STAND. COM. REP. NO. 325

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 298

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2023

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committees on Public Safety and Intergovernmental and Military Affairs and Water and Land, to which was referred S.B. No. 298 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO THE HAWAII EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY,"

beg leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to:

(1) Authorize the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency to:

(A) Acquire any real, personal, or mixed property for its immediate or future use;

(B) Own, hold, improve, rehabilitate, sell, assign, exchange, transfer, convey, lease, or dispose of any real, personal, or mixed property acquired; and

(C) Acquire by condemnation real property for its immediate or future use; and

(2) Amend the definition of "public lands" to exclude lands to which the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency holds title.

Your Committees received testimony in opposition to this measure from Hawaiian Electric Company, Inc. Your Committees received comments on this measure from the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency and Office of Hawaiian Affairs.

Your Committees find that the existing headquarters complex for the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency at Diamond Head dates back to World War I, which creates maintenance complications and upkeep challenges that impact the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency's ability to fulfill its mission. To address these issues, the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency continues to explore new locations for the State Emergency Operation Center to be situated out of the hurricane and tsunami inundation zone. Your Committees believe that the flexibility afforded by this measure could provide the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency useful tools to expedite the timeline for the development of a new facility. This measure will offer the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency more flexibility in the mechanisms it employs to protect the people and property of the State by authorizing the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency to own, hold, improve, and take a variety of other actions with respect to real, personal, and mixed property, for current or future use, and amending the definition of "public lands" to exclude lands to which the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency holds title.

As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Public Safety and Intergovernmental and Military Affairs and Water and Land that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 298 and recommend that it pass Second Reading and be referred to your Committee on Ways and Means.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committees on Public Safety and Intergovernmental and Military Affairs and Water and Land,

________________________________ LORRAINE R. INOUYE, Chair

________________________________ GLENN WAKAI, Chair