Bill Text: HI HCR187 | 2020 | Regular Session | Introduced

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Bill Title: Requesting The Department Of Business, Economic Development, And Tourism, In Cooperation With The Department Of Agriculture And The Department Of Commerce And Consumer Affairs, To Conduct A Study On Agricultural Cooperatives.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 10-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-03-11 - Referred to EDB/AGR, FIN, referral sheet 40 [HCR187 Detail]

Download: Hawaii-2020-HCR187-Introduced.html

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HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.C.R. NO.	187
THIRTIETH LEGISLATURE, 2020
STATE OF HAWAII

HOUSE CONCURRENT

RESOLUTION

 

 

Requesting the Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism, in Cooperation with the DEPARTMENT of Agriculture and the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, to conduct a study on agricultural cooperatives.

 

 

 

     WHEREAS, while there is no universally accepted definition, a cooperative can be defined as a business entity established pursuant to state law that is owned and operated for the benefit of any individual who utilizes the cooperative's services; and

 

     WHEREAS, according to the National Agricultural Law Center, an agricultural cooperative, sometimes referred to as a farmer cooperative, is often formed to bolster the collective economic market power of a group of farmers; and

 

     WHEREAS, an agricultural cooperative can serve various functions, including providing loans to farmers, supplying information regarding agricultural production, bargaining on behalf of its members, or marketing agricultural products for its members; and

 

     WHEREAS, generally, an agricultural cooperative is:

 

     (1)  Owned and democratically controlled by the entities that use the cooperative's services;

 

     (2)  Limited with respect to the returns that its members receive on their individual financial investments into the cooperative;

 

     (3)  Financed primarily by cooperative members and entities that utilize the services of the cooperative; and

     (4)  Equitable in the distribution of any net profits to its members, generally distributing profits in proportion to each member's use of the cooperative; and

 

     WHEREAS, traditionally, agricultural cooperatives are organized to support three main objectives: supply; marketing; or service; and

 

     WHEREAS, a supply agricultural cooperative provides to its members inputs necessary for agricultural production, such as fertilizers or pesticides; and

 

     WHEREAS, a marketing agricultural cooperative provides to its members marketing assistance for their agricultural products; and

 

     WHEREAS, a service agricultural cooperative provides to its members services related to their agricultural endeavors, such as housing, transportation, or insurance; and

 

     WHEREAS, value-added agricultural cooperatives are a newer type of agricultural cooperative that is growing in popularity and holds promise in Hawaii due to the State's value-added manufacturing sector; and

 

WHEREAS, value-added agricultural cooperatives assist with the conversion of raw agricultural products into further processed products, and value-added agriculture is a rapidly expanding area of Hawaii's economy; and

 

     WHEREAS, agricultural cooperatives can be affected by state and federal regulations that do not necessarily apply to regular business corporations; and

 

     WHEREAS, given the scarcity of resources and high business costs faced by entities engaged in agricultural endeavors in the State, farmers in Hawaii may benefit from adopting a cooperative model of farming and farm ownership that will offer mutual support as well as cost- and resource-sharing; now, therefore,

     BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Thirtieth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2020, the Senate concurring, that the Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism is requested to conduct a study of agricultural cooperatives in cooperation with the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this agricultural cooperative study include an examination of:

 

     (1)  The structure of agricultural cooperatives in other states, including any regulations regarding formation, financing, and governance;

 

     (2)  Any efforts by state governments to regulate or support agricultural cooperatives; and

 

     (3)  Any benefits that State regulation or support of agricultural cooperatives may bring to Hawaii's farmers, industries, and economy; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism is requested to submit a report to the Legislature of its findings and recommendations, including any proposed legislation, no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2021; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Director of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism; Chairperson of the Board of Agriculture; and Director of Commerce and Consumer Affairs.

 

 

 

	OFFERED BY:	_____________________________

Report Title:

Agricultural Cooperatives Study; Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism; Department of Agriculture; Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs