STAND. COM. REP. NO. 3711

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: H.B. No. 649

H.D. 1

S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2026

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Ways and Means, to which was referred H.B. No. 649, H.D. 1, S.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO SMALL BOAT HARBORS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to amend statutory fee and permitting provisions applicable to commercial ocean operators at small boat harbors.

More specifically, the measure:

(1) Provides that a permittee shall pay fees for a use permit that are based on the impact of the permitted activity on natural resources, impact of the activity on public access to and use of state boating facilities and waters of the State, and the costs of administering the small boat harbor and coastal areas programs;

(2) Provides that an application fee shall be collected for any application for any use permit;

(3) Provides that a permittee carrying passengers for hire shall pay a monthly fee, in lieu of the generally applicable mooring fee, that is the greater of:

(A) Three per cent of the gross revenues derived from the use of the vessel;

(B) $1.50 per passenger carried for hire; or

(C) Two times the moorage fee that would otherwise be assessed for a recreational vessel of the same size;

(4) Clarifies that minimum revenue standards for commercial use permit holders are to be set forth in administrative rules; and

(5) Replaces language that allows for the automatic thirty‑day extension of an expired commercial permit with language that allows a permittee to make a written request for a one-time thirty-day permit extension, provided that the request is received by the Department no later than the permit's expiration date.

Your Committee received written comments in support of this measure from the Department of Land and Natural Resources.

Your Committee received written comments on this measure from two individuals.

Your Committee finds that there has been a rapid expansion of commercial ocean activity within a relatively short period of time, leading to overuse of state boating facilities, a strain on natural resources, and conflicts between recreational and commercial ocean users. Your Committee believes that this measure will help to ensure that all commercial ocean operators in State ocean waters are assessed permit fees under the same fee structure.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Ways and Means that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 649, H.D. 1, S.D. 1, and recommends that it pass Third Reading.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Ways and Means,

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DONOVAN M. DELA CRUZ, Chair