STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1661-18

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2018

RE: H.R. No. 197

H.D. 1

Honorable Scott K. Saiki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Ninth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2018

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Agriculture, to which was referred H.R. No. 197 entitled:

"HOUSE RESOLUTION URGING THE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE TO REJECT THE IMPORT PLAN AND QUARANTINE EXEMPTION REQUESTED BY KONA HILLS, LLC,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to protect the Kona coffee industry from the coffee rust disease found on Costa Rican coffee farms by urging the Department of Agriculture to reject the import plans and quarantine exemption requested by Kona Hills, LLC to import in-vitro coffee embryos from Costa Rica to establish a 1,999-acre coffee farm in Kealakekua on the island of Hawaii.

Rancho Aloha and two concerned individuals supported this measure. Kona Hills, LLC opposed this measure. The Department of Agriculture commented on this measure.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Changing its title to read:

URGING THE UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII SYSTEM AND THE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE TO CONVENE A STUDY GROUP IN CONJUNCTION WITH REPRESENTATIVES OF THE COFFEE INDUSTRY FROM ALL THE ISLANDS OF THE STATE WHERE COFFEE IS GROWN, TO DELINEATE AND DISCUSS THE VARIOUS CHALLENGES TO THE HAWAII COFFEE INDUSTRY, AND TO PROPOSE A SYMPOSIUM FOR FURTHER INTENSE DISCUSSION OF THOSE ISSUES IN THE SUMMER OF 2019;

(2) Adding updated information indicating that Kona Hills, LLC's has withdrawn its request for a quarantine exemption;

(3) Adding a discussion of the constitution of Kona coffee, the threat of the coffee rust disease to the Kona coffee industry, the use of the CRISPR system to confer resistance to the disease into coffee plants, and the need to discuss these matters by the coffee industry in a symposium;

(4) Changing the request of this measure to request that the University of Hawaii and Department of Agriculture convene a study group of stakeholders to discuss the challenges of the Hawaii coffee industry and propose a symposium during the summer of 2019 for further intense discussions, together with a funding mechanism and a request for a legislative appropriation;

(5) Urging the Department of Agriculture to reject applications for quarantine exemptions until the proposed symposium convenes and issues a report;

(6) Transmitting a certified copy of the measure to the President of the University of Hawaii; and

(7) Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for clarity, consistency, and style.

Your Committee notes that a budget line item appropriation will be necessary for fiscal year 2019-2020 for the proposed symposium in the summer of 2019.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Agriculture that is attached to this report, your Committee concurs with the intent and purpose of H.R. No. 197, as amended herein, and recommends that it be referred to your Committee on Finance in the form attached hereto as H.R. No. 197, H.D. 1.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Agriculture,

____________________________

RICHARD P. CREAGAN, Chair