STAND. COM. REP. NO. 3390

 

Honolulu, Hawaii

                  

 

RE:    S.C.R. No. 60

       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 Housing, to which was referred S.C.R. No. 60 entitled:

 

"SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION URGING THE HAWAII HOUSING FINANCE AND DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION TO DEVELOP A PLAN TO BUILD ONE HUNDRED THOUSAND HOMES OVER THE NEXT TEN YEARS,"

 

begs leave to report as follows:

 

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to urge the Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corporation to develop a plan to build one hundred thousand homes over the next ten years.

 

     Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corporation.

 

     Your Committee finds that included within the Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corporation's mission is not only the provision of financing for housing, but also the development of housing.  Your Committee further finds that the Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corporation should be at the forefront of proactively working to alleviate the State's housing shortage.  Therefore, this measure urges the Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corporation to develop a plan to increase the State's housing supply over the next ten years.

 

     Your Committee notes the concerns raised in testimony that certain systemic barriers, including but not limited to insufficient infrastructure, restrictive land use and zoning policies, lengthy and complex regulatory processes, community opposition, and high construction and financing costs, can considerably impede the development of housing in Hawaii and should be addressed in advance of the preparation of any reasonably implementable plan to accelerate housing production in the State.  Your Committee further notes that the Governor recently applied for $9,900,000 in Pathways to Removing Obstacles to Housing (PRO Housing) grant funds from the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development to address several of these factors.  Accordingly, your Committee believes that the PRO Housing grant application can assist in funding the plan proposed by this measure. 

 

     Your Committee has amended this measure by inserting language that requests the Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corporation's plan to include methods to address certain factors that can impede the development of housing.

 

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Housing that is attached to this report, your Committee concurs with the intent and purpose of S.C.R. No. 60, as amended herein, and recommends its adoption in the form attached hereto as S.C.R. No. 60, S.D. 1.

 

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Housing,

 

 

 

________________________________

STANLEY CHANG, Chair