STAND. COM. REP. NO. 55

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2025

RE: H.B. No. 175

H.D. 1

Honorable Nadine K. Nakamura

Speaker, House of Representatives

Thirty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2025

State of Hawaii

Madame:

Your Committee on Water & Land, to which was referred H.B. No. 175 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO PROPERTY MAINTENANCE,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to require owners, lessees, or managers of real property to maintain their property and establish penalties for failure to do so.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from one member of the Kaua‘i County Council and three individuals. Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Department of Land and Natural Resources; Hawai‘i Association of REALTORS; and Maui Chamber of Commerce.

Your Committee finds that neglected properties create environmental hazards, including serving as breeding grounds for invasive species and raising the risk for wildfires. Your Committee believes that property owners and lessees have a duty to mitigate these risks by taking steps to prevent properties from falling into neglect. This measure is intended to protect the State's ecosystem and reduce the risk of wildfires by requiring owners and lessees to maintain their properties.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Removing property managers from the list of persons subject to the requirements of this measure;

(2) Clarifying the property management requirements for preventing the proliferation of invasive species;

(3) Requiring the Department of Agriculture, rather than Department of Land and Natural Resources and Department of Health, to establish rules relating to inspection, enforcement, and the collection of fines and restricting the purview of the Department of Agriculture to violations relating to the proliferation of invasive species;

(4) Requiring the Office of the State Fire Marshal to establish rules relating to inspection, enforcement, and collection of fines for violations relating to the prevention of wildfires and other public safety hazards and authorizing the Office to delegate the inspection, enforcement, appeal, and collection of fines to the county fire departments;

(5) Changing the effective date to July 1, 3000, to encourage further discussion; and

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

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. 175, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 175, H.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Judiciary & Hawaiian Affairs.

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

____________________________

MARK J. HASHEM, Chair