STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2782

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 3098

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. 3098 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO PESTICIDES,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to:

(1) Require the Department of Agriculture, in consultation with the Department of Health, to develop and implement a restricted use pesticide disposal amnesty program;

(2) Convene a steering committee to guide and monitor the restricted use pesticide disposal amnesty program; and

(3) Appropriate funds for the restricted use pesticide disposal amnesty program.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Health; Maui County Farm Bureau; Hawai‘i SEED; SHAKA: Sustainable Hawaii Action for Keiki and the Aina; Hawaii Crop Improvement Association; Western Plant Health Association; Hawai‘i Farm Bureau; Hawai‘i Center for Food Safety; Hawai‘i Alliance for Progressive Action; Larry Jefts Farms, LLC; and sixty-eight individuals. Your Committee received testimony in opposition to this measure from Young Progressives Demanding Action. Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Department of Agriculture and four individuals.

Your Committee finds that responsible environmental stewardship requires management and supervision of the safe collection and lawful disposal of banned, outdated, or unwanted pesticides. The existing Hawaii pesticides law prohibits the disposal of agricultural pesticides in sanitary landfills, but there are currently no options for the legal disposal of these substances within the State. Your Committee finds that there is great urgency to establish a pesticide disposal program to enable individuals and entities to legally dispose of banned, outdated, or unwanted pesticides.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Renaming the Restricted Use Pesticide Disposal Amnesty Program as the Pesticide Disposal Collection Program;

(2) Expanding the program to include non-restricted use pesticides in addition to restricted use pesticides;

(3) Deleting the set fourteen day duration of the program on each island and specifying that the Department of Agriculture shall set the program's period of duration;

(4) Adding the Pest Control Board, Hawai‘i Farm Bureau, and Hawaii Farmers Union United to the membership of the steering committee;

(5) Amending section 1 to reflect its amended purpose; and

(6) 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. 3098, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 3098, S.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Ways and Means.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Agriculture and Environment,

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MIKE GABBARD, Chair