Hawaii-2021-HB1027-Amended

SECTION 1. The marine life conservation program established in chapter 190, Hawaii Revised Statutes, has provided the State with some of its most ecologically, economically, and culturally valuable environmental assets. The comprehensive habitat protections authorized for marine life conservation districts have resulted in the unparalleled preservation of its nearshore reef ecosystems, presenting visitors, residents, and researchers alike with a unique opportunity to appreciate this relatively pristine marine area. In addition, the abundant marine life found within marine life conservation districts provides additional ecological and fishery services by the movement of fish and marine life to adjacent areas, the recruitment of marine life offspring throughout the State, and the ready availability of food stock for transitory predators and game fish.

Furthermore, the increasing popularity of marine ecotourism requires greater measures to ensure the continued health of the State's marine ecosystems. The broad range of recently documented anthropogenic impacts to the health of marine life conservation districts' ecosystems, including coral bleaching, vessel groundings, anchoring and mooring, diving activities, poaching, land-based and water-based pollutant discharges, and other direct and indirect uses of the State's resources, indicate that the department of land and natural resources may need a more consistent and reliable source of funding to manage, protect, and restore marine resources throughout the State. A sustainable funding source is especially critical during these current times of economic difficulty due to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The purpose of this Act is to:

(1) Establish the marine life conservation district special fund allowing for the collection and use of moneys for the management, protection, restoration, and enhancement of the State's marine life conservation districts and the resources contained within; and

(2) Except for the Hanauma bay marine life conservation district, authorize the department of land and natural resources to collect fees for the use of marine life conservation districts and the resources contained within.

SECTION 2. Chapter 190, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"§190- Marine life conservation district special fund. (a) There is hereby established in the treasury of the State the marine life conservation district special fund, which shall be administered by the department of land and natural resources.

(b) The following shall be deposited into the marine life conservation district special fund:

(1) Except as set forth in subsection (7), relating to the Hanauma bay marine life conservation district, moneys collected as user fees or fees for permits issued pursuant to section 190-4;

(2) Revenues due to the State derived from leases of any lands, facilities, equipment, and other property owned by the department of land and natural resources and used for or dedicated to the management, research, restoration, and enhancement of aquatic resources;

(3) Moneys collected as fines, bail forfeitures, attorney's fees, and administrative costs for violations of subtitle 5 of title 12 or any rule adopted thereunder, other than:

(A) Informer's fees authorized under section 187A-14;

(B) Fines or bail forfeitures for sport fishing violations of this chapter and chapters 188 and 189, as authorized under section 187A‑9.5(b)(3); and

(C) Fines, bail forfeitures, or administrative fines for violations of chapter 189, as authorized under section 189-2.4(b)(3);

(4) Moneys collected for the purposes of compensatory mitigation from federal or state permitted impacts to the environment or resources contained within the marine life conservation districts;

(5) Grants, awards, donations, gifts, transfers, or moneys derived from private or public sources for the purposes of subtitle 5 of title 12, other than:

(A) Monetary contributions or moneys collected from the sale of non-monetary gifts to benefit sport fish or sport fishing, as authorized under section 187A-9.5(b)(5);

(B) Monetary contributions or moneys collected from the sale of non-monetary gifts to benefit aquatic life used for commercial purposes or fishing for commercial purposes, as authorized under section 189-2.4(b)(5); and

(6) Moneys derived from interest, dividends, or other income from the above sources; and

(7) Fees and any other moneys collected from or in connection with the Hanauma bay marine life conservation district shall only be used for the benefit of the Hanauma bay marine life conservation district.

(1) Fulfill the purposes of this chapter, including but not limited to marine life conservation district monitoring, research, regulatory measures, enforcement actions, educational activities, or any other measure intended to conserve, supplement, and enhance the resources within any marine life conservation district established under this chapter or rules adopted thereunder;

(2) Provide management, monitoring, and support for public fishing areas, community-based subsistence fishing areas, fisheries management areas, and other areas of localized management;

(3) Develop and carry out any compensatory mitigation measures for impacts to the marine environment, including impacts to the marine environment from federal or state permitted actions, or violations of this chapter or any rule adopted thereunder; and

(4) Develop and carry out research projects, educational programs, management initiatives, and any other activity intended to conserve, supplement, and enhance the marine environment throughout the State.

(d) The fund shall be held separate and apart from all other moneys, funds, and accounts in the department of land and natural resources; provided that any moneys received from the federal government, through federal programs, from counties, or from private contributions shall be deposited and accounted for in accordance with conditions established by the agency, county, or private entity from whom the moneys are received; provided further that twenty per cent of all funds collected under subsection (b)(1) shall be payable to the office of Hawaiian affairs as ceded lands revenues. Any balance remaining in the fund at the end of any fiscal year shall be carried forward in the fund for the next fiscal year.

(e) The proceeds of the marine life conservation district special fund shall not be used as security for, or pledged to the payment of principal or interest on, any bonds or instruments of indebtedness.

(f) Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit the use of general funds or the funds of other programs and activities to implement or enforce subtitle 5 of title 12 or any rule adopted thereunder, concerning management and protection of marine life conservation districts and the resources therein."

SECTION 3. Section 190-4, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

"§190-4 Permits[.] and user fees. (a) The department of land and natural resources may, in any conservation district, prohibit the taking of marine life or the engaging in activities prohibited by this chapter and rules adopted thereunder, except by permit issued by it for scientific, education, or other public purposes on such terms and conditions deemed necessary to minimize any adverse effect within the conservation district; provided that the department shall provide written notice of any change in permit conditions ninety calendar days prior to the effective date of the change, except, as determined by the department, when an immediate change in permit conditions is necessary to protect or preserve the conservation district. The department may revoke any permit for any infraction of the terms and conditions of the permit. Any person whose permit has been revoked shall not be eligible to apply for another permit until the expiration of one year from the date of revocation.

(b) The department of land and natural resources may adopt rules pursuant to chapter 91 to establish fees or require permits for entry into the boundaries of any marine life conservation district established under this chapter to which public access is managed by a county with a population of 500,000 or more and for which a fee is charged for public access. Except for fees set aside for use at or for the Hanauma bay marine life conservation district pursuant to section 190‑ (b)(7), fees collected under this section or any rule adopted thereunder shall be deposited in the marine life conservation district special fund."

SECTION 4. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 5. This Act shall take effect on January 1, 2050.

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.B. NO.	1027
THIRTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2021		H.D. 1
STATE OF HAWAII