Bill Text: HI HB995 | 2024 | Regular Session | Amended
Bill Title: Relating To Important Agricultural Lands.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2024-03-25 - Received notice of discharge of all conferees (Hse. Com. No. 457). [HB995 Detail]
Download: Hawaii-2024-HB995-Amended.html
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HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES |
H.B. NO. |
995 |
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THIRTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2023 |
H.D. 2 |
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STATE OF HAWAII |
S.D. 1 |
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A BILL FOR AN ACT
RELATING TO IMPORTANT AGRICULTURAL LANDS.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:
SECTION 1. The legislature finds that the important agricultural lands designation serves as a resource overlay, a comprehensive statewide resource map, to identify those lands that are of significant agricultural value to the State. This resource overlay or map is intended to broadly inform decision makers of those lands that are needed to sustain Hawaii's agricultural industry and for which agricultural incentives should be targeted to promote and support high levels of agricultural production over the long term.
Section 205-47, Hawaii Revised Statutes, establishes a process for the counties to identify lands to be recommended for designation by the state use land commission as important agricultural lands. Section 205-49, Hawaii Revised Statutes, describes a process for land use commission decision making on the county maps but is ambiguous as to whether this is a rulemaking process or contested case proceeding. Section 15‑15‑125(d), Hawaii Administrative Rules, states that the land use commission may adopt county maps of important agricultural lands through rulemaking. The rule recognizes that resource mapping involves hundreds of parcels of land and cannot, in practical terms, be designated through hundreds of individual contested case hearings, but must be designated through public hearings and a quasi-legislative process. In this respect, the rule applied by the land use commission mirrors the method by which the counties adopt their regional community and development plans.
Accordingly, the purpose of this part is to clarify that the land use commission's adoption of county maps identifying important agricultural lands shall occur through rulemaking in conformance with existing Hawaii Administrative Rules.
SECTION 2. Section 205-49, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsection (a) to read as follows:
"(a) After receipt of the maps of eligible
important agricultural lands from the counties and the recommendations of the
department of agriculture and the office of planning and sustainable
development, the commission shall then proceed to identify and designate
important agricultural lands, subject to section 205-45. The decision shall consider the county maps
of eligible important agricultural lands; declaratory orders issued by the
commission designating important agricultural lands during the [three year]
three-year period following the enactment of legislation establishing
incentives and protections contemplated under section 205-46, as provided in
section 9 of Act 183, Session Laws of Hawaii 2005; landowner position
statements and representations; and any other relevant information.
In designating important
agricultural lands in the State, pursuant to the recommendations of individual
counties, the commission shall consider the extent to which:
(1) The proposed lands meet the
standards and criteria under section 205-44;
(2) The proposed designation is
necessary to meet the objectives and policies for important agricultural lands
in sections 205-42 and 205-43; and
(3) The commission has designated
lands as important agricultural lands, pursuant to section 205-45; provided
that if the majority of landowners' landholdings [is] are already
designated as important agricultural lands, excluding lands held in the
conservation district, pursuant to section 205-45 or any other provision of
this part, the commission shall not designate any additional lands of that
landowner as important agricultural lands except by a petition pursuant to
section 205-45.
[Any decision
regarding the designation of lands as important agricultural lands and the
adoption of maps of those lands pursuant to this section shall be based upon
written findings of fact and conclusions of law, presented in] The
commission shall conduct at least one public hearing [conducted] in
the county where the land is located [in accordance with chapter 91, that
the subject lands] to receive testimony from the public. The commission shall subsequently designate
lands as important agricultural lands by adopting a map of the county
recommendations, in whole or in part, of those lands that meet the
standards and criteria set forth in section 205-44, and the adoption
of maps shall be approved by two-thirds of the membership to which the
commission is entitled.
The adoption of maps
designating important agricultural lands pursuant to this section shall not be
through a contested case hearing but through rulemaking pursuant to section
91-3."
PART
II
SECTION
3. The legislature further finds that, in
2008, the legislature passed a package of incentives for lands designated as
important agricultural lands pursuant to section 3
of article XI of the Hawaii State Constitution. Act 233, Session Laws of Hawaii 2008 (Act
233), provided incentives intended to promote agricultural
viability, sustained growth of the agricultural industry, and the long-term use
and protection of lands designated as important agricultural lands.
Act 233 included a provision allowing landowners to develop, construct, and maintain farm dwellings and employee housing for farmers, employees, and their immediate family members on lands designated as important agricultural lands; provided that occupants of these dwellings are actively engaged in farming. Although this provision was intended as an incentive for the designation and agricultural use of important agricultural lands, it is unclear whether the provision, as codified in section 205-45.5, Hawaii Revised Statutes, imposes more restrictive standards for farm dwellings and employee housing on important agricultural lands than the existing standards applied to farm dwellings and employee housing on lands in the agricultural land use district pursuant to chapter 205, Hawaii Revised Statutes.
The legislature recognizes that the lack of affordable housing for farmers and farm labor is an impediment to increasing food and non-food agricultural production in Hawaii. There is still a need for a means to develop housing for farmers and farm employees on lands designated as important agricultural lands that both reduces the cost and time required to supply such housing and ensures that the housing is used in conjunction with, and located on, an active farm and is occupied by bona fide farmers and farm employees. The purpose of this part is to amend infrastructure standards for important agricultural lands pursuant to section 205-51, Hawaii Revised Statutes, to meet agricultural needs by facilitating the provision of certain farmer and farm employee housing.
More specifically, the purpose of this part is to:
(1) Establish an important agricultural lands incentive to facilitate the development of farm cluster housing for farmers and farm employees who actively and currently farm important agricultural lands;
(2) Include farm cluster housing under a priority permit processing procedure for facilities on lands designated as important agricultural lands; and
(3) Repeal the existing requirements for farm dwellings and employee housing on important agricultural lands to eliminate any restrictions that may be stricter than what is allowed under the definition of a farm dwelling.
SECTION 4. Chapter 205, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new section to part III to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:
"§205- Important agricultural lands incentive;
farm cluster housing. (a) There is established an important
agricultural lands incentive to provide an alternative means of developing
housing for farmers and farm employees who actively and currently farm
important agricultural lands. The
incentive shall be used to support housing development projects that reduce
costs and time while ensuring that the housing developed does not contribute to
the loss of agricultural land to non‑agricultural residential uses or
residential sprawl.
(b) Notwithstanding section 205-51(b) and any
other law to the contrary, a landowner or lessee of agricultural lands that are
designated as important agricultural lands may apply to a county to develop,
construct, and maintain farm cluster housing on the lands for rent to:
(1) Farmers and farm employees who
actively and currently farm on important agricultural lands; and
(2) Immediate family members of the persons described in paragraph (1).
(c) Each county shall enact ordinances to allow farm cluster housing on important agricultural lands. The ordinances shall provide processes for:
(1) Conformance with the conditions in subsection (d);
(2) Exemption from subdivision of the land and other county subdivision ordinances;
(3) Priority review and processing;
(4) The development of more units per lot than allowed by the underlying county zoning; and
(5) The submission to the county of the landowner or lessee's agricultural plan or agricultural business plan supporting the development of farm cluster housing and providing evidence of a real property tax agricultural dedication granted by the county. The agricultural plan and agricultural tax dedication verification shall be submitted to the appropriate county agency for review and comment and may be submitted by the county to the department of agriculture for review and comment, before any county action on the application.
(d) Farm cluster housing shall be subject to the following conditions:
(1) Farm cluster housing shall be allowed only on lots of record that are at least ten acres;
(2) The primary occupant of each farm cluster housing unit shall be a farmer or farm employee who is actively and currently farming the important agricultural lands upon which the farm cluster housing unit is situated. This restriction shall be stated in any applicable rental documents;
(3) The total land area upon which the
farm cluster housing units and all appurtenances are situated shall occupy the
lesser of:
(A) A contiguous block or area
comprising no more than five per cent of the lot of record; or
(B) Ten acres;
(4) The farm cluster housing units shall
meet all applicable building code and infrastructure requirements and standards
necessary to ensure safe and healthful occupancy;
(5) The farm cluster housing units shall not be used as short-term vacation rentals; and
(6) If farm cluster housing units are
vacated as a result of the cessation of any agricultural operations on the
land, the landowner or lessee may rent the farm cluster housing units under the
same restrictions imposed by this section to farmers or farm employees who are
actively and currently farming other agricultural lands.
(e) The officer or agency charged with the
administration of county zoning laws within each county may enforce the
building and use restrictions in this section and impose penalties for
violations of any provision of this section or the county permit.
(f) Farm dwellings and employee
housing units on lands designated as important agricultural lands that are not
processed as farm cluster housing pursuant to this section shall be subject to
all applicable state laws, county ordinances, and rules.
(g) For the purposes of this section, "farm cluster housing" means a housing development
that concentrates housing units and shared infrastructure in a compact area
within the larger lot and minimizes the land area occupied by the housing
development."
SECTION 5. Section 205-46.5, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending its title and subsection (a) to read as follows:
"[[]§205-46.5[]] Agricultural processing facilities; farm
cluster housing; permits; priority.
(a) Any agency subject to this
chapter [or title 13] that issues permits shall establish
and implement a procedure for the priority processing of permit applications
and renewals, at no additional cost to the applicant, for [agricultural]
the following:
(1) Agricultural processing facilities that process crops or livestock from an agribusiness; or
(2) Farm cluster housing developed pursuant to section 205- ;
provided that the majority of the lands held, owned, or used by the agribusiness or farm cluster housing applicant shall be land designated as important agricultural lands pursuant to this part, excluding lands held, owned, or used by the agribusiness or applicant in a conservation district.
Any priority permit processing procedure established pursuant to this section shall not provide or imply that any permit application filed under the priority processing procedure shall be automatically approved."
SECTION
6. Section 205-45.5, Hawaii Revised
Statutes, is repealed.
["[§205-45.5] Important agricultural land; farm
dwellings and employee housing. A
landowner whose agricultural lands are designated as important agricultural
lands may develop, construct, and maintain farm dwellings and employee housing
for farmers, employees, and their immediate family members on these lands;
provided that:
(1) The farm dwellings and employee
housing units shall be used exclusively by farmers and their immediate family
members who actively and currently farm on important agricultural land upon
which the dwelling is situated; provided further that the immediate family
members of a farmer may live in separate dwelling units situated on the same
designated land;
(2) Employee housing units shall be used
exclusively by employees and their immediate family members who actively and
currently work on important agricultural land upon which the housing unit is situated;
provided further that the immediate family members of the employee shall not
live in separate housing units and shall live with the employee;
(3) The total land area upon which the
farm dwellings and employee housing units and all appurtenances are situated
shall not occupy more than five per cent of the total important agricultural
land area controlled by the farmer or the employee's employer or fifty acres,
whichever is less;
(4) The farm dwellings and employee
housing units shall meet all applicable building code requirements;
(5) Notwithstanding section
205-4.5(a)(12), the landowner shall not plan or develop a residential
subdivision on the important agricultural land;
(6) Consideration may be given to the
cluster development of farm dwellings and employee housing units to maximize
the land area available for agricultural production; and
(7) The plans for farm dwellings and
employee housing units shall be supported by agricultural plans that are
approved by the department of agriculture."]
PART III
SECTION 7. This Act does not affect rights and duties that matured, penalties that were incurred, and permit proceedings begun before its effective date under the use and district standards for the state agricultural land use district and underlying county zoning.
SECTION 8. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.
SECTION 9. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2050.
Report Title:
Important Agricultural Lands; Adoption of County Maps; Land Use Commission; Farm Cluster Housing
Description:
Clarifies the decision-making process for the adoption by the Land use Commission of county maps for the designation of important agricultural lands. Repeals the provision for farm dwelling and employee housing on important agricultural lands and adopts a new provision for farm cluster housing to incentivize the designation of lands as important agricultural lands. Effective 7/1/2050. (SD1)
The summary description
of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is
not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.
