SB2085 SD1

SECTION 1. Chapter 163D, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"§163D- Grant program. (a) There is established the agribusiness development corporation grant program to be administered by the corporation. The purpose of the program shall be to provide grants for agriculture-related improvements to existing and emerging farms and agribusiness operations, including:

(1) Agriculture-related projects on an existing farm or agribusiness operation;

(2) Modernization or expansion of an existing farm or agribusiness operation;

(3) Agriculture-related equipment modification or replacement;

(4) Programs designed to develop new agricultural markets or products;

(5) Farmer or agriculture-related advisory, consultative, training, and educational services; and

(6) Farmer or agriculture-related technical assistance, including advice to any qualified person, whether a public or private entity.

(b) Any grant awarded pursuant to this section shall not exceed forty per cent of the cost of any agriculture-related improvements to existing and emerging farms and agribusiness operations for which the grant is sought.

(c) A grant may be awarded to a qualified person or entity who submits an application to the corporation. The application shall include at minimum the legal name of the qualified person or entity, the public purpose for which the grant is being sought, the service to be furnished by the grant, the target group of the grant, and a budget for expending the grant moneys, including an estimate of costs and expenses.

(d) An application for a grant shall be filed with the corporation for projects that have commenced within the preceding fiscal quarter. The application shall be accompanied by such supporting documentation of project costs as may be required by the corporation, including reasonable projections of project costs for the period to be covered by the grant.

(e) All applicants for a grant shall:

(1) Comply with applicable federal and state laws prohibiting discrimination against any person, including on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, creed, sex, age, sexual orientation, or disability;

(2) Have applied for or received all applicable licenses and permits relative to the project; and

(3) Indemnify and hold harmless the State and its officers, agents, and employees from and against any and all claims arising out of or resulting from activities of the project using grant moneys under this section; provided that if requested by the corporation, the applicant shall procure indemnification insurance in sufficient amounts satisfactory to the corporation.

(f) The recipient of a grant under this section shall submit quarterly reports to the corporation at the end of each quarter regarding the particular project for which the grant was awarded. Each quarterly report shall detail expenditures made during the preceding quarter, including each expenditure for which grant moneys were used, the purpose of the particular expenditure, and the date of the particular expenditure, as well as the total expenditures made to date."

SECTION 2. Section 163D-4, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsection (a) to read as follows:

"(a) Except as otherwise limited by this chapter, the corporation may:

(1) Sue and be sued;

(2) Have a seal and alter the same at its pleasure;

(3) Make and alter bylaws for its organization and internal management;

(4) Adopt rules under chapter 91 necessary to effectuate this chapter in connection with its projects, operations, and properties;

(5) Make and execute contracts and all other instruments necessary or convenient for the exercise of its powers and functions under this chapter;

(6) Carry out surveys, research, and investigations into technological, business, financial, consumer trends, and other aspects of agricultural production in the national and international community;

(7) Acquire or contract to acquire by grant or purchase any real, personal, or mixed property or any interest therein for its immediate or future use for the purposes of this chapter; own, hold, improve, and rehabilitate any real, personal, or mixed property acquired, and sell, assign, exchange, transfer, convey, lease, or otherwise dispose of, or encumber the same;

(8) By itself, or in partnership with qualified persons, acquire, construct, reconstruct, rehabilitate, improve, alter, or repair any infrastructure or accessory facilities in connection with any project; own, hold, sell, assign, transfer, convey, exchange, lease, or otherwise dispose of, or encumber any project;

(9) In cooperation with the department of agriculture, pursuant to chapter 167, or otherwise through direct investment or coventure with a professional investor or enterprise or any other person, or otherwise, to acquire, construct, operate, and maintain water facilities for conveying, distributing, and transmitting water for irrigation and agricultural uses at rates or charges determined by the corporation; provided that:

(A) This chapter shall not be construed to permit or allow the department of agriculture or any agribusiness development corporation to:

(i) Amend or modify rights or entitlements to water as provided for by article XI, section 7, of the Constitution of the State of Hawaii, or the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act, 1920, as amended, and chapter 168;

(ii) Diminish or abridge the traditional and customary rights of ahupua`a tenants who inhabited the Hawaiian Islands prior to 1778 under sections 1-1 and 7-1; and

(iii) Impair, abridge, or terminate the legal rights or interests to water and its uses, whether by lease, easement, or other means, which are possessed or held by organizations whose primary purpose is to benefit people of Hawaiian ancestry; and

(B) All usage of water shall be in accordance with chapter [[]174C[]] and other applicable laws in the State;

(10) Assist agricultural enterprises by conducting detailed marketing analysis and developing marketing and promotional strategies to strengthen the position of those enterprises and to better exploit local, national, and international markets;

(11) Carry out specialized programs designed to develop new markets for Hawaii agricultural products;

(12) Receive, examine, and determine the acceptability of applications of qualified persons for allowances or grants for the development of new crops and agricultural products, the expansion of established agricultural enterprises, and the altering of existing agricultural enterprises;

(13) Coordinate its activities with any federal or state farm credit programs;

(14) Grant options to purchase any project or to renew any lease entered into by it in connection with any of its projects, on the terms and conditions it deems advisable;

(15) Provide advisory, consultative, training, and educational services, technical assistance, and advice to any person, partnership, or corporation, either public or private, in order to carry out the purposes of this chapter, and engage the services of consultants on a contractual basis for rendering professional and technical assistance and advice;

(16) Procure insurance against any loss in connection with its property and other assets and operations in such amounts and from such insurers as it deems desirable;

(17) Accept gifts or grants in any form from any public agency or any other source; [~~and~~]

(18) Award grants as provided by law; and

[~~(18)~~] (19) Do all things necessary or proper to carry out the purposes of this chapter."

SECTION 3. The agribusiness development corporation shall incorporate in its year-to-year base budget such amounts necessary to continue to make grants under section 1 of this Act.

SECTION 4. There is appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $ or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2018-2019 for the agribusiness development corporation to award grants for agriculture-related improvements to existing and emerging farms and agribusiness operations.

The sum appropriated shall be expended by the agribusiness development corporation for the purposes of this Act.

SECTION 5. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 6. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2018.

THE SENATE	S.B. NO.	2085
TWENTY-NINTH LEGISLATURE, 2018		S.D. 1
STATE OF HAWAII