SB649 SD1

THE SENATE	S.B. NO.	649
THIRTIETH LEGISLATURE, 2019		S.D. 1
STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

RELATING TO WATER CONSERVATION.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

SECTION 1. As an island state, Hawai‘i has limited access to natural fresh water. Competition for fresh water, increasing population and development pressures, the rising awareness of environmental and cultural water needs, and the impacts of climate change require that Hawai‘i become as efficient as possible in its uses of limited fresh water supplies. The legislature finds that a water conservation program that provides financial assistance to county-owned public water systems and their customers to help implement water conservation measures and practices will reduce water use or waste. County-owned public water systems supply approximately two hundred million gallons per day or eighty per cent of drinking water in Hawai‘i.

The purpose of this Act is to establish a financial assistance pilot program to provide county-owned public water systems with resources to implement conservation measures.

SECTION 2. There is established within each of the four county water supply departments, a two-year water conservation financial assistance pilot program to provide financial assistance to county-owned public water systems to implement their respective water conservation incentive programs.

As used in this Act, "public water system" has the same meaning as in section 340E-1, Hawaii Revised Statutes.

SECTION 3. To carry out the purposes of this Act, each county water supply department shall:

(1) Administer and manage their water conservation incentive programs and document the total estimated amount of water conserved under their respective program; and

(2) Provide matching funds on a one-to-one cost share basis to match or leverage non-state funds appropriated for the purposes of this water conservation financial assistance pilot program.

SECTION 4. A county-owned public water system water conservation incentive program may include:

(1) Rebate programs where county-owned public water systems refund customers no more than fifty per cent of the cost to install water conserving technologies in residential, commercial, institutional, or industrial settings; and

(2) Direct replacement programs where county-owned public water systems pay for the total cost to install water conserving technologies for customers in residential, commercial, institutional, or industrial settings.

As used in this section, "water conserving technologies" means equipment, appliances, and supplies that materially and predictably reduce potable water use as determined by the respective county water supply department and may include rain barrels and cisterns, hot water circulation pumps, soil moisture sensors, smart irrigation controllers, turf grass replacement, air conditioning condensate capture, multi-unit water sub-meters, WaterSense labeled water saving products, high-efficiency toilets, grey-water systems, and other devices, apparatus, or materials.

SECTION 5. In order to evaluate the program's effectiveness, each county water supply department shall:

(1) Review its conservation incentive programs and determine the amount of non-state matching funds;

(2) Determine the impact of its water conservation incentive programs on water conservation in terms of water saved; and

(3) Make a recommendation to the legislature on whether funding for the water conservation financial assistance program should be expanded, extended, or discontinued.

Each county water supply department shall submit a report of its findings and recommendations, including any proposed legislation, to the legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the regular session of 2021.

SECTION 6. There is appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $ or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2019-2020 and the same sum or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2020-2021 for the two-year water conservation financial assistance pilot program; provided that the sum shall be allocated equally to each of the four county water supply departments.

The sums appropriated shall be expended by the respective county water supply department for the purposes of this Act.

SECTION 7. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2019, and shall be repealed on June 30, 2021.