STAND. COM. REP. NO. 458

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 949

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 Water and Land and Agriculture and Environment, to which was referred S.B. No. 949 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO CONSERVATION,"

beg leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to appropriate funds for a position in the Department of Land and Natural Resources to:

(1) Draft rules that implement and clarify the intent of chapter 195D, Hawaii Revised Statutes;

(2) Work with applicants for incidental take licenses to develop their projects to minimize and mitigate incidental take of threatened and endangered species to the maximum extent practicable; and

(3) Effectively track and monitor funds and expenditures related to habitat conservation plans, conduct follow-up monitoring for development projects, and implement and manage mitigation and other projects that benefit the recovery of threatened and endangered species.

Your Committees received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Land and Natural Resources; Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism; and one individual.

Your Committees find that, as the endangered species capital of the world, Hawaii needs flexibility in its laws to ensure state and federal agencies and private landowners can work cooperatively to protect and conserve endangered species while allowing for responsible development activities and economic growth. Your Committees further find that incidental take licenses have proven to be an invaluable tool in the process of recovering the State's endangered species and that it is therefore imperative that this tool remains an available but effective and practical option.

Your Committees have amended this measure by inserting an effective date of December 31, 2050, to encourage further discussion.

As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Water and Land and Agriculture and Environment that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 949, as amended herein, and recommend that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 949, S.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Ways and Means.

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

________________________________ MIKE GABBARD, Chair

________________________________ KAIALI'I KAHELE, Chair