STAND. COM. REP. NO. 244-00

                                 Honolulu, Hawaii
                                                   , 2000

                                 RE: H.B. No. 2893
                                     H.D. 1




Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say
Speaker, House of Representatives
Twentieth State Legislature
Regular Session of 2000
State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Water and Land Use, to which was referred
H.B. No. 2893 entitled: 

     "A BILL FOR AN ACT MAKING AN APPROPRIATION TO PROVIDE DATA
     FOR HYDRAULIC AND HYDROLOGIC FLOOD ANALYSES,"

begs leave to report as follows:


     The purpose of this bill is to make an appropriation to
partly fund the continued operation and maintenance of streamflow
and crest-stage gaging stations with the United States Geological
Survey, to provide data for hydraulic and hydrologic flood
analyses.

     The American Society of Civil Engineers testified in support
of this bill.  The Department of Land and Natural Resources
(DLNR) was unable to support the bill because it would reduce
current priorities as indicated in the Executive Supplemental
Budget.

     Your Committee finds that the Honolulu forecast office of
the National Weather Service uses the historical record from
water crest-stage gages, in conjunction with other data sources
(e.g., continuous record gages, rain gages, etc.), to help
determine rainfall-runoff relationships for flood prone streams. 

     Part of the modernization and improvement of the National
Weather Service's hydrology program is the use of Doppler radar
data processed through the Areal Mean Basin Estimated Rainfall
(AMBER) program.  This program allows forecasters to view basin
specific rainfall updated every five to six minutes and provides
the rainfall component of a stream-specific rainfall-to-runoff
relationship.  When used with the proper flash flood threshold,
the AMBER program provides an extremely powerful tool to help

 
                                 STAND. COM. REP. NO. 244-00
                                 Page 2

 
forecasters provide flash flood warnings to the public.  Without
updated peak flow records for calibration, the accuracy of the
flash flood thresholds will slowly degrade over time.
Furthermore, elimination of data from the forty-seven crest-stage
gages supported by DLNR will have a negative impact on
forecasters' ability to provide accurate flash flood warnings and
to conduct post-flood analyses.  

     The appropriation will partly fund the continued operation
and maintenance of streamflow and crest-stage gaging stations.

     Your Committee has amended this bill by reducing the
appropriation to $1 for the purpose of continued discussion.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your
Committee on Water and Land Use that is attached to this report,
your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B.
No. 2893, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second
Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 2893, H.D. 1, and
be referred to the Committee on Finance.

                                   Respectfully submitted on
                                   behalf of the members of the
                                   Committee on Water and Land
                                   Use,



                                   ______________________________
                                   ROMY M. CACHOLA, Chair