HB1660

SECTION 1. The legislature finds that Act 90, Session Laws of Hawaii 2003 (Act 90), was enacted to transfer certain non-agricultural park lands from the department of land and natural resources to the department of agriculture. While three hundred parcels consisting of approximately nineteen thousand acres have been transferred over the past seventeen years, many parcels have not been transferred.

The legislature further finds that Act 139, Session Laws of Hawaii 2021, established the Act 90 working group to determine the process, status, challenges, and potential remedies regarding the transfer of non-agricultural park lands to fulfill the purposes of Act 90.

The Act 90 working group determined that certain agricultural lands under the department of land and natural resources have multiple management objectives that clearly fall within the department of land and natural resources' purview and mission. The working group therefore determined that these multi-use lands should remain under the management of the department of land and natural resources. The working group also found that collaborative working relationships between the department of land and natural resources, department of agriculture, and lessees of multi-use agricultural lands can have many public value benefits, including food production, conservation, and natural resources management.

The purpose of this Act is to adopt recommendations from the Act 90 working group regarding agricultural multi-use lands, including:

(1) Specifying that agricultural multi-use lands under the management of the department of land and natural resources are not subject to transfer to and management by the department of agriculture;

(2) Requiring the department of land and natural resources to revise the department's land classifications to include agricultural multi-use lands; and

(3) Establishing and funding an agricultural multi-use lands specialist position to promote collaborative working relationships and leverage funding sources to support natural land stewardship, reforestation, and other public purposes on agricultural multi-use lands.

SECTION 2. Section 166E-3, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsection (a) to read as follows:

"(a) Upon mutual agreement and approval of the board and the board of land and natural resources:

(1) The department may accept the transfer of and manage certain qualifying non-agricultural park lands; and

(2) Certain assets, including position counts, related to the management of existing encumbered and unencumbered non-agricultural park lands and related facilities shall be transferred to the department[.];

provided that lands classified by the department of land and natural resources as agricultural multi-use pursuant to section 171-10 shall remain under the management of the department of land and natural resources and shall not be subject to transfer to and management by the department."

SECTION 3. Section 171-10, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

"§171-10 Classes of lands. The board of land and natural resources shall classify all public lands and in doing so be guided by the following classifications:

1. Intensive agricultural use

(A) First class--Lands highly productive of intensive crops such as sugarcane, pineapples, truck crops, and orchard crops.

(B) Second class--Lands having medium productivity for intensive crops.

2. Special livestock use

(A) First class--Lands highly suitable for special livestock uses such as swine, dairy, and poultry production. In making the determination, consideration shall be given to drainage, climate, topography, proximity to market, and transportation and compatibility to adjoining land use, among other considerations. "Dairy" as used for disposition purposes means a "dry lot" dairy without allowance for grazing.

(B) Second class--Lands suitable for special livestock uses, but inferior to those of first class.

3. Pasture use

(A) First class--Lands having a potentially high economic animal unit carrying capacity and capable of correspondingly high liveweight gains per acre per year, such as, less than five acres per animal unit per year and more than one hundred pounds live beef gains per animal unit per acre per year.

(B) Second class--Lands having a potentially medium economic animal unit carrying capacity and capable of moderate liveweight gains per acre per year, such as, five to twenty acres per animal unit per year and twenty to one hundred pounds live beef gains per animal unit per acre per year.

(C) Third class--Lands having a relatively low animal unit carrying capacity and producing correspondingly low liveweight gains per acre per year, such as, more than twenty acres per animal unit per year and less than twenty pounds average live beef gains per animal unit per acre per year.

4. Commercial timber use

(A) First class--Lands of high suitability for growth of merchantable timber having mean annual growth potential under normal forest management practices with yields exceeding amounts such as one thousand board feet per acre, and with location and terrain presenting favorable logging, transportation, and marketing conditions.

(B) Second class--Lands of high suitability for growth of merchantable timber having mean annual growth potential under normal forest management practices with yields exceeding amounts such as one thousand board feet per acre, and with location and terrain presenting less favorable logging, transportation, and marketing conditions.

(C) Third class--Lands of medium suitability for growth of merchantable timber having mean annual growth potential in amounts such as five hundred to one thousand board feet per acre under normal forest management practices, and with location and terrain presenting favorable logging, transportation, and marketing conditions.

(D) Fourth class--Lands of medium suitability for growth of merchantable timber having mean annual growth potential in amounts such as five hundred to one thousand board feet per acre under normal forest management practices, and with location and terrain presenting less favorable logging, transportation, and marketing conditions.

(E) Fifth class--Lands of relatively low suitability for growth of merchantable timber having mean annual growth potential less than an amount such as five hundred board feet per acre, and with location and terrain presenting favorable logging, transportation, and marketing conditions.

(F) Sixth class--Lands of relatively low suitability for growth of merchantable timber having mean annual growth potential less than an amount such as five hundred board feet per acre, and with location and terrain presenting less favorable logging, transportation, and marketing conditions.

5. Quarry use

Lands having sufficient quantity and quality of rock, gravel, and sand for purpose of commercial use.

6. Mining use

Lands bearing sufficient quantity and quality of mineral products for purpose of commercial mining and use.

7. Recreational use

Lands suitable for use and development as parks, playgrounds, historical sites, natural area, camp grounds, wildlife refuge, scenic sites, and other such uses.

8. Watershed use

Lands suitable for the use and development as watersheds or for the development of water, and requiring necessary restrictions on other uses.

9. Residential use

Lands suitable and economically feasible for residential development and use.

10. Commercial and industrial use

Lands suitable and economically feasible for commercial and industrial development and use.

11. Hotel, apartment, and motel use

Lands suitable and economically feasible for hotel, apartment, and motel development and use.

12. Resort use

Lands suitable and economically feasible for resort development and use.

13. Agricultural multi-use

Lands having agricultural value as well as natural resource, conservation, or public recreation value.

[~~13.~~] 14. Unclassified uses

Lands not otherwise classifiable under the foregoing sections."

SECTION 4. (a) There is established within the department of land and natural resources land division one full-time equivalent (1.0 FTE) agricultural multi-use lands specialist position.

(b) The agricultural multi-use lands specialist shall facilitate collaborative relationships between the department of land and natural resources, department of agriculture, and agricultural multi-use land tenants and shall leverage federal funds from the National Resources Conservation Service and other funding sources to support natural land stewardship, reforestation, and other public purposes on agricultural multi-use lands.

SECTION 5. 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 2022-2023 for one full-time equivalent (1.0 FTE) agricultural multi-use lands specialist position established pursuant to section 4 of this Act.

The sum appropriated shall be expended by the department of land and natural resources for the purposes of this Act.

SECTION 6. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 7. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2022.

INTRODUCED BY:	_____________________________

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.B. NO.	1660
THIRTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2022
STATE OF HAWAII