State Rep. Roland Sagum, D-16th District, provided an update this week on four legislative bills he has been working on that would directly impact Kaua‘i residents.
He discussed the status and shared his rationale behind the pending legislation, which focuses on Westside state parks, islandwide mining operations, Samuel Mahelona Memorial Hospital in Kapa‘a and Hanapepe Salt Ponds.
“I encourage Kaua‘i people to keep in close contact with their respective legislators to ensure that bills that are important to them do not fall through the cracks,” Sagum said in a statement on Tuesday. “Don’t underestimate the importance and power of the people to influence legislation, especially as we approach the end of the session.”
The representative introduced House Bill 2872, relating to public lands, to require the Department of Land and Natural Resources to extend the “recreation-residence” use leases at Koke‘e State Park and Waimea Canyon State Park for five years.
The department has been granting leases on a month-to-month basis because the idea of converting to a public auction process became so contentious, he said.
The bill crossed over to the Senate where it was significantly amended to eliminate the extension. As it now stands, the DLNR could use the public auction process to lease recreation-residences for a period not to exceed 20 years.
Current lessees would have the opportunity to match the winning bid.
The bill is not specific to Koke‘e or Waimea Canyon, and essentially establishes a state policy for the way recreation-residences are to be leased by DLNR for the future.
“I believe that the public auction process is still problematic for many long-time lessees at Koke‘e and Waimea Canyon state parks,” Sagum said. “A five-year extension would give us some time to work on a process that is acceptable by the majority of the community rather than force a public auction that may be very divisive.”
Councilman Tim Bynum said yesterday that the two state parks, including the cabins, need to be preserved foremost for the enjoyment of the local community who turned the land over to the state.
The state needs to be sensitive about this, he said.
“If they do an auction to the highest bidder, we could have people with leases who have no real connection to Kaua‘i,” the councilman said.
The House and Senate will work jointly to see if a compromise between the two versions of the bill can be reached, he said.
Mining restrictions
House Bill 3286, related to mining, is dead for this session. It proposes to allow those engaged in mining to mine within agricultural districts for sand, rock, gravel and other materials used in construction.
While the majority of the testimony was opposed to the bill, Sagum said, those involved in construction understand that Hawai‘i faces a great need for new sources of aggregate.
“Rock is vital to our economy because it is an essential component of two basic building materials: concrete and asphalt,” he said. “All of the islands do not presently have enough operating quarries to meet the demand for basalt aggregate. If we cannot meet the demand through local quarries, we will need to import rock, and the cost of that will be two to four times the present cost.”
The representative said he will consider introducing a new bill next year that will take into consideration the concerns of the community.
Emergency funds
for hospitals
House Bill 3161 would make an emergency appropriation to the Hawai‘i Health Systems Corporation. This bill has made it through the House and Senate and is headed for discussion in a joint conference committee before the end of the session to iron out differences between the House draft and the Senate draft.
The emergency money would pay to operate and maintain current levels of service at community hospitals, including Samuel Mahelona Memorial Hospital on the Eastside.
“Access to health care is one of the most important issues facing Kaua‘i residents,” Sagum said. “The cost of health care has skyrocketed and this bill is critical to keeping hospitals on the Neighbor Islands open.”
Salt Pond Resource Management Plan
House Concurrent Resolution 117 requests the DLNR Land Division to assemble various state, county and community agencies to meet and develop a Hanapepe Salt Pond Resource Management Plan.
The preservation of the Hanapepe Salt Ponds requires that the state and county not only address the historic site issues, but the development of the surrounding land areas that impact the salt ponds and producing activity, Sagum said.
The representative said he introduced the legislation to bring the stakeholders together.
“There’s no question it’s a cultural icon that needs to be preserved,” Bynum said, noting the 1,000-year-old tradition persisting there. “It’s a unique and important part of Hawaiian culture. We need to nurture and care for that place … whatever it takes.”
He said Sagum’s proposal would help to identify the threats — such as wastewater runoff and vehicles — and devise mitigative measures.
The resolution has passed the House and has been sent to the Senate for consideration.
The Water and Land committee has scheduled a public hearing at 2:45 p.m., Wednesday, in conference room 414 at the Capitol Building.
The state Legislature is scheduled to adjourn May 1.
For more information, visit capitol.hawaii.gov.
