STAND. COM. REP. NO. 232

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 657

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 Higher Education and Agriculture and Environment, to which was referred S.B. No. 657 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO THE CENTER FOR CLIMATE RESILIENT DEVELOPMENT,"

beg leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to appropriate funds for the University of Hawaii at Manoa School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology to establish and operate a Center for Climate Resilient Development.

Your Committees received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Land and Natural Resources, Department of Health, Office of Planning and Sustainable Development, University of Hawaiʻi School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology, Ulupono Initiative, Coalition Earth, Climate Protectors Hawaiʻi, Restore the Commons, Surfrider Foundation Hawaiʻi Region, and two individuals.

Your Committees find that there is a lack of climate resilient development capacity in the State. Your Committees further find that the University of Hawaii at Manoa School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology (SOEST) has been working with communities to identify multiple forms of flooding due to sea level rise, hurricane storm surge, heat projections, and leverages campus-wide expertise in wildfire ignition modeling. Your Committees note that state and county agencies utilize modeling products developed by SOEST. Your Committees additionally find that the modeling capacities at SOEST are currently funded by soft money grants and contracts and are thus a fragile resource for the State that could disappear if funding fails to materialize. This measure appropriates funds to establish a Center for Climate Resilient Development within SOEST to ensure that the State will continue to benefit from this critical research.

Your Committees have amended this measure by:

(1) Changing the appropriation to an unspecified amount;

(2) Inserting an effective date of July 31, 2050, to encourage further discussion; and

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

Your Committees note that this measure, as amended, contains an unspecified appropriation amount. Should your Committee on Ways and Means choose to deliberate on this measure, your Committees respectfully request that it consider inserting an appropriation amount of $3,000,000 for the University of Hawaii at Manoa School of Ocean and Earth Science Technology to establish and operate a Center for Climate Resilient Development.

As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Higher Education and Agriculture and Environment that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 657, as amended herein, and recommend that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 657, S.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Ways and Means.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committees on Higher Education and Agriculture and Environment,

________________________________ MIKE GABBARD, Chair

________________________________ DONNA MERCADO KIM, Chair