OPPOSE SB872 to prevent a PLDC 2.0

/

February 14 update:

SB872 was deferred by the Senate Committees on Housing + Public Safety and Intergovernmental and Military Affairs + Water and Land and is essentially done for this session.

Mahalo nui to everyone who submitted written testimony and turned out for the hearing!

February 11:

SB872 exempts housing projects developed under private-public partnerships with the Hawaiʻi Housing Finance and Development Corporation (HHFDC) from any state and county laws, ordinances, rules and restrictions concerning land development, planning, and building construction standards, and zoning, among other exemptions. Sound familiar? SB872 is a near repeat of the Public Lands Development Corporation (PLDC) that was passed in 2011 and repealed two short years later, after tremendous public outcry and grassroots advocacy.

Date, time of hearing with name of committee(s)

Monday, February 13 at 3:01pm in the Senate Committees on Housing + Public Safety and Intergovernmental and Military Affairs + Water and Land, conference room 225

Bill number + description

SB872 allows the Hawaiʻi Housing Finance and Development Corporation to develop certain housing projects that are exempt from laws, rules, and ordinances, including income restrictions, under certain circumstances.

Why this bill is bad

SB872 is a free-for-all for developers. By its express language, this bill would let them engage in private-public partnerships with the HHFDC, to get an automatic free pass from any and all laws concerning the development and improvement of land, planning, zoning, and construction standards - among other things - to develop housing projects without any income restrictions for residents.  

Environmental assessments that can avoid unnecessary environmental impacts and human health hazards; historic preservation review that can prevent the permanent loss of cultural sites and iwi kūpuna; community development plans and zoning ordinances that protect culturally, socially, and agriculturally significant features and landscapes; building standards that take into account sea level rise or that could require energy efficient features - all of these and more would be thrown out the window, for housing developments with units priced above what most local residents can afford, and potentially sold to the richest among us.

While the bill intends to provide much needed housing to Hawaiʻi’s residents, SB872 does so in a grossly negligent manner, without regard for Hawaiʻi’s laws and processes that safeguard the public’s needs - including for housing that is truly affordable. 

SB872 would have immediate and long standing impacts on the environmental, cultural, and socioeconomic health and well-being of our islands, irreversible impacts that could be felt for generations. 

Sample testimony

Dear Chairs Chang, Wakai, Inouye, Vice Chairs Kanuha and Elefante, and members of the committees, 

My name is ______ and I respectfully OPPOSE SB872. 

I appreciate this bill’s apparent desire to tackle our islands’ housing challenges. However, the exemptions for public private partnerships with the HHFDC are simply too broad, and risk too many significant and potentially irreversible impacts, for this measure to be feasible.   

Environmental assessments that can avoid unnecessary environmental impacts and human health hazards; historic preservation review that can prevent the permanent loss of cultural sites and iwi kūpuna; community development plans and zoning ordinances that protect culturally, socially, and agriculturally significant features and landscapes; building standards that take into account sea level rise or that could require energy efficient features - all of these and more would be thrown out the window, for housing developments with units priced above what most local residents can afford.

This bill could have immediate and long standing impacts on the environmental, cultural, and socioeconomic health and well-being of our islands - including irreversible impacts that could be felt for generations. 

Accordingly, I respectfully urge the Committees to HOLD SB872. Mahalo nui for the opportunity to testify.

Sincerely, 

[Your name]

Testimony instructions:

  1. Register for a capitol website account if you havenʻt yet (youʻll need to confirm your registration by responding to an automated email)

  2. Sign in to capitol.hawaii.gov with your registration information and click the "Submit Testimony" button.

  3. Enter "SB872" where it says "Enter Bill or Measure."

  4. Input your information and your written testimony, select your testimony option(s)—in-person + written, remotely + written, written only. Please consider providing verbal testimony (in-person or remotely) if you are able! 

    1. Note: Virtual testimony option may be disabled 24 hours before the hearing.

  5. If you are testifying via Zoom, be sure to review these instructions (page 4)

OPPOSE SB71 to prevent well environmental review exemptions

/

February 6 update:

SB71 was passed out of the Senate Committees on Water and Land + Agriculture and Environment on 2/3 with amendments.

WAL Sens. Inouye and Chang voted in favor of the bill, Sens. Elefante and McKelvey voted yes with reservations, and Sen. Fevella voted against the bill.

AEN Sens. Gabbard and Richards voted in favor of the bill, Sens. DeCoite and Rhoads voted yes with reservations, and Sen. Awa voted against the bill.

The bill will now move to the Senate Judiciary + Ways and Means committees.

February 1:

This is another zombie bill that comes back year after year. This year its SB71, in 2022 it was SB2602 and SB1292 in 2021. The bill was heard earlier in the week on Jan 30 but deferred decision making until Friday, February 3. No testimony will be heard on Friday but the committees will vote.

Date, time of hearing with name of committee(s)

Friday, February 3, 1pm in Senate Committees on Water and Land + Agriculture and the Environment 

Bill number + description

SB71 exempts wells on Department of Agriculture lands from environmental review. Hawaiʻi’s Environmental Review laws help to protect Hawaiʻi’s natural and cultural resources from exploitation and degradation. 

Why this bill is bad

SB71 exempts wells on Department of Agriculture lands from environmental review. Hawaiʻi’s Environmental Review laws help to protect Hawaiʻi’s natural and cultural resources from exploitation and degradation. Hawaiʻi’s public trust water resources are also already under strain from climate change, over extraction, diversions, and pollution. Exempting major infrastructure projects, like wells, from our environmental review requirements may result in needless impacts to our natural and cultural resources and associated cultural and recreational activities, by removing public and expert review in project planning and development.

OPPOSE HB1247 to stop public land development exemptions

/

February 3 update:

HB1247 was heard in the House Housing + Environmental Protection Committee on February 3rd. After several cautious comments and opposition were given from testifiers, Chair Hashimoto deferred the bill—the bill is now done for this session! Mahalo nui to everyone that testified on this bad bill.

February 1:

Week two of the legislature and we are hot on the tracks of a bad bill trying to make its way through committee hearings. HB1247 is a scary environmental review exemptions bill that could have irreversible ecological, cultural, and socioeconomic impacts on public lands. Please take a minute and submit testimony in opposition! 

Hearing info:

Friday, February 3, 10:35am- Committee on Housing & Committee on Energy & Environmental Protection. Agenda is here. 

Bill description:

HB1247 would exempt housing developments on public lands or using public funds from Hawaii’s environmental review laws under Chapter 343. 

Why this is bad:

Our environmental review law has, for 40 years, played a critical role in ensuring that certain decisions potentially impacting our islands’ environmental, cultural, and socioeconomic integrity are carefully and transparently assessed. Notably, the environmental  review process includes opportunities for decisionmakers and project planners to be informed by those with a wide range of expertise, insight, and experiences, who often offer recommendations to reduce any unnecessary impacts to important public interests. Right now, the government and developers need to be even more diligent in protecting Hawaiʻi’s public trust resources that are already under strain from climate destabilization, over development, diversions, and pollution. Exempting development projects on public lands or that receive public funds from environmental review may therefore have irreversible and unnecessary environmental, cultural, and socioeconomic impacts on the public - now, and for generations into the future.

The Sierra Club notes that there are a number of strategies, many of which are currently under consideration by this legislature, that can be prioritized, to address the multi-faceted housing crisis our islands are experiencing – without risking the potentially unnecessary and irreversible erosion of critically important public interests, or creating the substantial public conflict and controversy this measure invites. 

Sample testimony

Dear Chair Lowen, Chair Hashimoto, Vice Chair Cochran, Vice Chair Aiu, and members of the Committees,

I OPPOSE HB1247, which aims to exempt certain housing developments from environmental review law.  As a resident of these islands, I recognize the critical importance of housing for our current and future generations to keep Hawaiʻi a place they call home. However, the housing crisis cannot be used to strip away critical protections for our natural and cultural resources that make our home so special to us - and that could be unnecessarily impacted or destroyed as a result. (Include personal story or connection to a particular place you love). As such, exempting development projects from thorough and informed environmental review may have irreversible environmental, cultural, and socioeconomic impacts that must be carefully considered, not bypassed. 

Please vote against HB1247 to ensure the responsible development of our precious lands and public trust resources. Mahalo nui!

Sincerely,

[Your name]

Testimony instructions:

  1. Register for a capitol website account if you havenʻt yet (youʻll need to confirm your registration by responding to an automated email)

  2. Sign in to capitol.hawaii.gov with your registration information and click the orange "Testimony" button.

  3. Enter "HB1247" where it says "Enter Bill or Measure."

  4. Input your information and your written testimony, and where it says "How will you be testifying?" make sure to check the bubble up to testify remotely via Zoom if you can! 

  5. If you are testifying via Zoom, sign back into your account on the capitol website three hours before the hearing and click on the orange "Testimony" button again; on the left hand side youʻll be able to scroll down and there will be a Zoom link next to the HB1247 (for more information see here)