This week's bill hearings

Several of our environmental priority bills are already scheduled for hearings next week! Due to COVID19, only written testimony is being accepted, making it important to login in to your capitol.hawaii.gov account and submit written testimony, or email the committees directly (the email links below are already pre-drafted with testimony).

Please SUPPORT the following bills:

1. SB2629 Proposed HD1 Relating to a Coal-Free Hawaii (SUPPORT). This bill would ban the use of coal in Hawai‘i beginning 2023 and has a hearing in EEP Committee on Monday, June 22nd at 9:30 AM. Submit testimony to the committee by clicking here: EEPtestimony@capitol.hawaii.gov.

Aloha Chair Lowen, Vice Chair Wildberger, and members of the EEP Committee,

I strongly support SB2629 Proposed HD1 to end the use of coal in Hawai‘i by 2023. Passing this bill brings Hawai‘i closer towards our clean energy goals and helps to address environmental justice issues, as the burning coal and dumping of toxic coal ash unfairly burdens O‘ahu’s westside communities. The last coal fired power plant has a contract that is already set to expire in 2022. Please support SB2629 Proposed HD1 and make Hawai‘i coal-free by 2023.

Thank you,
(your name)

2. HB1878 Sea Level Rise Seller Disclosure (SUPPORT). HB1878 would require sea level rise disclosure for real estate transactions, ensuring disclosure of the risks of purchasing properties in sea level rise exposure areas. This bill has a hearing in AEN & WTL on Wednesday, June 24th at 12:30 PM. Submit testimony to both committees by clicking here: AENtestimony@capitol.hawaii.gov and here: WTLtestimony@capitol.hawaii.gov.

Aloha Chair Gabbard, Chair Kahele, and members of the AEN and WTL Committees,

I support HB1878 to require mandatory sea level rise disclosure for real estate transactions, and support the language to use the State’s “SLR-XA” maps to determine which areas are impacted. Seller disclosure is already required for homes in flooding and tsunami zones and sea level rise disclosure is a common sense solution to help buyers better understand and prepare for the impacts of sea level rise.

Thank you,
(your name)

Please OPPOSE the following bills:

3. SB3103 Schools Facility Agency Exemption bill (OPPOSE). SB3103 would establish a “Schools Facility Agency” that is exempt from environmental impact statements, historic and cultural preservation, public procurement, and public transparency laws (more info here). The bill has a hearing in LHE on Tuesday, June 23rd at 1 PM. Submit testimony to the committee by clicking here: LHEtestimony@capitol.hawaii.gov

Dear Chair Woodson, Vice Chair Hashem, and Members of the Lower and Higher Education Committee,

Please OPPOSE SB3103. While I support addressing our school facility needs, an agency exempt from procurement, environmental, and historic preservation laws will invite far more harm than good. These laws keep our children safe, uphold the trust of taxpayers, and stop the outright desecration of all ancestral remains, Native Hawaiian or otherwise. Such a controversial measure should NOT be passed in light of the limited opportunity for public participation and dialogue over its final amended form. Please do not vote for its passage and HOLD SB3103 in committee.

Thank you,
(your name)

4. HB2035 Pasturelands Transfer bill (OPPOSE). HB2035 would transfer nearly one hundred thousand acres of public lands from the Department of Land and Natural Resources to the Department of Agriculture (more info here). The bill has a hearing on Wednesday, June 24th at 12:30 PM. Submit testimony to both committees by clicking here: AENtestimony@capitol.hawaii.gov and here: WTLtestimony@capitol.hawaii.gov.

Aloha Chair Kahele, Chair Gabbard, and members of the WTL and AEN Committees,

I strongly oppose HB2035, the "pasture" lands transfer bill. By transferring nearly 100,000 acres of public lands from the Department of Land and Natural Resources to the Department of Agriculture, the ranching industry could clear cut watershed forests and native species habitat, pay even less for our public trust resources, and even exempt development on these lands from state and county environmental and development laws. ⁠Such a controversial measure should NOT be passed in light of the limited opportunity for public participation and dialogue over its final amended form.

Thank you,
(your name)

Updated Priorities for June Reconvening

The Hawai‘i State Legislature will reconvene again from June 22 through July 10th to appropriate the remaining COVID-19 relief funding, make tweaks to the state budget, and potentially pass a handful of other non-fiscal bills.

Due to COVID-19 safety concerns, it is likely that the State Capitol will remain closed to the public, legislative hearings will be broadcasted online, and only written testimony will be allowed. There will also be no conference committee, which is normally one of the last steps of the legislative process where House and Senate Committee Chairs meet to discuss and approve the final drafts of bills. This means legislators are already figuring out budget issues and discussing which other bills to hear and pass. Below is a list of the Sierra Club’s updated bill priorities for when the legislature reconvenes next week.

Environmental bills we OPPOSE:

  1. GM583 - Oppose the nomination of Christopher Yuen to the Board of Land and Natural Resources. Chris Yuen has already served for 14 years and has voted against environmental and cultural protections on numerous issues before the BLNR. 

  2. SB3036 Oppose eliminating Hawai‘i’s solar tax credit, which not only makes installing solar systems on homes and local business affordable, but also lowers everyone's electricity bills, supports thousands local solar jobs in our communities, and provides tax revenue to the state. Learn more and take action HERE.

  3. SB2812 and HB2035 - Oppose transferring 93,000 acres of watershed “pasture” lands on Hawai‘i Island from the Dept. of Land and Natural Resources to the Dept. of Agriculture. The Dept. of Ag lacks the mission to protect these lands of significant natural and cultural resources and could also exempt agricultural development of these lands from environmental and land use laws. Learn more and take action HERE.

  4. SB2828 - Oppose amending the State Water Code to specify that fire safety is a beneficial use of water, potentially enabling the “waterbanking” of public trust resources. This bill is particularly relevant for Maui streams.

 

Environmental bills we SUPPORT:

Several of our environmental priority bills could still be passed this session. These bills have received little or no testimony in opposition, would not require state funding, and would help to address climate change impacts and boost our resiliency:

  1. HB1878 - Support requiring sea level rise disclosure for real estate transactions, ensuring disclosure of the risks of purchasing properties in sea level rise exposure areas.

  2. SB2060 - Support updating Hawai‘i’s coastal zone management law to prevent seawalls and protect beaches and coastal ecosystems.

  3. SB2629 Proposed HD1 - Support aligning the expected closure of Hawai‘i’s last coal-fired power plant with a ban on coal in Hawai‘i beginning 2023. 

  4. HB2699 - Support establishing state goals for 100% clean ground transportation by 2045.

  

We SUPPORT COVID-19 Relief for Working Families: 

In April, the state received $1.25 billion in CARES Act funding for COVID-19 relief and recovery. While some of these funds were appropriated to the counties to provide direct relief to struggling residents, $635 million in CARES funding was put into the state's "Rainy Day Fund" and still needs to be appropriated when the legislators reconvene in June.

The Sierra Club supports the Working Families Coalition’s proposal to allocate CARES Act funds to priorities like housing and food assistance, health care, social services, and child care. Hawai‘i already had the highest cost of living in the U.S. before COVID-19 hit. With nearly 140,000 people in Hawai‘i unemployed since April and a slow economic recovery ahead, many families are facing unprecedented financial hardship and need additional relief. Learn more and take action HERE.

The Sierra Club supports workers and vulnerable communities during this time of crisis. We will fight for a just recovery that helps working families and avoids exacerbating inequity and the ongoing global climate crisis. 

First Crossover Bill List

The Sierra Club of Hawai‘i is monitoring hundreds of environmental bills in the 2020 session, but we are focusing on a few key issues relating to climate change adaptation, replacing dirty energy with clean renewable sources, and protecting soil, freshwater resources, and lands. We have testified on 47 bills since the legislative session started. March 5th marks first crossover deadline where bills still alive “crossover” to the opposite chamber, meaning House bills move to the Senate and Senate bills move to the House. Below is an update on our priority bills.

Bills that have survived crossover:

Sea Level Rise:

  • HB1878, SB2670, SB2671 (Support) - Requires mandatory seller/purchaser disclosures in real estate transactions within sea level rise exposure areas to ensure transparency of the risks of sea level rise.

  • HB549, SB393, SB2060 (Support) - Amends Chapter 205A - Hawai‘i’s Coastal Zone Management Act to protect beaches and help prevent seawalls.

Energy:

  • HB1864 (Support) - Fixes the calculation of Hawai‘i’s Renewable Portfolio Standards to more accurately reflect progress towards Hawai‘i’s clean energy goals.

  • HB1934 (Support) - Develops a plan to increase jobs aligned with the State’s transition to a clean energy economy.

  • HB2657 (Support) - Ensure that Hawai‘i’s last coal-fired power plant closes in 2022 to make Hawai‘i “Coal Free by 2023.” 

  • HB2699 (Support) - Establishes 100% clean ground transportation goals by 2045.

  • SB1289 (Support) - Requires solar panels to be installed on new home development projects.

Water:

  • SB2828 (Oppose) - Amends the State Water Code to specify that fire safety is a beneficial use of water, potentially enabling the “waterbanking” of public trust resources.

Soils:

  • HB2167, SB2704 (Support) - Establishes a cover crop reimbursement pilot program in the Dept. of Agriculture to offset farmer costs of purchasing and planting cover crops, which improves soil health and decreases erosion and runoff

  • SB2531 (Support) - Increases funding to the Dept. of Land and Natural Resources’ State Tree Nursery to promote tree stocks that provide agricultural and soil health benefits.

Lands and Development:

  • HB2542, SB2620, SB3104 (Comments) - Weakens the authority of Land Use Commission in rezoning agricultural lands for “affordable” housing development.

  • HB2035, SB2812 (Oppose) - Requires the Dept. of Land and Natural Resources to transfer 93,000 acres of watershed forest “pasture lands” to the Dept. of Agriculture.

  • SB3103 (Oppose) - Establishes a School Facilities Agency and whose projects are exempt from many county and state laws including Chapter 343 environmental protection and Chapter 6e historic preservation.

Bills that have not made crossover deadline and are dead for this year:

Bills we supported:

  • HB2160- Creates a special fund for the Dept. of Land and Natural Resources’ State Tree Nursery to promote tree stocks that provide agricultural and soil health benefits.

    • Explanation: Bill was not heard by Rep. Luke in FIN

  • HB2154- Prohibit the harvesting of aquatic life for commercial aquarium purposes to protect reef ecosystems.

    • Explanation: Bill was deferred by Rep. Lowen in EEP and Rep. Yamane in WLH

  • HB2194- Updating Hawai‘i’s Coastal Zone Management Act to protect beaches and help prevent seawalls.

    • Explanation: Bill was deferred by Rep. Lowen in EEP and Rep. Yamane in WLH

  • SB2366- Ensures that Hawai‘i’s last coal-fired power plant closes in 2022 to make Hawai‘i “Coal Free by 2023”

    • Explanation: Bill was not heard by Sen. Wakai in EET

  • SB2774- Protecting O‘ahu’s drinking water from the Navy’s Red Hill fuel tanks.

    • Explanation: Bill was not heard by Sen. Baker in CPH

Bills we opposed:

  • HB2677- Extending the issuance of revocable permits to divert stream water and allowing for direct negotiation of water leases.

    • Explanation: Bill was not heard by Rep. Luke in FIN

  • HB2646- Amends the State Water Code to specify that fire safety is a beneficial use of water, potentially enabling the “waterbanking” of public trust resources.

    • Explanation: Bill was not heard by Rep. Luke in FIN

  • HB1821 and SB2810 - Severely restrict the public’s access to declaratory court decisions.

    • Explanation: Bill was deferred by Rep. Lee in JDC and Sen. Rhoads in JUD.

Top Bill hearings: 2/18 - 2/21

Aloha everyone! We are thrilled that so many of our high priorities have hearings this upcoming week, well before the crossover deadline of March 5th. Many of these hearings, however, are only accepting written testimony…which is why it is so important for you to login in to your capitol.hawaii.gov account and submit written testimony, preferably 24 hours in advance.

Updated action alert/post:

Additional bills have just been scheduled on Friday, Feb. 21 @12pm in the House Finance Committee. Bill number and sample testimony below:

bill hearings .png

HB2657 Relating to a Coal-Free Hawaii (SUPPORT):

  • Aloha Chair Luke, Vice Chair Cullen, and members of the Finance Committee. I strongly support HB2657 to end the use of coal in Hawai‘i by 2023. Although the last coal fired power plant has a contract that is set to expire in 2022, AES Hawai‘i is currently requesting to be able to increase their coal emissions, which makes this bill timely and necessary. Coal is extremely dirty and impacts public health and air quality. Passing this bill makes meaningful progress towards our clean energy goals and helps to address environmental justice issues, as the burning of coal and dumping of toxic coal ash unfairly burdens O‘ahu’s westside communities. Please support HB2657 and help to end the use of coal in our state.

HB2699 Clean Ground Transportation by 2045 (SUPPORT):

  • Aloha Chair Luke, Vice Chair Cullen, and members of the Finance Committee. Hawai‘i has set ambitious goals to reach 100% renewable energy by 2045, but ground transportation accounts for approximately 1/3 of Hawaii's fossil fuel consumption and additional progress needs to be made in the transportation sector. Setting a complimentary goal of 100% renewable ground transportation is important to reduce and eventually eliminate carbon-based ground transportation in favor of renewable energy alternatives. I support the bill’s approach to gradually transition state fleets by 2035 and then all vehicles to renewable energy-based transportation by 2045. Thank you to the many bill co-sponsors for setting another example on how Hawai‘i has the vision to combat climate change and I ask for your support of HB2699.

HB1878 Sea Level Rise Seller Disclosure (SUPPORT):

  • Aloha Chair Luke, Vice Chair Cullen, and members of the Finance Committee. I strongly support HB1878. Seller disclosure is already required for homes in flooding and tsunami zones and this bill ensures disclosure of the risks of purchasing a home in areas vulnerable to sea level rise. Disclosure is a common sense solution to help address the $19 billion that Hawai‘i faces in estimated private property loss from sea level rise and the 6,500 structures such as hotels, malls, and businesses that will be impacted. This bill is also an important first step towards managed retreat, which is a long-term solution to strategically move away from the coastline to adapt to sea level rise and other coastal impacts. Thank you for your support of HB1878.

HB2035 Transfers 93,000 acres of watershed lands to Dept, of Ag (OPPOSE). Sample testimony:

  1. Aloha Chair Luke, Vice Chair Cullen, and members of the Finance Committee. I oppose HB2035, which would transfer 93,000 acres of pasture lands from the Department of Land and Natural Resources to the Department of Agriculture. These lands are critical watershed forests that protect native plant and animal habitat. Hawai‘i also has a goal of being carbon neutral by 2045 and these lands have the best potential for large-scale reforestation and tree planting efforts. These lands are not meant for agricultural uses and should remain under the care of DLNR. I oppose this bill and ask you to please defer it in committee.


First action alert/post:

bill hearings  (1).png

Wednesday 2/19 @ 4 PM:

  • HB1934 Clean and Renewable Energy Jobs (SUPPORT). Sample testimony:

    Aloha Chair Luke and members of the FIN committee. I support HB1934, which would develop a plan to increase jobs in clean and renewable energy. As Hawai‘i advances to 100% clean energy by 2045, it is important we transition the 15,000+ current jobs in the fossil fuel industry to good paying careers in renewable energy. I support HB1934 to help boost our economy, protect public health, and mitigate climate change impacts.

Thursday 2/20 @ 10 AM:

  • SB2774 Red Hill Relocation Bill (SUPPORT). Sample Testimony:

    Aloha Chair Baker and members of the CPH committee. I strongly support SB2774 to require the Navy relocate its fuel at Red Hill away from drinking water resources. These tanks are almost 80 years old, have a history of leaks, are corroding, and are located only 100 feet above O‘ahu’s water. The Navy’s own recent study shows that the tanks at Red Hill have a 27.6% chance of leaking 30,000 gallons of fuel every year and that they expect chronic fuel leaks of 5,800 gallons every year. Meanwhile, the Navy is proposing to extend the deadline to upgrade the tanks to 2045, which is too long and would continue to risk the health and safety of O‘ahu’s drinking water. 2028 is a reasonable deadline for the Navy to relocate its fuel. Please support this bill.

Thursday 2/20 @ 10:35 AM:

  • SB2060 Coastal Zone Management and Protecting Beaches (SUPPORT). Sample testimony:

    Aloha Chair Dela Cruz and members of the WAM committee. I strongly support SB2060, which amends our coastal zone management laws to protect against impacts from sea level rise and coastal erosion. This bill also provides important guidance to the counties to help to prevent seawalls and other shoreline hardening structures, which destroys beaches, cultural resources, and coastal ecosystems. Thank you Chair Dela Cruz for introducing this bill and we ask the committee support and pass SB2060.

  • SB2812 Transfers 93,000 acres of watershed lands to Dept, of Ag (OPPOSE). Sample testimony:

    Aloha Chair Dela Cruz and members of the WAM committee. I oppose SB2812, which would transfer 93,000 acres of pasture lands from the Department of Land and Natural Resources to the Department of Agriculture. These lands are critical watershed forests that protect native plant and animal habitat. Hawai‘i also has a goal of being carbon neutral by 2045 and these lands have the best potential for large-scale reforestation and tree planting efforts. These lands are not meant for agricultural uses and should remain under the care of DLNR. I oppose this bill and ask you to please defer it in committee.

Friday 2/21 @ 10:30 AM:

  • SB2670 Sea Level Rise Buyer Disclosure (SUPPORT). Sample testimony:

    Aloha Chair Rhoads, Chair Baker, and members of the JDC and CPH Committees. I support SB2670. Sea level rise disclosure is a common sense solution to help address the $19 billion that Hawai‘i faces in estimated private property loss due to sea level rise and ensures that buyers understand the risks of purchasing a home in vulnerable areas. This bill is also an important first step towards managed retreat, which is a long-term solution to strategically move away from the coastline to adapt to sea level rise and other coastal impacts. Please support SB2670 and SB2671.

  • SB2671 Sea Level Rise Seller Disclosure (SUPPORT). Sample testimony:

    Aloha Chair Rhoads, Chair Baker, and members of the JDC and CPH Committees. I support SB2671. Seller disclosure is already required for homes in flooding and tsunami zones and ensures that sellers disclose the risks of purchasing a home in areas vulnerable to sea level rise. Disclosure is a common sense solution to help address the $19 billion that Hawai‘i faces in estimated private property loss from sea level rise and the 6,500 structures such as hotels, malls, and businesses that will be impacted. This bill is also an important first step towards managed retreat, which is a long-term solution to strategically move away from the coastline to adapt to sea level rise and other coastal impacts. Please support SB2670 and SB2671.


Help us advance good environmental policies and stop bad bills by logging in to your capitol.hawaii.gov account and submitting written testimony on these top priority bills. Mahalo!

First Lateral bill updates

The Sierra Club of Hawai‘i is monitoring hundreds of environmental bills in the 2020 session, but we are focusing on a few key issues relating to climate change mitigation and adaptation, replacing dirty energy with clean renewable sources, and protecting soil, freshwater resources, and lands. We just passed the first lateral deadline, here’s a breakdown of what on our priority list is still moving:

Sea Level Rise:

  1. Requires mandatory seller/purchaser disclosures in real estate transactions within sea level rise exposure areas (Support): HB1878, SB2670, SB2671

  2. Amends Chapter 205A - Hawai‘i’s Coastal Zone Management Act to protect beaches and give guidance for county planning (Support): SB2060.

Water:

  1. Protecting O‘ahu’s drinking water from the Navy’s Red Hill fuel tanks (Support): SB2774

  2. Extending the issuance of revocable permits to divert stream water and allowing for direct negotiation of water leases (Oppose): HB2677

Energy and Transportation:

  1. Ensure that Hawai‘i’s last coal-fired power plant closes in 2022 to make Hawai‘i “Coal Free by 2023” (Support): HB2657.

  2. Establishing 100% clean transportation goals by 2045 (Support): HB2699.

Healthy Soils (O‘ahu Group priority):

  1. Cover crop reimbursement pilot program (Support): HB2167, SB2704.

  2. DOFAW tree stock bills (Support): HB2160, SB2531.

Land Use:

  1. Weakens the authority of Land Use Commission in rezoning agricultural lands for “affordable” housing development (Oppose): SB2620, SB3104, HB2542.

Priority Bills Update

The Sierra Club of Hawai‘i is monitoring hundreds of environmental bills in the 2020 session, but we are focusing on a few key issues relating to climate change mitigation and adaptation, replacing dirty energy with clean renewable sources, and protecting soil, freshwater resources, and lands. Since session started, we have testified on 32 bills. We just passed the triple referral bill deadline, here’s a breakdown of what on our priority list is still moving:

Sea Level Rise:

  1. Requires mandatory seller/purchaser disclosures in real estate transactions within sea level rise exposure areas (Support): HB1878, SB2534, SB2670, SB2671

  2. Amends Chapter 205A - Hawai‘i’s Coastal Zone Management Act to protect beaches and give guidance for county planning (Support): HB549, SB393, SB1113. HB1848, SB2060.

Water:

  1. Extending the issuance of revocable permits to divert stream water and allowing for direct negotiation of water leases (Oppose): HB2677

  2. Protecting O‘ahu’s drinking water from the Navy’s Red Hill fuel tanks (Support): SB2774

Energy and Transportation:

  1. Ensure that Hawai‘i’s last coal-fired power plant closes in 2022 to make Hawai‘i “Coal Free by 2023” (Support): SB700, HB2657, SB2366.

  2. Establishing 100% clean transportation goals by 2045 (Support): HB2699.

Healthy Soils (O‘ahu Group priority):

  1. Cover crop reimbursement pilot program (Support): HB2167, SB2704.

  2. DOFAW tree stock bills (Support): HB2160, SB2531.

Land Use:

  1. Weakens the authority of Land Use Commission in rezoning agricultural lands for “affordable” housing development (Oppose): SB3104, HB2542.

Unfortunately, some of our priorities have been deferred for this session:

  • HB2154- Prohibit the harvesting of aquatic life for commercial aquarium purposes to protect reef ecosystems (Hawaii Island Group priority).

  • HB2194- Updating Hawai‘i’s Coastal Zone Management Act to protect beaches.

Initial High Priority Bills

The Sierra Club of Hawai‘i will be monitoring hundreds of environmental bills in the 2020 session, but we are focusing on a few key issues relating to climate change mitigation and adaptation, replacing dirty energy with clean renewable sources, and protecting freshwater resources. We are also supporting a handful of bills at the state level that have been identified as top issues by our four county groups. Here is a list of our high priority issues and correlating bills:

Sea Level Rise: Sea levels in Hawaii could rise more than 3.2 feet throughout the century. As sea level rises, coastal buffers, habitats, and resources will be greatly impacted and infrastructure and residence may no longer exist along the coast. The state estimates this would result in $19 billion in loss of private land and structures. The state needs to start planning now for the projected impacts of sea level rise to minimize costs and impacts on coastal communities and ecosystems. For this reason, the Sierra Club of Hawaiʻi will be prioritizing bills that:

  1. Require mandatory seller/purchaser disclosures in real estate transactions within sea level rise exposure areas: 

  2. Amend Chapter 205A - Hawai‘i’s Coastal Zone Management Act to protect beaches and give guidance for county planning: 

Water: From our streams to aquifer systems, we must ensure the protection of our freshwater resources. Hawaiʻi’s streams, in their original state, hold enough water to support the ecosystems—mauka to makai—that rely on them, such as subsistence farmers, cultural practices, renewable energy, and large scale agriculture. Likewise, with climate change and decreased rainfall, we must ensure our precious drinking water is protected. For these reasons, the Sierra Club of Hawaiʻi will be prioritizing bills that:

  1. Uphold state laws, ensuring water is first used for the public good before used for private profit. Prevent efforts to allow the continued use of temporary permits for stream diversions:

  2. Protect O‘ahu’s drinking water from the Navy’s Red Hill fuel tanks: 

Clean Energy: Hawai‘i is already leading the nation with our goal of producing 100% of our electricity from clean energy by 2045, but we must do more to ensure the transition to clean energy is accelerated and equitable for all. We will be supporting initiatives to reduce greenhouse gas emissions produced from the burning of fossil fuels and urging a transition from dirty to clean fuels. For these reasons, the Sierra Club of Hawaiʻi will be prioritizing bills that: 

  1. Ensure that Hawai‘i’s last coal-fired power plant closes in 2022: 

Group Priorities: A Honolulu-based State Capitol provides challenges to our neighbor island group members and volunteers, who need to travel to O‘ahu to directly interact with legislators and advocate on issues most critical to their island. This session we will be prioritizing issues that were identified as important to the Sierra Club’s four county groups. As a result, the Sierra Club of Hawaiʻi will be working on the following issues:

  1. Kaua‘i Group: Require greater setbacks for shoreline development to protect beaches and coastal resources:

    •  Potentially Chapter 205A Coastal Zone Management bills, listed above

    •  Potentially SB2381- Relating to shoreline setbacks

  2. O‘ahu Group: Create and fund programs to support farming practices that will develop healthy soils on Hawai‘i’s agricultural lands, both good for agriculture and carbon sequestration efforts: 

  3. Maui Group: No specific policies were identified, but the Chapter is already prioritizing climate change bills, which were the group’s top concern.

  4. Hawai‘i Island Group: Prohibit the harvesting of aquatic life for commercial aquarium purposes to protect reef ecosystems:

    • Commercial aquarium fish trade ban: HB2154

  5. Waste bills: Kaua‘i and Hawai‘i Island groups support policies to promote source reduction and zero waste principles to prevent waste rather than manage it after the fact. Since there are so many waste reduction bills - from plastics, to recycling, to food waste and composting - we will be leaning on partner organizations and lead volunteers to assist in this area.

We are a volunteer-driven organization that relies on our members and supporters to help inform our policy positions and increase our impact at the state legislature. As such, this bill list is dynamic and will be changing as bills progress throughout legislative session.

We invite you to engage with us. If you would like to have your voice heard on these and other important environmental justice issues, please sign this petition to join our new CapitolWatch email list so you will receive updates and action alerts sent directly to your inbox.

Happy session!