STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2871

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 3025

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2024

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Judiciary, to which was referred S.B. No. 3025 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO HEMP,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to:

(1) Clarify that the Department of Agriculture shall not require inspections or sampling of hemp that duplicate inspections and sampling required by the United States Department of Agriculture; and

(2) Repeal the requirement for the Department of Agriculture to adopt rules necessary to address nuisance issues, including smell, noise, and excessive lighting, arising out of the activities of certain hemp growers.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Agriculture.

Your Committee finds that existing law requires the Department of Agriculture to create additional rules to address nuisance issues, including smell, noise, and excessive lighting arising out of the activities of hemp growers. However, pre-existing regulations and authority under the Department of Health and county land use ordinances address these types of nuisances. Your Committee believes that these pre-existing frameworks of regulatory oversight for nuisance and other issues are the proper and preferred means to avoid any ambiguity that may arise. This measure will avoid the creation of a duplicative enforcement framework that may result in confusion and challenges due to incompatible oversight and conflicting actions and decisions.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Judiciary that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 3025 and recommends that it pass Third Reading.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Judiciary,

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KARL RHOADS, Chair