STAND. COM. REP. NO. 3317

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: H.B. No. 1546

H.D. 1

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 H.B. No. 1546, H.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO RESTORATION OF BEACH LANDS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to amend the definition of "beach restoration" used in laws governing the Board of Land and Natural Resources' powers to engage in beach restoration by expanding the types of activities the State recognizes as restorative and beneficial to beach lands in response to the increasing threat of sea level rise and beach loss.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Land and Natural Resources; Office of Planning and Sustainable Development; City and County of Honolulu Office of Climate Change, Sustainability and Resiliency; University of Hawaiʻi Sea Grant College Program; Climate Resilience Collaborative; Surfrider Foundation, Hawaiʻi Region; and five individuals.

Your Committee received comments on this measure from two individuals.

Your Committee finds that the current definition of "beach restoration" is limited to the placement of sand on a beach from outside sources such as streams, harbors, quarries, and offshore sand sources. In recent years, community organizations have expressed an interest in conducting related nature-based activities, including dune restoration, to promote a naturally resilient shoreline. This measure will help protect and preserve Hawaii's coastlines by broadening the definition of "beach restoration" to include other beneficial activities.

Your Committee has amended this measure by clarifying that the definition of "beach restoration" means any activity undertaken to:

(1) Maintain and improve beaches and dune systems through management of sand and native dune vegetation;

(2) Remove abandoned remnant materials from beaches and dunes that pose a risk to public health and coastal ecosystems; or

(3) Nourish eroded beaches through the placement of compatible sand from an outside or adjacent source, with or without stabilizing structures.

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. 1546, H.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 1546, H.D. 1, 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,

________________________________

LORRAINE R. INOUYE, Chair