STAND. COM. REP. NO. 619

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 828

S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirtieth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2019

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committees on Agriculture and Environment and Water and Land, to which was referred S.B. No. 828 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO COASTAL EROSION PROACTIVE ADAPTATION PLAN,"

beg leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to:

(1) Establish a coastal erosion proactive adaptation plan task force, with the assistance of an advisory group and a consultation team, to develop a coastal erosion proactive adaptation plan to better mitigate impacts to the State's coastal zone caused by sea level rise and erosion; and

(2) Appropriate funds to support the task force.

Your Committees received testimony in support of this measure from the City and County of Honolulu Department of Design and Construction; O‘ahu County Committee on Legislative Priorities of the Democratic Party of Hawai‘i; Coastal Planners, LLC; and one individual. Your Committees received comments on this measure from the Office of Planning.

Your Committees find that the current reactive shoreline regulatory process has become a substantial time and cost burden. Observations over the past decade show that Hawaii's current reactive shoreline permit system can be an obstacle to protecting, preserving, and restoring the State's shorelines and coastal ecosystems.

Your Committees further find that this reactive permit system often exacerbates shoreline erosion and coastal ecosystem degradation. The permit process includes the environmental assessment planning process, which typically needs to be completed prior to completing federal, state, and county permit applications.

Your Committees believe that a coastal erosion proactive adaptation plan can overcome the negative impacts from Hawaii's reactive shoreline planning process and reactive shoreline permit system.

Your Committees have amended this measure by:

(1) Expanding the authorized use of the appropriated funds to include establishment of one full-time equivalent (1.0 FTE), civil-service-exempt position in the Office of Planning to administer the coastal erosion proactive adaptation plan task force; and

(2) 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 Agriculture and Environment and Water and Land that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 828, as amended herein, and recommend that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 828, S.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Ways and Means.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committees on Agriculture and Environment and Water and Land,

________________________________ KAIALI'I KAHELE, Chair

________________________________ MIKE GABBARD, Chair