STAND. COM. REP. NO. 441

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 1037

S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2023

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Transportation and Culture and the Arts, to which was referred S.B. No. 1037 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO LIMU KALA,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to designate Limu Kala (Sargassum echinocarpum) as the official Hawaii state limu.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Land and Natural Resources; Mālama Pūpūkea-Waimea; Kua‘āina Ulu ‘Auamo; Mālama Limu Club of Kamehameha Schools Kapalāma High School; Ocean Era, Inc.; Kauhakō Ohana Association; and fourteen individuals.

Your Committee finds that limu holds ecological and cultural significance to the State. Limu kala grows in the nearshore ecosystem and is abundant seasonally in many intertidal and subtidal habitats, including tidepools and reef flats in areas with moderate to high wave action. Limu kala is a critically important component of a healthy and productive reef ecosystem, and is a culturally significant food source in Native Hawaiian culture. Therefore, recognizing the significance of limu kala allows cultural knowledge to be shared across generations and around the world. To recognize the importance of limu kala in various scientific and cultural aspects, this measure designates limu kala as the official limu of the State.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Inserting an effective date of July 1, 2050, to encourage further discussion; and

(2) 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 Transportation and Culture and the Arts that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 1037, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 1037, S.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Judiciary.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Transportation and Culture and the Arts,

________________________________

CHRIS LEE, Chair