STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2514
Honolulu, Hawaii
RE: S.B. No. 2474
S.D. 1
Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi
President of the Senate
Thirtieth State Legislature
Regular Session of 2020
State of Hawaii
Sir:
Your Committee on Agriculture and Environment, to which was referred S.B. No. 2474 entitled:
"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO LITTLE FIRE ANTS,"
begs leave to report as follows:
The purpose and intent of this measure is to control the spread of little fire ants in the State by:
(1) Requiring the use of best practices, as identified by the Department of Agriculture and Hawaii Ant Lab, for the treatment of little fire ants by pest control operators;
(2) Authorizing the Department of Agriculture in consultation with the Pest Control Board to adopt rules to carry out the requirement to use best practices; and
(3) Requiring the posting of the best practices, and any rules that may be adopted by the Department of Agriculture and the Pest Control Board, on their respective websites.
Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Hawai‘i Farm Bureau, Farm Maui LLC, and four individuals. Your Committee received testimony in opposition to this measure from the Department of Agriculture, Pest Control Board, and Hawaii Pest Control Association. Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Office of the Mayor of the County of Hawai‘i and one individual.
Your Committee finds that little fire ant populations are currently on Hawaii, Kauai, Maui, and Oahu and threaten human health, wildlife, agriculture, and tourism. The Hawaii Ant Lab's dual approach of applying insect growth regulators followed by a barrier treatment for treating little fire ants have been successful in controlling infestations on properties of homeowners and farmers. Your Committee also finds that untreated little fire ant nests can grow and spread to surrounding properties, thereby further exacerbating the problems and creating a much bigger challenge for mitigation efforts.
Your Committee recognizes that infestation treatments are continually changing because the pest itself and conditions in which it thrives are dynamic. Accordingly, your Committee has amended this measure by:
(1) Allowing the Department of Agriculture to identify best practices for the treatment of little fire ants in conjunction with the Hawaii Ant Lab, rather than allowing the Department, in consultation with the Pest Control Board, to adopt rules to identify best practices for the purposes of pest control operator statutes;
(2) Clarifying that the Department of Agriculture shall post on its website best practices for the treatment of little fire ants;
(3) Deleting language that would have required the Pest Control Board to require pest control operators to use best practices identified by the Department of Agriculture and Hawaii Ant Lab for the treatment of little fire ants;
(4) Deleting language that would have allowed the Pest Control Board to adopt rules in consultation with the Department of Agriculture regarding requirements for pest control operators to use best practices;
(5) Deleting language that would have required the Pest Control Board to post on its website rules adopted and best practices identified by the Department of Agriculture and Hawaii Ant Lab for the treatment of little fire ants by pest control operators;
(6) Inserting language to allow the Pest Control Board to revoke, suspend, or refuse to renew any license for violation of any best practice identified by the Department of Agriculture;
(7) Amending section 1 to reflect its amended purpose; and
(8) Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for the purposes of clarity and consistency.
As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Agriculture and Environment that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2474, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2474, S.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Commerce, Consumer Protection, and Health.
Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Agriculture and Environment,
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________________________________ MIKE GABBARD, Chair |
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