STAND. COM. REP. NO. 3485

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: H.B. No. 1436

H.D. 1

S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2022

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committees on Water and Land and Government Operations, to which was referred H.B. No. 1436, H.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO DEVELOPMENT RIGHTS,"

beg leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to expand the authority of the counties to transfer development rights to address areas at risk of sea level rise, coastal erosion, storm surge, or flooding.

Your Committees received testimony in support of this measure from the Office of Planning and Sustainable Development; one member from the Maui County Council; City and County of Honolulu Department of Planning and Permitting; City and County of Honolulu Office of Climate Change, Sustainability, and Resiliency.

Your Committees find that all governmental entities must proactively plan, coordinate, and act to adapt to climate change and sea level rise to ensure the State's sustainable and resilient future. Your Committees note that an existing mechanism to transfer development rights currently assists the City and County of Honolulu Department of Planning and Permitting with the preservation of historic properties. Accordingly, expanding the authority of the counties to regulate the transfer of development rights could help the counties better manage vulnerable coastal, low-lying, and other areas that are at-risk from the effects of sea level rise, coastal erosion, storm surge, or flooding.

According to testimony received from the City and County of Honolulu Office of Climate Change, Sustainability, and Resiliency, this measure would not only provide an economically feasible option for property owners to mitigate risk and relocate from existing and increasingly hazardous location, but will also facilitate growth in areas that are more appropriate for development.

Your Committees have amended this measure by:

(1) Clarifying:

(A) That a purpose of the comprehensive planning program is to protect from development lands that are vulnerable to impacts and hazards associated with sea level rise, coastal erosion, storm surge, or flooding; and

(B) Language related to the transfer of development rights from lands vulnerable or adversely affected by sea level rise, coastal erosion, storm surge, or flooding;

(2) Inserting an effective date of July 1, 2022; and

(3) Making a technical, nonsubstantive amendment for the purposes of clarity and consistency.

As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Water and Land and Government Operations that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 1436, H.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommend that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 1436, H.D. 1, 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 Government Operations,

________________________________ SHARON MORIWAKI, Chair

________________________________ LORRAINE R. INOUYE, Chair