SB1221 SD1

SECTION 1. The legislature finds that detention and retention ponds are meant to hold stormwater. However, while detention and retention ponds help manage stormwater and control flooding, mitigating risk for these systems is critical to minimizing threats to public health and safety. Hawaii's high drowning rate, the second worst in the nation for residents and the highest for visitors, necessitates joining other jurisdictions across the United States in developing retention and detention pond safety programs. The urgency is made even greater by climate change which has created more frequent and intense rainfall resulting in increased use of retention ponds, which are designed to hold water year-round, and detention ponds, which remain dry until a major rain.

The legislature further finds that the Hawaii water safety plan, which was published by the Hawaii water safety coalition in 2025, provides several recommendations to reduce drowning by improving safety regarding detention and retention ponds in the State.

The purpose of this Act is to ensure the health, safety, and welfare of the citizens of the State by:

(1) Prohibiting counties from permitting or allowing retention and detention ponds to be constructed except under certain conditions;

(2) Creating safety requirements for Hawaii's rainwater retention and detention ponds;

(3) Creating a program for the monitoring and inspection of detention and retention ponds to increase safety and prevent drownings; and

(4) Requiring the department of land and natural resources to conduct a survey of existing retention and detention ponds statewide.

This Act also recognizes Charlotte "Sharkey" Schaefers, a five‑year-old girl who drowned at a Pearl City naval housing complex while trying to save the life of her childhood friend.

SECTION 2. Chapter 46, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"§46- Retention ponds and detention ponds; county; prohibited; maintenance. Beginning , , no county shall permit or allow any retention pond or detention pond, as those terms are defined in section 340E-B, to be constructed within that county, unless the developer or responsible person proposing the construction and maintenance of the pond follows the safety requirements under section 340E-C and files an affidavit with the department of land and natural resources agreeing to annual and other warranted rain-related inspections by the department of land and natural resources."

SECTION 3. Chapter 340E, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new part to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"Part . rainwater retention pond and detention pond safety

§340E-A Short title. This part may be cited as the "Charlotte 'Sharkey' Schaefers Inspection Law".

§340E-B Definitions. As used in this part:

"Detention pond" or "dry-retention system" means an area that is designed to:

(1) Hold stormwater until the effects of percolation, evapotranspiration, or controlled release return the area to its normally dry state; and

(2) Dissipate inflowing stormwater within seventy-two hours to accommodate a new volume of water.

"Department" means the department of land and natural resources.

"Retention pond" or "wet-detention system" means a permanent or semi-permanent aquatic system that acts as a trap where pollutants picked up by the initial surge of stormwater settle out before leaving the retention pond.

§340E-C Retention pond and detention pond; safety requirements. (a) Each retention pond and detention pond shall comply with the following safety requirements:

(1) Fencing that is at least four feet high and that encloses the pond and allows access by one or more locked gates;

(2) Safety signage that is placed at the entry to the secured and locked gate, including signage that indicates "No Swimming" and that water levels may rise suddenly in the event of rain;

(3) Life buoys installed at the entry to the secured and locked gate to allow for ease of rescue if someone is struggling in the pond;

(4) Regular mowing and weed control to maintain adequate ground cover to ensure that any vegetation does not interfere with proper infiltration and runoff and effective filtering of pollutants;

(5) The minimal use of pesticides and fertilizers to minimize entry into the pond and subsequent downstream waters;

(6) Proper removal of trash, debris, and litter;

(7) Installation of a landscaped buffer to discourage people and pets from entering the pond;

(8) Appropriate accumulated sediment levels;

(9) Unless building codes or stormwater regulations require otherwise, a side slope ratio of five-to-one or flatter;

(10) A buffer of at least one hundred feet surrounding the pond to separate the pond from schools, child care facilities, homes, parks, athletic fields, or housing projects; provided that a buffer of no less than twenty-five feet shall apply for trails and sidewalks;

(11) The presence of shelves or shallow areas around the banks that allow people and animals to climb out of the water;

(12) Inclusion of emergency spillways to allow for safe overflow in cases where the storage capacity of water is exceeded;

(13) Design and building features that allow for regular maintenance, access for inspections, removal of debris, and vegetation management;

(14) A maintenance plan on file by the owners or operators of the retention pond or detention pond that includes design drawings and operational records and addresses vegetation management, bank erosion and stabilization, and removal of trash, debris, litter, and sediment. The maintenance plan shall also address life expectancy and a replacement timeline for outlet and inlet structures, orifices, trash racks, and emergency spillways and comply with federal, state, and county requirements; and

(15) Other requirements as determined by the department.

(b) The following shall be exempt from the safety requirements pursuant to this section:

(1) Existing retention ponds and detention ponds built before , ; and

(2) Golf courses, hotels, resort properties, or other secured recreational areas; provided that the entities who own, control, or manage these properties shall provide the department with proof of security for its retention ponds or detention ponds.

§340E-D Retention pond and detention pond; maintenance; inspection. (a) The department shall establish a retention pond and detention pond monitoring and inspection program to perform an annual safety inspection of each retention pond and detention pond in the State built after , , to ensure that the operation of each retention pond and detention pond complies with the requirements of this part and rules adopted by the department.

(b) The department shall strive to inspect retention ponds and detention ponds, to the greatest extent possible, before and after major rain events.

(1) Proper vegetation management that acts as a stabilizer and safety buffer for the structure;

(2) Proper removal of trash, debris, and litter;

(3) Appropriate ground cover to ensure proper infiltration and runoff and effective filtering of pollutants;

(4) Appropriate accumulated sediment levels;

(5) Appropriate fencing, signage, and ring buoys;

(6) Proper gradual sloping that is not eroding and causing destabilization at the embankments;

(7) The presence of shelves or shallow areas around the banks that allow people and animals to climb out of the water;

(8) Design and building features that allow for regular maintenance, access for inspections, removal of debris, and vegetation management;

(9) A maintenance plan on file by the owners or operators of the retention pond or detention pond that includes design drawings and operational records and addresses vegetation management, bank erosion and stabilization, and removal of trash, debris, litter, and sediment. The maintenance plan shall also address life expectancy and a replacement timeline for outlet and inlet structures, orifices, trash racks, and emergency spillways and comply with federal, state, and county requirements; and

(10) Other requirements as determined by the department.

(d) The following shall be exempt from the maintenance plan and inspection requirements pursuant to this section:

(1) Existing retention ponds and detention ponds built before , ; and

§340E-E Rules; fines. The department shall adopt rules in accordance with chapter 91 to carry out the purposes of this part. Violations of this part shall be subject to administrative fines as determined by the department in accordance with rules."

SECTION 4. The department of land and natural resources shall conduct a survey of all existing retention and detention ponds statewide and submit a report of its findings and recommendations, including any proposed legislation, to the legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the regular session of 2026.

SECTION 5. There is appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $ or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2025-2026 and the same sum or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2026-2027 to establish two full-time equivalent (2.0 FTE) positions within the department of land and natural resources for the purposes of this Act.

The sums appropriated shall be expended by the department of land and natural resources for the purposes of this Act.

SECTION 6. In codifying the new sections added 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 7. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 8. This Act shall take effect on May 13, 2040.

THE SENATE	S.B. NO.	1221
THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2025		S.D. 1
STATE OF HAWAII