Bill Text: HI HB464 | 2019 | Regular Session | Introduced

---

Bill Title: Relating To Nuclear Energy.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 4-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2019-01-22 - Referred to EEP/EDB, CPC, FIN, referral sheet 3 [HB464 Detail]

Download: Hawaii-2019-HB464-Introduced.html

---

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.B. NO.	464
THIRTIETH LEGISLATURE, 2019
STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

 

 

relating to nuclear energy.

 

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

 

     SECTION 1.  The legislature finds that despite the increasing ability to generate electricity from alternative energy sources, Hawaii remains dependent on imported fossil fuels for more than eighty per cent of its energy generation.  The vast majority of electricity in Hawaii is generated in outdated diesel and fossil fuel-powered facilities, resulting in numerous environmental and economic problems.  Electricity rates in Hawaii are more than one hundred per cent higher than the national average.  At the peak of the oil crisis in mid-2008, the average household electric bill on Oahu was nearly two hundred per cent higher than the national average and rates on the neighbor islands were even higher.

     The legislature further finds that the energy market in Hawaii is dominated by one company that controls most of the production and nearly one hundred per cent of the distribution of energy in the State, and, therefore, has little incentive to develop alternatives.  This amounts to a monopoly.

     The legislature finds that nuclear energy is a safe and efficient alternative to fossil fuels and that nuclear power generation facilities already exist in Hawaii in the form of the United States Navy's nuclear-powered vessels berthed at Pearl Harbor.  Many areas throughout the continental United States, Europe, and Asia produce electricity with nuclear energy.  France, for example, has constructed fifty-eight nuclear power facilities that generate nearly ninety per cent of the country's electricity.  Just as in these other areas, the opportunity exists in Hawaii to safely use nuclear energy to generate electricity and substantially reduce the State's dependence on expensive imported fossil fuels.

     SECTION 2.  (a)  The nuclear energy commission is established within the department of business, economic development, and tourism, for administrative purposes only.

     (b)  The commission shall consist of the following members:

     (1)  The director of business, economic development, and tourism, who shall serve as the chairperson of the commission;

     (2)  Three members of the general public with expertise in nuclear energy generation or nuclear waste disposal, to be appointed by the governor;

     (3)  The director of health or the director's designee;

     (4)  An expert on nuclear energy from the University of Hawaii appointed by the president of the University of Hawaii;

     (5)  An expert on nuclear waste disposal from the University of Hawaii appointed by the president of the University of Hawaii;

     (6)  An expert on nuclear energy generation from the United States Navy shall be requested to serve;

     (7)  A representative of the United States Department of Energy shall be requested to serve; and

     (8)  A representative from the Nature Conservancy shall be requested to serve.

     (c)  The commission shall:

     (1)  Study the feasibility of developing nuclear energy generation facilities in Hawaii;

     (2)  Evaluate the risks and benefits of developing nuclear energy generation facilities in Hawaii, including environmental risks;

     (3)  Evaluate the short-term and long-term economic costs and benefits of developing nuclear energy generation facilities in Hawaii; and

     (4)  Study strategies for safely disposing, storing, or reprocessing nuclear waste.

     (d)  The commission shall report its findings and recommendations to the legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the regular session of 2020.

     SECTION 3.  The commission shall cease to exist on June 30, 2020.

     SECTION 4.  This Act shall take effect upon its approval.

 

INTRODUCED BY:	_____________________________

 

 

Report Title:

Nuclear Energy; DBEDT

 

Description:

Establishes a nuclear energy commission within the Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism to study the feasibility, risks, and benefits of developing nuclear energy generation facilities in Hawaii.  Requires report to 2020 Regular Session of Legislature.

 

 

 

The summary description of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.