STAND. COM. REP. NO. 576

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 520

S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2025

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committees on Health and Human Services and Agriculture and Environment, to which was referred S.B. No. 520 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO WASTEWATER SYSTEMS,"

beg leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to require the Department of Health to amend its administrative rules to:

(1) Authorize not more than five dwelling units per dwelling connected to a single individual wastewater system; and

(2) Provide that not more than five tiny homes with a total of one dwelling unit each may be connected to a single individual wastewater system.

Your Committees received comments on this measure from the Department of Health, Hawaiʻi Reef and Ocean Coalition, and one individual.

Your Committees find that the contamination of water sources threatens the public health and safety of the State. Your Committees further find that an individual wastewater system that is overutilized can lead to overloading and pollution of groundwater. This measure limits the number of dwellings and dwelling units that may be connected to a single individual wastewater system to prevent any potential waste leakage into the ground or the State's environment.

Your Committees note the testimony of the Department of Health stating that the Department's administrative rules already include definitions for "dwelling", "dwelling unit", and "bedrooms", and that "tiny home" is included in the definition of dwelling. As such, this measure's proposed language does not align with the Department's established definitions. Therefore, amendments to this measure are necessary to allow the Department of Health to promptly amend its rules without changing the definitions in the rules.

Accordingly, your Committees have amended this measure by inserting language to clarify that the Department of Health shall amend its administrative rules in accordance with chapter 91, Hawaii Revised Statutes, to limit the number of dwellings and dwelling units that may be connected to a single individual wastewater system to not more than five dwellings or dwelling units; provided that the total quantity of bedrooms connected to one individual wastewater system shall not exceed five bedrooms, rather than using "tiny home" as a measurement.

As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Health and Human Services and Agriculture and Environment that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 520, as amended herein, and recommend that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 520, S.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Ways and Means.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committees on Health and Human Services and Agriculture and Environment,

________________________________ MIKE GABBARD, Chair

________________________________ JOY A. SAN BUENAVENTURA, Chair