Sen. Troy Hashimoto

Establishes a public trust purpose for the Commission on Water Resource Management. Allows the Commission on Water Resource Management to retain independent counsel. Repeals the First Deputy to the Chairperson of the Commission on Water Resource Management. Establishes the Executive Director of the Commission on Water Resource Management. Administratively attaches the Commission on Water Resource Management to the Department of Land and Natural Resources. Authorizes members of the Commission on Water Resource Management to be eligible to serve as chairperson. Requires the Chairperson of the Board of Land and Natural Resources and Director of Health to serve as ex officio voting members ineligible to serve as chairperson. Authorizes entities to whom an emergency order is directed to challenge the order under certain conditions. Clarifies the notification requirements and contents of declarations of water shortages. Establishes fines. Makes conforming amendments. Effective 7/1/2050. (SD1)

Requires the Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism to develop and implement a grant program to expand the meat processing capacity in the State. Establishes requirements for grant applicants. Allows hunters access to qualifying meat processing facilities. Establishes positions. Appropriates funds. Effective 7/1/2050. (SD1)

Authorizes physicians to practice at organized ambulatory health care facilities even if the physician does not have hospital privileges at a licensed hospital in the same geographic location as the ambulatory facility. Provides that a written transfer agreement is not required to transfer a patient from an organized ambulatory health care facility to a licensed hospital.

Requires the Department of Health, to the extent allowable under federal law, to prioritize the use of Water Pollution Control Revolving Fund moneys for projects by homeowners to upgrade cesspools to director-approved wastewater systems or connect homeowners' properties to sewerage systems, including projects for the installation of cluster systems or community package plants. Effective 12/31/2050. (SD1)

Establishes a Desalination Planning Task Force to examine the feasibility of, and develop a plan and timeline for, the use desalination as a source of potable water in the State. (SD1)

Maddy summarySB 22 exempts state fisheries operations and management from requiring environmental reviews. This directly affects commercial fishing businesses and state fisheries management agencies. The bill removes the need for environmental impact assessments before implementing fisheries decisions. This changes existing state procedures by eliminating a review step for fisheries-related actions.

Requires any appointment of a person by the Governor to serve in the Executive Branch in the position of an advisor to be subject to the advice and consent of the Senate if that person's salary is greater than $200,000, and is not paid from the Governor's budget. Requires the Governor to transmit Governor's Messages to the Senate President containing nominations for each gubernatorial appointee who was appointed to their advisor position before the effective date of this Act and whose salary is greater than $200,000, and is not paid from the Governor's budget. Effective 1/1/2491. (SD1)

Adds state contractor's performance assessment to information required to be included in the past performance database maintained by the State Procurement Office. Appropriates funds. Effective 1/1/2491. (SD1)

Establishes the Department of Housing. Places the Hawaii Community Development Authority, Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corporation, Office of Planning and Sustainable Development, and Hawaii Public Housing Authority within the Department of Housing for administrative purposes. Replaces the Director of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism with the Director of Housing on the Hawaii Community Development Authority. Effective 7/1/2050. (SD1)

Clarifies that the civil service exemption for personal service contracts for building, custodial, and grounds maintenance services with qualified community rehabilitation programs shall not cost more than $850,000 in the aggregate per private person or entity, regardless of the number of contracts or qualified community rehabilitation programs utilized for the personal service. Effective 7/1/2050. (SD1)