STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2327

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 2167

S.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 S.B. No. 2167 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO NATURAL RESOURCE PROTECTION,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to appropriate additional operational funds to the Department of Land and Natural Resources for the protection, management, and restoration of the State's natural resources.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Land and Natural Resources; Hawaii Reef and Ocean Coalition; Climate Protectors Hawaii; Kingdom Pathways; Care for ʻĀina Now Coalition; Hawaiʻi Forest Industry Association; Surfrider Foundation, Maui Chapter; Hyperspective Studios, Inc.; and fourteen individuals.

Your Committee finds that Hawaii's natural resources are the State's lifeblood, providing the essentials for the community to thrive and the foundation for Hawaii's economy. Investments in the protection of natural resources, including wetlands and coral reefs, can enhance the resilience of communities to natural disasters as natural buffers, saving lives and reducing the financial burden. This measure will allow the State to take a proactive approach to save lives, prevent natural disasters such as wildfires, and mitigate costs due to disaster response and recovery efforts.

Your Committee has amended this measure by inserting an effective date of July 1, 2050, to encourage further discussion.

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. 2167, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2167, S.D. 1, 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