THE SENATE

KA AHA KENEKOA

 

THE THIRTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE

REGULAR SESSION OF 2024

 

COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SAFETY AND INTERGOVERNMENTAL AND MILITARY AFFAIRS

Senator Glenn Wakai, Chair

Senator Brandon J.C. Elefante, Vice Chair

 

COMMITTEE ON WATER AND LAND

Senator Lorraine R. Inouye, Chair

Senator Brandon J.C. Elefante, Vice Chair

 

NOTICE OF HEARING

 

 

DATE:

Wednesday, February 7, 2024

TIME:

3:00 PM

PLACE:

Conference Room 225 & Videoconference

State Capitol

415 South Beretania Street

TIMESLOT:

PSM

 

 

PHOTO ID REQUIRED FOR ENTRANCE TO THE STATE CAPITOL

BUILDING HOURS: 7AM TO 5PM, MONDAY - FRIDAY

 

The Legislature is accepting written, videoconference, and in-person testimony at public hearings.

A live stream of all Senate Standing Committee meetings will be available on the Senate YouTube Channel.

 

 

A G E N D A

 

SB 2141

      Status & Testimony

RELATING TO ELECTRIC GRID RESILIENCY.

Establishes a Homeland Security and Resiliency Council to assess the resilience of the State's electric grid and other critical infrastructure to natural disasters and other emergencies and make recommendations.  Requires the Council to report to Legislature.  Makes an appropriation.

 

PSM/WTL, CPN/WAM

SB 2145

      Status & Testimony

RELATING TO FIRE CODE.

Requires the counties to submit annual reports on fire code enforcement updates and fire mitigation planning to the Legislature.  Declares that the general fund expenditure ceiling is exceeded.  Makes an appropriation.

 

PSM/WTL, WAM

SB 2331

      Status & Testimony

RELATING TO HISTORIC PRESERVATION.

Clarifies that the Governor may waive historic preservation requirements in an emergency proclamation only when there is an imminent or presently occurring emergency which threatens health and safety.

 

PSM/WTL, JDC

SB 3064

      Status & Testimony

RELATING TO FUNDS.

Reinstates the Governor's authority to transfer funds to cope with the effects of natural disasters, for operating purposes, or to supplement the Department of Land and Natural Resources' Firefighter's Contingency Fund.

 

PSM/WTL, WAM

SB 2142

      Status & Testimony

RELATING TO WILDFIRE MITIGATION.

Establishes the Wildfire Mitigation Working Group.  Requires a report to the Legislature.  Requires the Office of Planning and Sustainable Development to provide administrative support to the working group.  Makes an appropriation.

 

PSM/WTL, WAM

SB 2842

      Status & Testimony

RELATING TO WILDFIRE SAFETY AND PREVENTION.

Establishes the Wildfire Safety Advisory Board within the Department of Land and Natural Resources to advise and make recommendations to state agencies concerning the State's wildfire safety and prevention efforts.

 

WTL/PSM, WAM

SB 2089

      Status & Testimony

RELATING TO WATER.

Specifies that fire safety use is a beneficial use of fresh water in the State Water Code.  Requires the Department of Land and Natural Resources, in consultation with the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency, to cooperate with the counties and reservoir owners to develop protocols and agreements for the use of reservoir waters for fire safety purposes.  Amends the conditions, manner, and areas in which the Commission on Water Resource Management can declare and provide notice of water shortages and emergencies.

 

WTL/PSM, JDC

SB 2143

      Status & Testimony

RELATING TO THE DEPARTMENT OF LAND AND NATURAL RESOURCES.

Appropriates funds to the Wildfire Management Branch of the Department of Land and Natural Resources Division of Forestry and Wildlife to provide nonprofit organizations with grants for wildfire preparedness and mitigation programming.

 

WTL/PSM, WAM

SB 2162

      Status & Testimony

RELATING TO THE CONSERVATION AND RESOURCES ENFORCEMENT PROGRAM.

Requires the Department of Land and Natural Resources to pursue and obtain accreditation for the Conservation and Resources Enforcement Program from the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc.  Makes an appropriation.

 

WTL/PSM, WAM

SB 2593

      Status & Testimony

RELATING TO FEDERAL LANDS.

Establishes within the Department of Land and Natural Resources a Makua Valley task force to prepare for the transition of the management of the Makua military reservation from the United States Army upon the expiration of the Army's lease for the land.  Requires a report to the Legislature.

 

WTL/PSM, WAM

SB 3155

      Status & Testimony

RELATING TO PUBLIC LAND LIABILITY.

Abolishes the Task Force on Beach and Water Safety and the Risk Assessment Working Group.  Requires the design and placement of warning signs, devices, and systems to be approved by the Chairperson of the Board of Land and Natural Resources for state beach parks and the county mayors for county beach parks.

 

WTL/PSM, JDC

SB 3327

      Status & Testimony

RELATING TO THE COMMISSION ON WATER RESOURCE MANAGEMENT.

Establishes a public trust purpose for the Commission on Water Resource Management.  Authorizes the Commission on Water Resource Management to declare an emergency under certain conditions.  Repeals the First Deputy to the Chairperson of the Commission on Water Resource Management.  Establishes the Executive Director of the Commission on Water Resource Management.  Administratively attaches the Commission on Water Resource Management to the Department of Land and Natural Resources.  Authorizes members of the Commission on Water Resource Management to be eligible to serve as chairperson.  Requires the Chairperson of the Board of Land and Natural Resources and Director of Health to serve as ex officio voting members ineligible to serve as chairperson.  Authorizes entities to whom an emergency order is directed to challenge the order under certain conditions.  Clarifies the notification requirements and contents of declarations of water shortages.  Establishes fines.  Makes conforming amendments.  Declares that the general fund expenditure ceiling is exceeded.  Makes an appropriation.

 

WTL/PSM, WAM/JDC

 

 

 

 

Decision Making to follow, if time permits.

 

All testimony received by the Hawai‘i Senate is posted on the Hawai‘i Legislature's website, which is accessible to the public. Please do not include private information that you do not want disclosed to the public.

 

Please go to the Legislature's website, www.capitol.hawaii.gov, to submit written testimony at least 24 hours prior to the hearing. Create a free account on the website, or sign in to an existing account, then click on the "Participate" drop down menu and select the "Submit Testimony" option to get started. While submitting your written testimony, you will be prompted to indicate if you would also like to testify at the hearing in-person or remotely via videoconference.

 

Please note the following:

 

·         The number of oral testifiers and/or time allotted to each testifier may be limited by the Chair when necessary to adhere to the committee hearing schedule. We may not be able to accommodate everyone who requests to testify orally.

·         Testifiers for this hearing will be limited to 1 minute each.

 

If you wish to testify via videoconference during the hearing, please review the detailed step-by-step instructions for testimony procedures before you submit your written testimony. Here's a direct link to the instructions: https://capitol.hawaii.gov/docs/testimonyinstructions.pdf

 

For general help navigating the committee hearing process, please contact the Public Access Room at (808) 587-0478 or [email protected]. You can also visit their website at https://lrb.hawaii.gov/par/.

 

For special assistance: The cable TV broadcast and/or live stream of this meeting will include closed captioning. If you require other auxiliary aids or services to participate in the public hearing process (i.e., interpretive services (oral or written) or ASL interpreter), or are unable to submit testimony via the website due to a disability, please contact the committee at [email protected] at least 24 hours prior to the hearing.

 

For amended notices: Measures that have been deleted are stricken through and measures that have been added are underscored.  If a measure is both underscored and stricken through, that measure has been deleted from the agenda.

 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CALL THE COMMITTEE CLERK AT (808) 586-8585.

 

 

 

_____________________________________

Senator Lorraine R. Inouye

Chair

 

_____________________________________

Senator Glenn Wakai

Chair