THE SENATE	S.B. NO.	2620
THIRTIETH LEGISLATURE, 2020		S.D. 1
STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

RELATING TO LAND USE.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

SECTION 1. Section 205-3.1, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

"§205-3.1 Amendments to district boundaries. (a) District boundary amendments involving the following lands [in the conservation district, land areas greater than fifteen acres, or lands delineated as important agricultural lands] shall be processed by the land use commission pursuant to section 205-4[.]:

(1) Lands in the conservation district;

(2) Lands delineated as important agricultural lands; or

(3) Land areas greater than fifteen acres, except non important agricultural land or rural land areas greater than fifteen acres but no more than twenty-five acres if the land areas are proposed for reclassification to the urban district and at least sixty per cent of the land areas will be dedicated for the development of affordable housing.

(b) Any department or agency of the State, and department or agency of the county in which the land is situated, or any person with a property interest in the land sought to be reclassified may petition the appropriate county land use decision-making authority of the county in which the land is situated for a change in the boundary of a district involving [lands]:

(1) Lands less than fifteen acres presently in the rural and urban districts [and lands];

(2) Land areas greater than fifteen acres but no more than twenty-five acres if the land areas are proposed for reclassification to the urban district are contiguous to the urban district and at least sixty per cent of the square footage of the development will be dedicated for the development of affordable housing; and

(3) Lands less than fifteen acres in the agricultural district that are not designated as important agricultural lands.

(c) District boundary amendments involving [land areas of fifteen acres or less, except as provided in] lands described in subsection (b)[,] shall be determined by the appropriate county land use decision-making authority for the district and shall not require consideration by the land use commission pursuant to section 205-4; provided that such boundary amendments and approved uses are consistent with this chapter. The appropriate county land use decision-making authority may consolidate proceedings to amend state land use district boundaries pursuant to this subsection, with county proceedings to amend the general plan, development plan, zoning of the affected land, or such other proceedings. Appropriate ordinances and rules to allow consolidation of such proceedings may be developed by the county land use decision-making authority.

(d) The county land use decision-making authority shall serve a copy of the application for a district boundary amendment to the land use commission and the department of business, economic development, and tourism and shall notify the commission and the department of the time and place of the hearing and the proposed amendments scheduled to be heard at the hearing. A change in the state land use district boundaries pursuant to this subsection shall become effective on the day designated by the county land use decision-making authority in its decision. Within sixty days of the effective date of any decision to amend state land use district boundaries by the county land use decision-making authority, the decision and the description and map of the affected property shall be transmitted to the land use commission and the department of business, economic development, and tourism by the county planning director[.]

(e) Parceling of lands for development shall be prohibited for the purposes of subsection (d). If lands that have been parceled are proposed for reclassification, the petition for reclassification shall be processed as lands greater than fifteen or twenty-five acres.

(f) For the purposes of this section:

"Parceling" means the subdivision of lands greater than twenty-five acres into two or more parcels, more than one of which is then proposed for reclassification within a ten-year period of time from the date of the subdivision.

"Affordable housing" means housing that requires the purchaser to be, in perpetuity, a Hawaii resident, an owner occupant, and owner of no other real property."

SECTION 2. Section 205-4, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended as follows:

1. By amending subsection (a) to read:

"(a) Any department or agency of the State, any department or agency of the county in which the land is situated, or any person with a property interest in the land sought to be reclassified, may petition the land use commission for a change in the boundary of a district. This section applies to all petitions for changes in district boundaries of lands within conservation districts, lands designated or sought to be designated as important agricultural lands, and lands greater than fifteen acres in the agricultural, rural, and urban districts, except as provided in [section 201H-38.] sections 201H-38 and 205‑3.1(a). The land use commission shall adopt rules pursuant to chapter 91 to implement section 201H-38."

2. By amending subsection (g) to read:

"(g) Within a period of not more than three hundred sixty-five days after the proper filing of a completed petition, unless otherwise ordered by a court, or unless a time extension, which shall not exceed ninety days, is established by a two-thirds vote of the members of the commission, the commission, by filing findings of fact and conclusions of law, shall act to approve the petition, deny the petition, or to modify the petition by imposing conditions necessary to uphold the intent and spirit of this chapter or the policies and criteria established pursuant to section 205-17 or to assure substantial compliance with representations made by the petitioner in seeking a boundary change. The commission may provide by condition that absent substantial commencement of use of the land in accordance with such representations, the commission shall issue and serve upon the party bound by the condition an order to show cause why the property should not revert to its former land use classification or be changed to a more appropriate classification. Such conditions, if any, shall run with the land and be recorded in the bureau of conveyances."

SECTION 3. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 4. This Act shall take effect on December 31, 2050.

Report Title:

District Boundaries; Amendments; Counties; Affordable Housing

Description:

Authorizes county land use decision-making authorities to amend district boundaries involving land areas greater than fifteen acres, except non important agricultural land or rural land areas greater than fifteen acres but no more than twenty-five acres if the land areas are proposed for reclassification to the urban district and at least sixty per cent of the land areas will be dedicated for the development of affordable housing. Effective 12/31/33. (SD1)

The summary description of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.