STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1615

 

Honolulu, Hawaii

                  

 

RE:    S.R. No. 150

       S.D. 1

 

 

 

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2025

State of Hawaii

 

Sir:

 

     Your Committee on Transportation and Culture and the Arts, to which was referred S.R. No. 150 entitled:

 

"SENATE RESOLUTION REQUESTING THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION TO SUBMIT AN ANNUAL REPORT TO THE LEGISLATURE SUMMARIZING SPECIFIC SAFETY‑RELATED INFORMATION FOR EACH GENERAL AVIATION AND COMMERCIAL TOUR OPERATOR IN THE STATE, POST AN ELECTRONIC COPY OF EACH REPORT ON THE DEPARTMENT'S WEBSITE, AND ADOPT RULES REQUIRING THE PUBLIC POSTING OF THE INFORMATION AT EVERY LOCATION OF EACH OPERATOR,"

 

begs leave to report as follows:

 

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to request the Department of Transportation to submit an annual report to the Legislature summarizing specific safety-related information for each general aviation and commercial tour operator in the State, post an electronic copy of each report on the Department's website, and adopt rules requiring the public posting of the information at every location of each operator.

 

     Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from Blue Hawaiian.

 

     Your Committee received testimony in opposition to this measure from the Department of Transportation and Vertical Aviation International.

 

     Your Committee finds that general aviation and commercial helicopter flights are popular activities in Hawaii but come with potential safety hazards, particularly over residential areas.  Your Committee further finds that the National Transportation Safety Board has made recommendations for safety enhancements in the helicopter tour and charter industry, including the use of crash-resistant fuel systems, flotation devices for flights over water, and terrain awareness and warning systems to reduce the risk of controlled flight into terrain.  Therefore, your Committee concludes that it is necessary to implement safety-related measures to ensure increased transparency in the aviation industry and best practices in aviation safety, thereby reducing risks to passengers, crew, and the public at large.

 

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

 

     (1)  Deleting language that would have requested the Department of Transportation to submit an annual report to the Legislature summarizing specific safety-related information for each general aviation and commercial tour operator in the State, post an electronic copy of each report on the Department's website, and adopt rules requiring the public posting of the information at every location of each operator;

 

     (2)  Clarifying that the Department of Transportation is requested to share information on the safety and performance of commercial tour operators to help residents and visitors make informed decisions;

 

     (3)  Requesting the Department of Transportation to solicit information no less than annually from commercial air tour operators on whether their helicopters are equipped with, and what percentage of their helicopters are equipped with, certain safety devices and systems;

 

     (4)  Requesting the Department of Transportation to solicit information from commercial air tour operators on whether their companies are operating with best practices;

 

     (5)  Requesting language requesting the Department of Transportation identify and share with the public the numbers of legitimate complaints about safety, noise, or operations received by the Department or any other department or agencies about each commercial air tour operator operating in the State and any other relevant safety or operational information;

 

     (6)  Requesting the Department of Transportation to identify and share with the public the numbers of legitimate safety-related incidents experienced by each commercial air tour operator over the preceding twenty-four months;

 

     (7)  Requesting the Department of Transportation to collaborate with the National Transportation Safety Board to identify and develop any other safety criteria;

 

     (8)  Requesting the Department of Transportation to establish a system of scoring and transparency for the public and assign an overall score or letter grade for each commercial air tour operator for the public;

 

     (9)  Requesting the Department of Transportation to identify the very highest scoring commercial air tour operator each year and categorize that commercial air tour operator as the "Safest Commercial Air Tour Operator" and categorize commercial air tour operators who did not provide a response as "Safety Unknown" and post the information online;

 

    (10)  Requesting the Department of Transportation to share all safety information with the Hawaii Tourism Authority, who is requested to also provide this information to visitors online;

 

    (11)  Clarifying that the requested annual report to the Legislature is requested to be posted on the Department of Transportation's website;

 

    (12)  Updating legislative findings; and

 

    (13)  Amending its title accordingly.

 

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Transportation and Culture and the Arts that is attached to this report, your Committee concurs with the intent and purpose of S.R. No. 150, as amended herein, and recommends its adoption in the form attached hereto as S.R. No. 150, S.D. 1.

 

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Transportation and Culture and the Arts,

 

 

 

________________________________

CHRIS LEE, Chair