STAND. COM. REP. NO. 3325

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: H.B. No. 1581

H.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2024

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Water and Land, to which was referred H.B. No. 1581, H.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO WILDFIRE PREVENTION,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to appropriate funds to the Department of Land and Natural Resources to develop a Native Plant Nurseries and Seed Bank Initiative Program.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Land and Natural Resources, Office of Hawaiian Affairs, University of Hawaiʻi System, Care for ʻĀina Now Coalition, The Nature Conservancy, Lāhainā Strong, Hawaiʻi Forest Industry Association, Democratic Party of Hawaiʻi, and six individuals.

Your Committee finds that following the August 2023 Maui wildfires, the Speaker of the Hawaii House of Representatives established six bipartisan interim working groups tasked with evaluating specific topics in the aftermath of the wildfires and making recommendations for appropriate legislative action in the Regular Session of 2024. Your Committee further finds that the findings from the bipartisan interim working groups, specifically the Wildfire Prevention Working Group, highlight the urgent need for preventative action to mitigate the risks of wildfire across the State. This measure will adopt the recommendation of the Wildfire Prevention Working Group to increase support for native plant nurseries and seed bank initiatives, which aligns with the best practices in ecosystem restoration and wildfire risk reduction.

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 H.B. No. 1581, H.D. 1, and recommends that it pass Second Reading and be referred to your Committee on Ways and Means.

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

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LORRAINE R. INOUYE, Chair