STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2588

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 2753

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2024

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committees on Government Operations and Agriculture and Environment, to which was referred S.B. No. 2753 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO BUILDING CODES,"

beg leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to clarify that no state or county building code shall prohibit the use of a substitute refrigerant allowed by the Environmental Protection Agency if the applicable equipment is listed and installed in compliance with the latest safety standards.

Your Committees received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Health, Hawaii Chapter of 350.org, Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute, and Climate Protectors Hawaiʻi.

Your Committees find that certain refrigerants, including hydrofluorocarbons, are potent greenhouse gases that can have an immense impact on global warming. While the American Innovation and Manufacturing Act of 2020 mandates an eighty-five percent phasedown in hydrofluorocarbon refrigerants, updates to the State Building Code are needed to comply with this mandate. This measure ensures the safety and efficiency of alternate refrigerants while promoting environmental protection.

As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Government Operations and Agriculture and Environment that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2753 and recommend that it pass Second Reading and be referred to your Committee on Judiciary.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committees on Government Operations and Agriculture and Environment,

________________________________ MIKE GABBARD, Chair

________________________________ ANGUS L.K. MCKELVEY, Chair