CONFERENCE COMMITTEE REP. NO. 43

Honolulu, Hawaii

                 , 2017

RE:    S.B. No. 611

       S.D. 1

       H.D. 2

       C.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Twenty-Ninth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2017

State of Hawaii

Honorable Joseph M. Souki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Ninth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2017

State of Hawaii

Sirs:

     Your Committee on Conference on the disagreeing vote of the Senate to the amendments proposed by the House of Representatives in S.B. No. 611, S.D. 1, H.D. 2, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO FIRE SPRINKLERS,"

having met, and after full and free discussion, has agreed to recommend and does recommend to the respective Houses the final passage of this bill in an amended form.

     The purpose of this measure is to extend by ten years the June 30, 2017, sunset date of Act 83, Session Laws of Hawaii 2012, which prohibits a county from requiring the installation of automatic fire sprinklers or an automatic fire sprinkler system in detached one- or two-family dwelling units that do not require access road or water supply variances and non-residential agricultural and aquacultural buildings and structures located outside an urban area.

     Your Committee on Conference finds that placing undue burdens on property owners in the State does not promote the public welfare.  Retrofitting or installing automatic fire sprinklers in certain structures can be difficult and costly.  Moreover, requiring owners or builders to install automatic fire sprinklers would likely cause rents and the costs of homes to rise.  Given the untenable affordable housing shortage across the State, county action requiring the installation of automatic fire sprinklers could have devastating effects.  Therefore, extending the June 30, 2017, sunset date of Act 83, Session Laws of Hawaii 2012, for ten years is necessary to continue the prohibition against counties requiring owners of detached one- or two-family dwelling units used only for residential purposes or non-residential agricultural and aquacultural structures located outside an urban area to retrofit or install automatic fire sprinklers.

     Your Committee on Conference has amended this measure by changing the effective date to June 29, 2017.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the managers of your Committee on Conference that is attached to this report, your Committee on Conference is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 611, S.D. 1, H.D. 2, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Final Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 611, S.D. 1, H.D. 2, C.D. 1.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the managers:

ON THE PART OF THE HOUSE

ON THE PART OF THE SENATE

____________________________ TOM BROWER Co-Chair	____________________________ CLARENCE K. NISHIHARA Chair
____________________________ ROY M. TAKUMI Co-Chair	____________________________ ROSALYN H. BAKER Co-Chair
	____________________________ WILL ESPERO Co-Chair