STAND. COM. REP. NO. 224-20

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2020

RE: H.B. No. 1878

Honorable Scott K. Saiki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Thirtieth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2020

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committees on Water, Land, & Hawaiian Affairs and Energy & Environmental Protection, to which was referred H.B. No. 1878 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO REAL PROPERTY TRANSACTIONS,"

beg leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to require that mandatory seller disclosures in residential real property transactions identify property within the sea level rise exposure area as officially designated by the relevant county.

Your Committees received testimony in support of this measure from Surfrider Oahu and ten individuals. Your Committees received comments on this measure from the Department of Land and Natural Resources, Hawaii Climate Change Mitigation & Adaptation Commission, and Sierra Club of Hawaii.

Your Committees find that a property's vulnerability to sea level rise, as identified by county climate maps, is a material fact for the purposes of mandatory disclosures of residential property sales, as it would be expected to measurably affect the value of the property.

As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Water, Land, & Hawaiian Affairs and Energy & Environmental Protection that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 1878 and recommend that it pass Second Reading and be referred to your Committee on Consumer Protection & Commerce.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committees on Water, Land, & Hawaiian Affairs and Energy & Environmental Protection,

____________________________ NICOLE E. LOWEN, Chair

____________________________ RYAN I. YAMANE, Chair