souki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Ninth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2017

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Energy & Environmental Protection, to which was referred H.B. No. 1580 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO ENERGY,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to prepare for the transition to renewable ground transportation in Hawaii.  Specifically, this measure:

     (1)  Establishes a goal for the reduction and ultimate elimination of the use of fossil fuels for ground transportation by 2045; and

     (2)  Requires the Department of Transportation, in collaboration with the State Energy Office of the Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism, to establish a Renewable Ground Transportation Working Group to create baseline metrics, identify a plan, and develop recommendations to achieve one hundred per cent renewable ground transportation by 2045.

Blue Planet Foundation, Life of the Land, Sierra Club of Hawaii, and several individuals supported this measure.  The Department of Transportation and Hawaiian Electric Company and its subsidiaries, Maui Electric Company and Hawaii Electric Light Company, supported the intent of this measure.  An individual opposed this measure.  The Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism, Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, Island Energy Services, LLC, Par Hawaii, and Hawaii Automobile Dealers Association provided comments.

     Your Committee has amended this measure by:

     (1)  Requiring the Department of Transportation, in collaboration with the State Energy Office of the Department of Business, Economic Development, and Business, to identify a plan to make progress toward 100 per cent clean ground transportation and convene stakeholders to gather and use input for the plan, rather than convening a working group;

     (2)  Requiring the Clean Energy Initiative Program to design, implement, and administer a plan, to be implemented between 2017 and 2025, to achieve a reduction of 5 per cent in fossil fuel for ground transportation relative to 2016 levels, including metrics to measure the evaluation of progress towards the target fossil fuel reductions in ground transportation, to be established by the State Energy Office; and

     (3)  Requires the planning for the State's facility systems with regard to transportation and energy to be directed to achieve increased energy security and self-sufficiency through the reduction and ultimate elimination of imported fuels for ground transportation in accordance with the Clean Energy Initiative Program's plan.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Energy & Environmental Protection that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 1580, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 1580, H.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Transportation.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Energy & Environmental Protection,

____________________________

CHRIS LEE, Chair