Sen. Joy San Buenaventura

Maddy summarySB 205 adds the Chairperson of the Hawaiian Homes Commission (or their designee) to the Commission on Water Resource Management. This procedural change directly affects the water commission by expanding its membership to include a representative from the Hawaiian Homes Commission. The bill’s key mechanism is simply modifying the commission’s membership structure to improve coordination between water resource management and Hawaiian Homes Commission activities. It does not alter water policies, funding, or regulations. The bill is currently in the early stages of the legislative process.

Requires the Department of Land and Natural Resources to acquire all West Maui water systems by eminent domain and hold the water systems in trust for the County of Maui to manage.

Establishes the Landfill Advisory Committee within the Department of Health. Requires the DOH, in consultation with the Department of Land and Natural Resources and each county's department of board or water supply to create maps of the State's drinking water aquifers. Prohibits the siting, construction, modification, or expansion of any waste or disposal facility for hazardous or solid waste on land that is near or above an aquifer as determined by the DOH in consultation with the affected county's department or board of water supply. Expands buffer zones from one-half mile to one mile around a waste or disposal facility. Establishes penalties. Expands the definition of buffer zone to include aquifers, hotel or tourist accommodations, and businesses.

Permits film production on lands that are zoned for agricultural use in counties with a population of less than five hundred thousand and that meet other conditions. Establishes the Agricultural Film Production Land Use Oversight Committee to monitor and enforce compliance with regulations on film permit activities on agricultural zoned lands.

Requires the counties to adopt ordinances setting forth procedures and requirements for the review and permitting of agricultural tourism uses and activities as secondary uses, in addition to accessory uses, on a working farm or farming operation. Requires the counties' ordinances to include requirements that: the principal agricultural use on a working farm or farming operation preexists the issuance of any land use permit or building permit for any accessory and secondary use; agricultural tourism includes only those activities that are allowed under existing zoning and land use regulations; and agricultural tourism be allowed only on land on which productive agricultural use is occurring.

Exempts state and county lands leased after July 1, 2025, for an initial period of not less than ninety-nine years from chapters 516 and 516D, Hawaii Revised Statutes.

Appropriates funds to support educational training programs to expand the State's health care workforce. Allocates funds to the Department of Education for health care certificate programs and classroom renovations for health care training in public high schools. Allocates funds to the University of Hawaii for education programs that support certified nurse assistants in becoming licensed practical nurses.

Requires that any new motor vehicle permitted by law to be equipped with a siren, whether purchased or contracted in the State to be equipped with dual frequency sirens.

Establishes a procedure for the Board of Land and Natural Resources to lease fast lands and submerged lands that were destroyed by an event triggering a Presidential Disaster Declaration.

Exempts disabled veterans from the State's vehicle weight tax and repeals the exemption for disabled veterans from the State's annual vehicle registration fee.