STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1136

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    H.B. No. 957

       H.D. 1

       S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Twenty-Ninth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2017

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committees on Education and Transportation and Energy, to which was referred H.B. No. 957, H.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO HEAT ABATEMENT,"

beg leave to report as follows:

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to:

     (1)  Authorize the Department of Education and Department of Budget and Finance to borrow monies from the Hawaii green infrastructure loan program for heat abatement measures at public schools; and

     (2)  Appropriate monies from the general fund of the State to make an initial repayment to the Hawaii green infrastructure special fund.

     Your Committees received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Education, Hawaii State Teachers Association, Hawaii Solar Energy Association, and IMUAlliance.  Your Committees received comments on this measure from the Department of Budget and Finance, Public Utilities Commission, and Hawaii Energy Public Forum.

     Your Committees find that overheating is a serious and persistent problem in Hawaii's public schools.  Your Committees further find that heat abatement in public school classrooms is an important policy goal of the State, and that the Legislature appropriated $100 million for heat abatement in the Regular Session of 2016.  Your Committees additionally find that further heat abatement measures are necessary to adequately provide an optimal learning environment for the State's students.  Your Committees also find that the installation of energy efficient lighting and other fixtures can result in a reduction of waste heat and facilitate heat abatement.

     Your Committees note that while the Department of Education may see a reduction in kilowatts/hour usage, there is a possibility for utility costs to increase in the event that energy prices increase in the future, for example through a rise in oil prices or other extraneous factors, resulting in reduced dollar savings despite a reduction in kilowatt/hour consumption.

     Your Committees have amended this measure by:

     (1)  Broadening the focus of heat abatement measures;

     (2)  Specifying an appropriation amount from the Hawaii green infrastructure special fund of $46,400,000, changing the purpose of the appropriation to financing installation costs for energy efficiency measures related to heat abatement, and changing the expending agency to the Hawaii green infrastructure authority;

     (3)  Specifying a loan amount to the Department of Education of $46,400,000 and removing the Department of Budget and Finance as a borrowing agency;

     (4)  Requiring the Department of Education to submit an expenditure plan to the green infrastructure loan program administrator;

     (5)  Removing the appropriation for an initial loan payment and instead requiring the Department of Education to begin repaying the loan using savings from reduced utility costs and other savings related to energy efficiency measures;

     (6)  Amending the purpose section to more accurately reflect the purpose and intent; and

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

     As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Education and Transportation and Energy that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 957, H.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommend that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 957, H.D. 1, S.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Ways and Means.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committees on Education and Transportation and Energy,

________________________________ LORRAINE R. INOUYE, Chair

________________________________ MICHELLE N. KIDANI, Chair