SCR100

WHEREAS, agricultural crimes, including theft, vandalism, and trespassing, are a persistent issue affecting Hawaii farmers and ranchers; and

WHEREAS, according to a 2020 publication by the United States Department of Agriculture and Hawaii Department of Agriculture, there were nearly nineteen thousand incidents of theft, vandalism, and trespassing on Hawaii farms in 2019; and

WHEREAS, these incidents cost Hawaii farms approximately $14,400,000, or ten percent of the estimated 2018 Hawaii net farm income, in theft and vandalism losses and security costs; and

WHEREAS, people often trespass onto Hawaii's farms and ranches to illegally hunt; and

WHEREAS, these trespassers, who are often armed with weapons and accompanied by dogs, can be particularly dangerous and destructive for farming operations and can even result in injury to or loss of life of landowners, farm or ranch operators, and hunters; and

WHEREAS, reports have emerged regarding destroyed crops, lost livestock, illegal drug use, litter, and discarded animal carcasses on farm property; and

WHEREAS, despite the prevalence and cost of agricultural crimes, many incidents go unreported and few result in convictions; and

WHEREAS, of the nearly nineteen thousand incidents in 2019, only nine hundred seventy incidents were reported to law enforcement, which resulted in seventy-nine arrests and sixty‑seven convictions; and

WHEREAS, greater protections are needed to prevent illegal hunting on Hawaii's farms and ranches without infringing upon cultural hunting practices; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Thirty-second Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2024, the House of Representatives concurring, that a working group is requested to be convened to discuss the parameters for legislation that will protect Hawaii's farmers and ranchers from unscrupulous hunters on their property while still protecting the cultural practices of hunters; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Speaker of the House of Representatives is requested to appoint the member of House District 46 to serve as chairperson of the working group; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the working group is requested to consist of a member of the Senate, to be appointed by the President of the Senate, and representatives from the following entities:

(1) United States Army Garrison Hawaii;

(2) Federal Aviation Administration;

(3) Department of Land and Natural Resources;

(4) Department of Agriculture;

(5) Office of Hawaiian Affairs;

(6) The police department of each county;

(7) Pig Hunters Association of Oahu;

(8) Hawaii Cattlemen's Council;

(9) Hawaii Farm Bureau; and

(10) Any other entity the chairperson of the working group deems appropriate and invites to participate; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the working group is requested to submit a report of its findings and recommendations, including any proposed legislation, to the Legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2025; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature Reference Bureau is requested to assist the working group in preparing its report and any proposed legislation; provided that the working group submits a draft of the working group's proposals to the Legislative Reference Bureau no later than November 1, 2024; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Senior Commander of the United States Army Garrison Hawaii, Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration, Chairperson of the Board of Land and Natural Resources, Chairperson of the Board of Agriculture, Chairperson of the Board of Trustees of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Speaker of the House of Representatives, President of the Senate, Director of the Legislative Reference Bureau, Chief of Police of the Honolulu Police Department, President of the Pig Hunters Association of Oahu, President of the Hawaii Cattlemen's Council, and President of the Hawaii Farm Bureau.

OFFERED BY:

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Report Title:

Farms; Ranches; Illegal Hunting; Working Group

THE SENATE	S.C.R. NO.	100
THIRTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2024
STATE OF HAWAII