STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2068

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2023

RE: S.B. No. 781

S.D. 2

H.D. 2

Honorable Scott K. Saiki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Thirty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2023

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Finance, to which was referred S.B. No. 781, S.D. 2, H.D. 2, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO RENEWABLE ENERGY,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to:

(1) Require government entities in the State that issue building permits to:

(A) Implement, by January 1, 2024, SolarAPP+ or a functionally equivalent online automated permitting platform that verifies code compliance and issues permits to licensed contractors for solar distributed energy resource systems in real time; and

(B) Adopt self-certification for residential and commercial on-site solar distributed energy resource systems, if the territory is served by an investor-owned electric utility; and

(2) Exempt work with respect to residential distributed energy resource systems from the professional engineers, architects, surveyors, and landscape architects licensure law.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Hawaii Green Infrastructure Authority; School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology at the University of Hawai‘i at Manoa; Kauai Climate Action Coalition; Clean the Pacific; Environmental Caucus of the Democratic Party of Hawai‘i; Sierra Club of Hawai‘i; Our Revolution Hawaii; Climate Protectors Hawai‘i; Ulupono Initiative; Hawaii Unified Industries, LLC; Independent Energy Hawaii; Photonworks Engineering; Elemental Excelerator; Hawai‘i Energy; Sunrun; Alternate Energy Hawaii; Hawaii Environmental Change Agents' Decarbonization of Buildings Task Force; Hawaiian Electric; Hawaii Food Industry Association; Malama Solar; 350Hawaii.org; Fortress Power; Hawaii Solar Energy Association; Pacific Resource Partnership; Sunspear Energy LLC; Blue Planet Foundation; Green Power Projects LLC; Solar Services Hawaii LLP; Grand Solar Inc.; Hawai‘i Executive Collaborative Climate Coalition; Alexander & Baldwin; Bowers + Kubota; Merriman's; Goldwings Supply Service, Inc.; Zephyr Insurance Company, Inc.; and numerous individuals. Your Committee received testimony in opposition to this measure from the American Institute of Architects, Hawaii State Council; International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local Union No. 1186, AFL-CIO; and two individuals. Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Board of Professional Engineers, Architects, Surveyors, and Landscape Architects.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Finance that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 781, S.D. 2, H.D. 2, and recommends that it pass Third Reading.

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

____________________________

KYLE T. YAMASHITA, Chair