STAND. COM. REP. NO. 107

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2023

RE: H.B. No. 180

H.D. 1

Honorable Scott K. Saiki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Thirty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2023

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committees on Energy & Environmental Protection and Water & Land, to which was referred H.B. No. 180 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO CESSPOOLS,"

beg leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to:

(1) Create a Cesspool Conversion Section within the Department of Health's Wastewater Branch that is dedicated to facilitating the conversion of cesspools within the State; and

(2) Establish and appropriate funds for two new full-time equivalent permanent positions within the Cesspool Conversion Section for fiscal years 2023-2024 and 2024-2025 and two additional full-time equivalent positions for fiscal year 2024-2025.

Your Committees received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Land and Natural Resources, Department of Health, University of Hawai‘i Sea Grant College Program, University of Hawai‘i Water Resources Research Center, County of Hawai‘i Department of Environmental Management, Environmental Caucus of the Democratic Party of Hawai‘i, Hawai‘i Reef and Ocean Coalition, Hawai‘i Association of REALTORS, WAI: Wastewater Alternatives & Innovations, and four individuals.

Your Committees find that the State has more than eighty thousand cesspools that discharge approximately fifty million gallons of wastewater into the State's groundwater each day, causing harm to the health of Hawaii's people and the quality of Hawaii's waters. To ensure that all cesspools in the State are upgraded, converted, or connected to Director of Health-approved wastewater management systems by 2050, this measure provides additional resources and personnel to those conversion efforts.

Your Committees have amended this measure by:

(1) Specifying the positions to be established within the Cesspool Conversion Section; and

(2) Changing the effective date to June 30, 3000, to encourage further discussion.

As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Energy & Environmental Protection and Water & Land that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 180, as amended herein, and recommend that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 180, H.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Health & Homelessness.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committees on Energy & Environmental Protection and Water & Land,

____________________________ LINDA ICHIYAMA, Chair

____________________________ NICOLE E. LOWEN, Chair