STAND. COM. REP. NO. 613

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 1126

S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirtieth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2019

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Water and Land, to which was referred S.B. No. 1126 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO REAL ESTATE DISCLOSURE,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to, beginning on November 1, 2019, require all real property sales or transfers to include a sea level rise hazard exposure statement to ensure that new property owners and transferees understand the special hazards, requirements, and limitations that may affect the property.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Land and Natural Resources, Sierra Club of Hawai‘i; Coastal Planners, LLC; and four individuals. Your Committee received testimony in opposition to this measure from the Hawai‘i Association of REALTORS.

Your Committee finds that coastal property is often vulnerable to hazards, such as coastal erosion and flooding from tsunamis, storms, and high waves. These hazards can be exacerbated by sea level rise and human-caused interruptions to natural sand supply. Owners of coastal property are at risk of losing land when shorelines undergo landward retreat, which negatively impacts building setbacks, property values, and insurance availability. Furthermore, coastal property owners face stringent permit requirements imposed by the counties and State for shoreline protection. This measure enables coastal property purchasers and transferees to better understand the special hazards, permitting requirements, and limitations that may affect the coastal property by requiring a sea level rise hazard exposure statement with the sale or transfer of any real property at risk of climate-related exposure.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Requiring a sea level rise hazard exposure statement be included with every sale or transfer of vulnerable coastal property, rather than any real property;

(2) Replacing the acknowledgments in and requirements of the sea level rise hazard exposure statement with substantively similar acknowledgments in and requirements of the vulnerable coastal property purchaser statements proposed in S.B. No. 1339, Regular Session of 2019;

(3) Defining "vulnerable coastal property" as real property within a two-foot sea level rise exposure area as officially designated by the Hawaii Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation Commission;

(4) Applying the material fact information disclosure requirement to residential real property within a sea level rise exposure area as officially designated by the Hawaii Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation Commission, rather than within a sea level rise hazard zone based on the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration sea level rise hazard exposure map or the Hawaii Sea Level Rise Viewer;

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

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

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Water and Land that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 1126, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 1126, S.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Commerce, Consumer Protection, and Health.

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

________________________________

KAIALI'I KAHELE, Chair