STAND. COM. REP. NO. 563

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2019

RE: H.B. No. 1586

H.D. 1

Honorable Scott K. Saiki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Thirtieth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2019

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committees on Energy & Environmental Protection, Labor & Public Employment, and Economic Development & Business, to which was referred H.B. No. 1586 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO THE STRUCTURE OF GOVERNMENT,"

beg leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to establish a Department of the Environment (Department) and transfer to the Department certain agencies and programs currently administered by the Department of Health, which includes the Office of Environmental Quality Control and the Environment Council, and the Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism, which includes the Energy Office and programs relating to sustainability and climate adaptation planning in the Office of Planning.

Blue Planet Foundation, Young Progressives Demanding Action, O‘ahu County Committee on Legislative Priorities of the Democratic Party of Hawai‘i, Alliance for Solar Choice, Sierra Club of Hawai‘i, and many individuals supported this measure. The Hawaii Solar Energy Association supported the intent of this measure. The Department of Land and Natural Resources, Office of Planning, Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism, and Life of the Land provided comments.

Your Committees have amended this measure by:

(1) Establishing the Office of Climate Change within the Department, rather than an Office of Climate Change and Sustainability, and amending its duties accordingly;

(2) Removing the provision which transferred the rights, powers, functions, and duties of the Office of Planning relating to sustainability to the Department;

(3) Establishing the Office of Clean Energy, to be led by the Director of the Office of Clean Energy, within the Department to be responsible for advancing energy efficiency, renewable energy, and clean transportation to help achieve a resilient clean energy economy that sequesters more atmospheric carbon and greenhouse gases than it produces as quickly as practicable by 2045;

(4) Requiring the establishment of the Department and the transfer of all agencies and programs to the Department to take effect on July 1, 2021;

(5) Changing its effective date to July 1, 2100, to encourage further discussion; and

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

As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Energy & Environmental Protection, Labor & Public Employment, and Economic Development & Business that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 1586, as amended herein, and recommend that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 1586, H.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Finance.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committees on Energy & Environmental Protection, Labor & Public Employment, and Economic Development & Business,

____________________________ AARON LING JOHANSON, Chair	____________________________ NICOLE E. LOWEN, Chair
	____________________________ ANGUS L.K. McKELVEY, Chair