STAND. COM. REP. NO. 660

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2023

RE: H.B. No. 1206

H.D. 2

Honorable Scott K. Saiki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Thirty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2023

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Water & Land, to which was referred H.B. No. 1206, H.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO A STATE PERMITTING OFFICE,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to establish the State Permitting Office within the Department of Accounting and General Services to process building and infrastructure permits for construction of state-owned buildings, state roads and highways, and other construction on state lands.

Your Committee received testimony in opposition to this measure from the Office of the Mayor of the County of Maui and Department of Planning and Permitting of the City and County of Honolulu. Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Department of Accounting and General Services.

Your Committee finds that the county permitting process for building and infrastructure projects often faces significant delays because of resource limitations, volume of permits, and the complexity of the projects under review. Your Committee further finds that the establishment of a state agency to process building and infrastructure permits for state projects on state lands will reduce the number of permit applications the counties must process while simultaneously ensuring that the construction complies with all state and county building and infrastructure requirements.

Your Committee notes that more consideration should be given to a permanent system to use state permits in lieu of county permits for construction of state facilities on state lands and believes a pilot program would be more appropriate to allow the Department of Accounting and General Services and the counties time to develop this new process and necessary statutory language.

Accordingly, your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Deleting language which would have permanently established the State Permitting Office;

(2) Inserting language that:

(A) Requires the Department of Accounting and General Services to establish a five-year State Permit Pilot Program to process building and infrastructure permits for construction of state projects on state lands; and

(B) Requires the Department to report to the Legislature annually on the progress of the Pilot Program;

(3) Directing the appropriation to be used for the establishment of the State Permit Pilot Program; and

(4) Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for the purposes of clarity, consistency, and style.

Your Committee respectfully requests your Committee on Finance, should it deliberate on this measure, to consider an appropriation amount of $500,000 for the establishment of the State Permit Pilot Program.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Water & Land that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 1206, H.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it be referred to your Committee on Finance in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 1206, H.D. 2.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Water & Land,

____________________________

LINDA ICHIYAMA, Chair