Bill Text: HI SB3339 | 2024 | Regular Session | Introduced

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Bill Title: Relating To The Red Hill Remediation Authority.

Spectrum: Strong Partisan Bill (Democrat 14-1)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-02-09 - The committee on AEN deferred the measure. [SB3339 Detail]

Download: Hawaii-2024-SB3339-Introduced.html

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THE SENATE	S.B. NO.	3339
THIRTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2024
STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

 

 

relating to THE RED HILL REMEDIATION AUTHORITY.

 

 

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

 

PART I

     SECTION 1.  The legislature finds that the United States Navy's Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility consists of twenty steel-lined underground storage tanks that were built from 1940 to 1943.  Each tank can store 12.5 million gallons of fuel; in total, the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility can store up to two hundred fifty million gallons.  The tanks are located only about one hundred feet above the United States Environmental Protection Agency's designated sole-source groundwater aquifer that provides drinking water to approximately four hundred thousand residents of the island of Oahu.  Over the past eighty years, numerous spills have occurred at Red Hill.  Specifically, on November 20, 2021, about ninety-three thousand individuals served by the Navy's potable water system for Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam were directly affected when the Navy's Red Hill shaft was contaminated by the release of up to nineteen thousand gallons of fuel, including JP-5 jet fuel, older fuels stored at the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility, and any additives used.  Over six thousand individuals sought medical attention, and one thousand were forced to leave their homes due to the contamination.  Much of the fuel released from the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility remains in the environment, trapped within the complex geological formations beneath and near the tanks.

     The legislature further finds that on May 9, 2023, officials from the State and city and county of Honolulu signed a unified statement on Red Hill, recognizing the stewardship responsibility to ensure that there is clean water on Oahu for future generations.  The Red Hill Water Alliance Initiative (WAI), a working group, met regularly in 2023 since the signing of the unified statement.  The Red Hill WAI posed questions, conducted research, listened to subject-matter experts, and formulated recommended policies.

The legislature also finds that the Red Hill WAI's approach of total stewardship responsibility required a stance of extending beyond statutory roles, specific responsibilities, tenure in those roles, and even personal lifetimes.  Its inquiry included the pursuit of critical questions for which there may currently be no answers.  Thus, the pursuit of those answers is part of the ongoing work.

     The legislature notes that besides its regulatory functions under federal and state environmental laws, the State also has unique public trust responsibilities set forth in the Hawaii State Constitution, which establishes an affirmative duty of the State to preserve and protect public trust resources, including water resources.

     The legislature additionally finds that the focus of the Red Hill WAI's inquiry is the remediation needs after the defueling of the tanks and removal of residual fuel and contaminants from the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility.  In particular, the Red Hill WAI is concerned with the unknowns posed by fuel contaminants already in the ground, as well as the residuals of the fuel plume in the aquifer as a result of the spill that occurred on November 20, 2021.  In fact, there may be as many as 1,940,000 gallons of fuel constituents in the ground that have leaked or spilled over eight decades.  Pursuant to a proactive approach, the Red Hill WAI seeks to describe the remediation it believes necessary for the future well-being of the aquifer in which there is a negligible risk to current and future water sources, including the Halawa Shaft, Halawa wells, and Aiea wells; the water distribution system; and the ecosystem, including springs, streams, and nearshore waters.

After much diligent work, the Red Hill WAI issued a public report in November 2023 that set forth its findings and recommendations.  Some of the recommendations can only be addressed by the federal government, while other recommendations can be undertaken by the State and city and county of Honolulu.  Moreover, the legislature finds that there must be no delay in adopting the recommendations of the Red Hill WAI, especially those that can be implemented at the state and county levels.

     Therefore, the purpose of this Act is to:

     (1)  Establish the Red Hill remediation authority; and

     (2)  Create the Red Hill remediation special fund.

PART II

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

"Chapter

RED HILL WATER ALLIANCE INITIATIVE; REMEDIATION AUTHORITY

     §   -1  Definitions.  As used in this chapter, unless a different meaning is plainly required by the context:

     "Authority" means the Red Hill remediation authority.

     "Board of directors" means the board of directors of the Red Hill remediation authority.

     "Red Hill Water Alliance Initiative" means the group of individuals composed of the governor, speaker of the house of representatives, president of the senate, chairperson of the board of land and natural resources and commission on water resource management, president of the University of Hawaii, mayor of the city and county of Honolulu, chairperson of the Honolulu city council, and manager and chief engineer of the Honolulu board of water supply that issued a public report in November 2023 concerning the remediation of Red Hill following the defueling of the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility.

     "Special fund" means the Red Hill remediation special fund.

     §   -2  Red Hill remediation authority.  (a)  There is established the Red Hill remediation authority, which shall be a body corporate and public instrumentality of the State for the purpose of implementing this chapter; provided that section 26-35 shall not apply to the authority.  The authority shall:

     (1)  Facilitate and oversee the remediation of contamination resulting from the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility; and

     (2)  Engage in direct implementation, as appropriate.

     (b)  The authority shall be administratively attached to the department of land and natural resources and governed by a board of directors.  All initial members of the authority who are to be appointed shall be appointed no later than January 1, 2026.

     (c)  The board of directors shall consist of nine voting members, who shall serve staggered four-year terms.

     (d)  Four voting members of the board of directors shall be appointed by the governor pursuant to section 26-34 to represent the community and shall consist of:

     (1)  An individual who is a resident of Oahu at the time of appointment;

     (2)  A Native Hawaiian water practitioner;

     (3)  A youth advocate for environmental and climate justice, natural resources, and water resources; and

     (4)  A representative of the environmental protection community.

     (e)  Four voting members of the board of directors shall represent government entities, as follows:

     (1)  The chairperson of the board of land and natural resources, or the chairperson's designee;

     (2)  The president of the university of Hawaii, or the president's designee;

     (3)  The mayor of the city and county of Honolulu, or the mayor's designee; and

     (4)  The manager and chief engineer of the Honolulu board of water supply, or the manager and chief engineer's designee.

     (f)  The members of the board of directors shall serve without compensation but shall be reimbursed for expenses, including travel expenses:

     (1)  For authority-related business, as approved by the authority; and

     (2)  Necessary for the performance of their duties.

     (g)  The four community members identified in subsection (d) and the four ex officio members identified in subsection (e) shall appoint an executive director, who shall also serve as the chairperson, a voting member, of the board of directors.

     The executive director shall:

     (1)  Administer and implement, under the direction of the board of directors, all rules and directives adopted by the authority; and

     (2)  Be exempt from chapter 76.

     The salary of the executive director shall be subject to section 26-53.

     (h)  The board of directors shall invite the following to serve as ex officio, nonvoting members of the board of directors:

     (1)  A representative of the United States Department of Defense designated by the Department of Defense; and

     (2)  A representative of military families.

     (i)  In addition to the members listed in subsections (d), (e), and (h), the board of directors may request the nonvoting participation or input of members of the public; subject-matter experts; county, state, or federal officials; and other individuals, as necessary.

     §   -3  Powers and duties.  Except as otherwise limited by this chapter, the authority may:

     (1)  Make and execute contracts, leases, and all other instruments necessary or convenient for the exercise of its powers and functions under this chapter;

     (2)  Make and alter bylaws for its organization and internal management;

     (3)  Adopt rules pursuant to chapter 91 for the purposes of this chapter;

     (4)  Conduct meetings in accordance with chapter 92 for the purposes of this chapter;

     (5)  Appoint officers, agents, and employees who may be exempt from chapter 76, prescribe their duties and qualifications, and fix their salaries;

     (6)  Engage the services of consultants on a contractual basis for rendering professional and technical assistance and advice;

     (7)  Procure insurance against any loss in connection with its property and other assets and operations in amounts and from insurers as it deems desirable;

     (8)  Contract for, accept, hold, or expend gifts or grants in any form from any public agency or from any other source;

     (9)  Adopt rules governing the procurement and purchase of goods, services, and construction, not subject to the requirements of chapter 103D;

    (10)  Enter into cooperative agreements, easements, subleases, or other contracts, as necessary, with any state agency, county agency, or private landowner;

    (11)  Contract for executive and administrative employee services;

    (12)  Call upon the attorney general for legal services or employ its own counsel in conformity with section 28-8.3;

    (13)  Accept donations, grants, bequests, and devises of money, property, services, or other things of value that may be received from the United States or any agency thereof, any governmental agency, or any public or private institution, person, firm, or corporation, to be held, used, or applied for any or all of the purposes specified in this chapter;

    (14)  Establish and maintain a website that includes a mission statement and access to related actions, plans, reports, studies, policies, and results; and

    (15)  Do any and all things necessary to carry out its purposes and exercise the powers granted in this chapter.

     §   -4  Red Hill remediation special fund.  (a)  There is established in the state treasury the Red Hill remediation special fund into which shall be deposited the following moneys:

     (1)  Appropriations by the legislature to the special fund;

     (2)  Gifts, donations, and grants from public agencies, including the United States government, and private persons; and

     (3)  All interest earned on or accrued to moneys deposited in the special fund.

     (b)  The special fund shall be administered by the authority.

     (c)  The moneys in the special fund shall be used solely for the remediation of contamination resulting from the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility, including monitoring, applied research, remediation, public outreach and education, and evaluation.

     §   -5  Cooperation by state and county agencies.  All state and county agencies shall provide all information and data requested by the authority within thirty calendar days; provided that the authority may, in its discretion, set a longer deadline.

     §   -6  Report.  The authority shall submit a report of its activities and expenditures to the legislature, governor, and mayor and city council of the city and county of Honolulu no later than December 1 of each year, beginning in 2026."

     SECTION 3.  This Act shall take effect upon its approval.

 

INTRODUCED BY:	_____________________________

 

 

 

 

Report Title:

Red Hill WAI; Red Hill Remediation Authority; Red Hill Remediation Special Fund

 

Description:

Establishes the Red Hill remediation authority.  Creates the Red Hill remediation special fund.

 

 

 

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