SB3244

SECTION 1. The legislature finds that there is a need for resilience hubs in various communities to offer residents a place to obtain information, receive emergency supplies, store and refrigerate medical supplies, receive basic medical care, charge electrical devices, and access the Internet during and after a natural hazard event. The establishment of these resilience hubs will likely require partnerships between numerous agencies and private entities and the legislature finds that the Hawaii emergency management agency is the most capable agency to coordinate the establishment of resilience hubs.

The legislature further finds that resilience hub sites should be carefully sited to ensure proper connection to the electrical grid and be equipped with a solar and back-up battery storage system to guard against power outages. Communities should be directly involved in the siting and design of resilience hubs in their community.

The legislature further finds that the establishment of resilience hubs will require dedicated funding and that there is a nexus between the need for resilience hubs and the use of petroleum and other fossil fuels. Therefore, it is appropriate to tax petroleum and other fossil fuel usage to fund resilience hubs.

The purpose of this Act is to:

(1) Establish the resilience hubs program within the Hawaii emergency management agency; and

(2) Establish the resiliency hubs revolving fund to accomplish provisions of the resilience hubs program.

SECTION 2. Chapter 127A, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding two new sections to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"§127A-A Resilience hubs program; established. (a) There is established the resilience hubs program within the Hawaii emergency management agency to set up resilience hubs in various communities to provide residents a place to obtain information, receive emergency supplies, store and refrigerate medical supplies, receive basic medical care, charge electrical devices, and access the Internet during and after a natural hazard event.

(b) The resilience hubs program shall:

(1) Identify possible site locations for the establishment of resilience hub facilities;

(2) Consult with the school of ocean and earth science and technology at the university of Hawaii to identify geographic areas where resilience hub sites would be able to withstand natural disasters;

(3) Negotiate and arrange for the purchase or lease of suitable sites;

(4) Contract for the design and construction of resilience hub facilities; provided that if constructing on an empty site, the program shall ensure that the resilience hub facility is capable of withstanding category four or category five hurricanes;

(5) Install a solar and back-up battery storage system, multiple electrical charging stations, internet access, and refrigeration for medical supplies at each resilience hub site;

(6) Obtain suitable emergency supplies, including non-perishable food, and equip each resilience hub site with emergency supplies; and

(7) Seek partners to maintain each resilience hub.

§127A-B Resilience hubs revolving fund; established. (a) There is established within the state treasury the resilience hubs revolving fund, into which shall be deposited all moneys appropriated to the fund by the legislature, interest, and moneys from the environmental response, energy, food security, and resilience tax pursuant to section 243-3.5.

(b) Moneys from the fund shall be expended by the administrator for the following:

(1) The purchase or lease of suitable resilience hub sites;

(2) The design and construction of resilience hub facilities;

(3) The installation of solar panels and a back-up battery storage system at each resilience hub site;

(4) The installation of electrical charging stations, internet access, and refrigeration at each resilience hub facility; and

(5) The purchase of suitable emergency supplies."

SECTION 3. Section 243-3.5, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending its title and subsections (a) and (b) to read as follows:

"§243-3.5 Environmental response, energy, [~~and~~] food security, and resilience tax; uses. (a) In addition to any other taxes provided by law, subject to the exemptions set forth in section 243-7, there is hereby imposed a state environmental response, energy, [~~and~~] food security, and resilience tax on each barrel or fractional part of a barrel of petroleum product sold by a distributor to any retail dealer or end user of petroleum product, other than a refiner. The tax shall be $1.05 on each barrel or fractional part of a barrel of petroleum product that is not aviation fuel; provided that of the tax collected pursuant to this subsection:

(1) 5 cents of the tax on each barrel shall be deposited into the environmental response revolving fund established under section 128D-2;

(2) 4 cents of the tax on each barrel shall be deposited into the energy security special fund established under section 201-12.8;

(3) 5 cents of the tax on each barrel shall be deposited into the energy systems development special fund established under section 304A-2169.1;

(4) 3 cents of the tax on each barrel shall be deposited into the electric vehicle charging system subaccount established pursuant to section 269-33(e); [~~and~~]

(5) 3 cents of the tax on each barrel shall be deposited into the hydrogen fueling system subaccount established pursuant to section 269-33(f)[.]; and

(6) 45 cents of the tax on each barrel shall be deposited into the resilience hubs revolving fund established pursuant to section 127A-B.

The tax imposed by this subsection shall be paid by the distributor of the petroleum product.

(b) In addition to subsection (a), the tax shall also be imposed on each one million British thermal units of fossil fuel sold by a distributor to any retail dealer or end user, other than a refiner, of fossil fuel. The tax shall be 19 cents on each one million British thermal units of fossil fuel; provided that of the tax collected pursuant to this subsection:

(1) 4.8 per cent of the tax on each one million British thermal units shall be deposited into the environmental response revolving fund established under section 128D-2;

(2) 14.3 per cent of the tax on each one million British thermal units shall be deposited into the energy security special fund established under section 201‑12.8; [~~and~~]

(3) 9.5 per cent of the tax on each one million British thermal units shall be deposited into the energy systems development special fund established under section 304A-2169.1[.]; and

(4) 29.6 per cent of the tax on each one million British thermal units shall be deposited into the resilience hubs revolving fund established pursuant to section 127A-B.

The tax imposed by this subsection shall be paid by the distributor of the fossil fuel."

SECTION 4. In codifying the new sections added by section 2 and referenced by section 3 of this Act, the revisor of statutes shall substitute appropriate section numbers for the letters used in designating the new sections in this Act.

SECTION 5. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 6. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2024.

INTRODUCED BY:	_____________________________

THE SENATE	S.B. NO.	3244
THIRTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2024
STATE OF HAWAII