OPPOSE HB2089 - Anti-resilience building codes
/April 5 update:
HB2089 HD2 failed to be heard in its final committee—meaning that it is essentially pau for this session! Mahalo nui to everyone that took action throughout this session to stop this problematic bill.
March 22 update:
Unfortunately, HB2089 HD2 was passed out of the Senate Government Operations committee.
Thank you to everyone that submitted testimony in opposition! There were over two dozen testimonies in opposition thanks to you all. Stay tuned for our next chance to stop this problematic bill.
HB2089 HD2, would render our residents and families much more vulnerable to climate-related extreme weather events, by giving developers a free pass on building code updates.
HB2089 HD2 would allow our building codes to languish for the better part of a decade before being updated, foregoing the normal, 3-year amendments based on new technologies, lessons learned, and best building practices to protect residents and first responders from ever-more frequent natural disasters and human tragedies associated with the climate crisis.
As heat waves, hurricanes, floods, and wildfires become more and more frequent, experts have been using lessons and best practices from around the planet to update building and infrastructure standards via the International Building Code, in order to best protect tenants – as well as firefighters and other first responders – in the event of emergencies both small and large. By skipping the normal 3-year amendments to the State Building Code based on the International Building Code updates, this bill would allow developers to build to outdated standards that put people and families at unnecessary risk of harm from climate-related disasters.
This anti-resilience bill is premised on the claim that building permit reviewers cannot keep up with the three year cycle, but as Civil Beat’s Christina Jedra has clearly documented, building permit reviews largely suffer due to the inability of county planning departments to hire and retain qualified staff. Skipping building code standards will do little to solve a problem rooted in issues of staff pay and management, and would instead render our residents and families needlessly vulnerable through outdated building standards while developers continue to maximize their profits. National watchdog organizations have also indicated that other jurisdictions may follow Hawaiʻi’s lead if this bill is passed, raising the stakes for life-or-death consequences far beyond our shores.
Please take a moment to submit testimony in opposition to HB2089 HD2.
Sample testimony:
Aloha e Chair McKelvey, Vice Chair Gabbard, and Members of the Committee,
My name is ____ and I am from ____, and I stand in strong opposition to HB2089 HD2. This measure fails to address the true root causes of building permit delays: the inability of county planning departments to recruit and maintain permitting staff. Instead, this bill will saddle residents and families, as well as our first responders, with outdated building code standards that place their safety, health, and lives at unnecessary risk in the event of climate-related extreme weather events.
Please, do not place Hawaiʻi’s families’ safety – and our islands’ climate resiliency – at risk without first prioritizing the true root causes of building permit delays. Please HOLD HB2089 HD2.
Mahalo nui for the opportunity to testify.
TESTIMONY INSTRUCTIONS
Register for a capitol website account if you haven’t yet (youʻll need to confirm your registration by responding to an automated email)
Sign in to capitol.hawaii.gov with your registration information and click the "Submit Testimony" button.
Enter ”HB2089” where it says "Enter Bill or Measure."
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! Note: Virtual testimony option may be disabled 24 hours before the hearing.
If you are testifying via Zoom, be sure to review these instructions (page 4)