Hawaii-2024-HB533-Introduced

SECTION 1. The legislature finds that Hawaii imports eighty-five per cent of its food at a cost of $3,000,000,000 annually. This adds to Hawaii's negative $1,600,000,000 trade deficit and Hawaii's food insecurity.

The legislature further finds that the State is the largest landowner in Hawaii and has thousands of acres that can be developed into farmland, including the approximately one-hundred twenty thousand acres of fee simple lands in Waiakea forest reserve, Hilo forest reserve, Olaa forest reserve. Converting these lands into a perpetual agricultural ahupua`a will create jobs and provide sustainable food for the people of Hawaii along with a forestry manufacturing center using high value timber, construction grade timber, and non-timber products that can produce exportable goods over and above the volume that could be consumed in the State.

The purpose of this Act is to establish a development zone within a county with the second largest resident population in the State as a district entitled the new ahupua`a zone, for the purpose of increasing agricultural production in the State.

SECTION 2. The Hawaii Revised Statutes is amended by adding a new chapter to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"CHAPTER .

NEW AHUPUA`A ZONE

§ -1 New ahupua‘a zone; established. (a) There is established within the department of agriculture a development zone known as the new ahupua`a zone. The new ahupua`a zone shall be situated in a county the second largest population in the State consist of the approximately one hundred twenty thousand acres of forest reserve land located in the central eastern region of the county.

(b) The department of land and natural resources shall establish the boundaries of the new ahupua`a zone by rules adopted pursuant to chapter 91.

§ -2 Purpose. The purpose of the new ahupua`a zone shall be to develop methods for the State to achieve self-sufficiency in food production.

§ -3 Management; authority; duties. (a) The governor shall select a for-profit or nonprofit entity to manage the new ahupua`a zone.

(b) The entity shall:

(1) Implement a master plan for the new ahupua`a zone by seeking farmers and businesses to operate within the new ahupua`a zone;

(2) Perform all land leasing, land licensing, and negotiations for joint venture projects;

(3) Manage the new ahupua`a zone though a master lease with at least per cent of the rent paid to the State within sixty days of receipt;

(4) Provide monthly income reports to the chairperson of the board of agriculture;

(5) Not be responsible for lease and license payments not received;

(6) Expedite completion of the first draft of a proposed use map for the master plan for the new ahupua`a zone within ninety-one days of being selected by the governor;

(7) Clear the land in phases to assess the general conditions of the land and natural resources;

(8) Coordinate special operating licenses, structured joint venture agreements, and construction of agricultural field roads;

(9) Receive, evaluate, approve, or disapprove all farming, forestry and construction plans submitted by lease holders, licensees, and joint venture partners in a timely manner; provided that any plan not approved or disapproved within ninety days shall be automatically approved; provided further that upon approval of a plan, the entity shall inspect the work to verify that the work complies with the plan. Inspectors designated by the entity shall inspect the operations at least once per year or at an interval designated by the entity;

(10) Seek private investors;

(11) Seek federal grants and philanthropic donations for special projects;

(12) Set aside a portion of the land within the new ahupua`a zone for a foreign-trade zone that is a secured area under United States Customs and Border Protection supervision and generally considered outside Customs and Border Protection territory upon activation;

(13) Form a business cooperative for businesses directly associated with the new ahupua`a zone to assist the farmers and business owners;

(14) Allow rock quarry sites within the new ahupua`a zone at sites selected by the entity;

(15) Allow the harvesting of timber within the new ahupua`a zone for construction and high value luxury products;

(16) Establish a forestry harvesting plan that considers all forestry management guidelines, including a reforestation plan or conversion plan for other non-timber uses;

(17) Allow water wells to be constructed within the new ahupua`a zone;

(18) Allow water from streams and rivers to be used for irrigation and hydropower plants located within the new ahupua`a zone; provided that no more than fifty per cent of the natural flow may be diverted for irrigation;

(19) Allow lessees, licensees, and joint venture businesses to install rain catchment ground covers in addition to any covered roof areas and reservoirs built within the boundaries of the new ahupua`a zone;

(20) Allow lessees, licensees, and joint venture businesses to install solar power fields within the boundaries of each entity within the boundaries of the new ahupua`a zone;

(21) Allow farm dwellings to be built within the boundaries of each entity in the new ahupua`a zone and rented to persons who work within new ahupua`a zone; and

(22) Seek and assist selected farmers to create test plots of new and proven commodities within the new ahupua`a zone.

(c) The entity may seek and negotiate the building of a private or government-run prison, that separates medium security inmates, maximum security inmates, and mentally ill people for humanitarian and psychological reasons, and allows on-the-job training and real work experiences for inmates who qualify to participate in training and work programs in agriculture, forestry, construction, or manufacturing.

§ -4 Exemption; construction permits. All construction for grubbing, grading, building, electrical work, plumbing, sewer infrastructure, and the installation of water wells and surface water collections systems shall be exempt from all state and county building permit requirements; provided that all construction plans shall be prepared by licensed engineers or registered land surveyors, as appropriate, who possess an active license to practice within the scope of their expertise in the State.

§ -5 Exemption; taxes. (a) Any company operating within the new ahupua`a zone shall be exempt from the general excise tax imposed pursuant to chapter 237 on all sales derived from the new ahupua`a zone for the first ten years of the company's lease in the new ahupua`a zone.

(b) Any business operating in the new ahupua`a zone shall be exempt from all state taxes derived from activities in the new ahupua`a zone while business improvements made by the business are being depreciated.

(c) All general excise taxes paid by a business for goods and services relating directly to any business conducted in the new ahupua`a zone shall be reimbursed by the State to the business as a tax refund as shown on the business's year-end tax return for the first seven years that the business operates in the new ahupua`a zone.

§ -6 Exemption; water connections. The new ahupua`a zone shall be exempt from providing water connections to the county of Hawaii.

§ -7 Exemption; zoning. Implementation of all proposed projects within the new ahupua`a zone shall be exempt from zoning and land use designation requirements, but shall be subject to the approval of the division of forestry and wildlife of the department of land and natural resources.

§ -8 Hawaii enterprise zone program; inclusion. The new ahupua`a zone shall be included within the Hawaii enterprise zone program pursuant to chapter 209E. All tax exemptions allowed to a business operating within the new ahupua`a zone shall be credited to the businesses on an annual basis as required by the Hawaii enterprise zone program. Tax exemptions specifically for the new ahupua`a zone as stated in this chapter or tax credits based on the Hawaii enterprise zone program shall be used by each business based on whichever is more advantageous to the business.

§ -9 Rules. The department of agriculture shall adopt rules pursuant to chapter 91 for the purposes of this chapter."

SECTION 3. There is appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $ or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2023-2024 and the same sum or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2024-2025 for the new ahupua`a zone.

The sums appropriated shall be expended by the department of agriculture for the purposes of this Act.

SECTION 4. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2023.

INTRODUCED BY:	_____________________________

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.B. NO.	533
THIRTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2023
STATE OF HAWAII