Bill Text: HI SB609 | 2020 | Regular Session | Amended
Bill Title: Relating To Critical Infrastructure Resiliency.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 7-0)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2019-12-01 - Carried over to 2020 Regular Session. [SB609 Detail]
Download: Hawaii-2020-SB609-Amended.html
THE SENATE |
S.B. NO. |
609 |
THIRTIETH LEGISLATURE, 2019 |
S.D. 2 |
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STATE OF HAWAII |
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A BILL FOR AN ACT
RELATING TO CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE RESILIENCY.
BE IT
ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:
SECTION 1. The legislature finds that achieving electric grid resiliency requires maximizing energy efficiency, strategic planning for electric grid infrastructure, and leadership from the public sector.
The legislature further finds that in September 2017, Hurricanes Irma and Maria struck Puerto Rico with devastating force, causing an estimated $95,000,000,000 in damage to the island, including extensive damage to the island's electrical infrastructure. The power in Puerto Rico was not fully restored until August 2018, thus leaving some residents without power for half a year. The prolonged lack of electrical power left the residents of Puerto Rico without essential services and has created a humanitarian crisis. The interdependencies between different critical infrastructure sectors, including energy, water, environmental services, transportation, and communications, have further complicated restoration efforts in Puerto Rico, underscoring the need for systemic resiliency planning.
The legislature
further finds that a direct hit on Oahu from a similar category five hurricane
would almost certainly cause extensive property damage and extended power
outages across the island. Moreover,
much of the State's energy-generating infrastructure is susceptible to storm
surges due to the structures being located at or near coastlines. The Hawaii emergency management agency
estimates that under a best-case scenario, it would take at least fourteen days
after landfall of a category four hurricane on Oahu to restore eighty per cent
of grid power. Most public emergency
shelters in the State do not have the capacity to provide two weeks of
electrical service, and relief from the mainland is dependent upon a
functioning airport and seaport.
Furthermore, the risks of a natural disaster increase with the impacts
of climate change. Scientists have
described 2017 as the most weather destructive year on record and have opined
that the number of extreme weather events will continue to increase.
The legislature
hereby declares that it shall be the policy of the State to ensure that the
State is prepared to withstand natural disasters and other emergencies and
protect the State's critical infrastructure and its citizens by making
investments in grid resiliency. The goals
of this policy are to:
(1) Prevent or reduce the severity of damage to the electric grid from a natural disaster or state of emergency;
(2) Enable faster recovery of normal grid operations after a grid outage due to a natural disaster or state of emergency; and
(3) Maintain critical loads at critical infrastructure, such as hospitals, fire stations, police stations, airports, and seaports during a grid outage due to a natural disaster or state of emergency.
The purpose of
this Act is to create a homeland security and resiliency council to identify
electric grid and other critical infrastructure needs and provide
recommendations for enhancing grid and critical infrastructure resiliency
throughout the State.
SECTION 2. Chapter 128A, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read as
follows:
"§128A- Homeland security and resiliency
council; membership; duties. (a) There is established a homeland security and
resiliency council, which shall be placed within the office of homeland security
for administrative purposes.
(b) The council shall be composed of the
following members or their designees:
(1) The director of
homeland security, who shall serve as the co-chair of the council;
(2) The administrator
of the Hawaii state energy office, who shall serve as co-chair of the council;
(3) The
director of the office of planning;
(4) The
administrator of the Hawaii emergency management agency;
(5) The director of
transportation;
(6) The chairperson
of the public utilities commission;
(7) The director or
administrator of each of the county emergency management agencies;
(8) The director or
manager of each of the county water supply departments or boards; and
(9) The head of
each county agency with responsibility over environmental services or
environmental management.
(c) The president of the senate and the speaker
of the house of representatives shall jointly invite as members of the council:
(1) Representatives
of each electric utility company operating in the State;
(2) Representatives
of each gas utility company operating in the State;
(3) Representatives
of each telecommunications company serving at least one hundred thousand
customers in the State;
(4) Representatives
of each fuel importer and fuel refiner operating in the State; and
(5) Representatives
of each water carrier, as defined in section 271G-5, that provides
transportation of property between points within the State.
(d) In addition to the members listed in
subsections (b) and (c), the co-chairs of the council may request the
participation or input of members of the public; experts in the field,
including but not limited to community emergency response team volunteers and
other organizations committed to emergency preparedness; county, state, or federal officials; or others as necessary.
(e) The members of the council shall serve
without compensation, but shall be reimbursed for necessary expenses incurred
in the performance of their duties. No
member of the council shall be made subject to the financial disclosure
requirements of sections 84-13 and 84-17 solely because of that member's
participation as a member of the council.
(f) The council shall:
(1) Establish
strategies, goals, priorities, and recommendations to enhance the security and
resiliency of the electric grid and other critical infrastructure sectors in
the State, and give appropriate consideration to interdependencies between the
sectors and to differing needs of communities based on location, access to
resources, and vulnerabilities; and
(2) Assess the
capacity and availability of existing resources and identify new sources of
revenue necessary to enhance resiliency of critical infrastructure sectors.
(g) The council shall submit a report summarizing
its findings, recommendations, and the status of actions to enhance electric
grid and other critical infrastructure sector security and resiliency to the
governor, legislature, and mayor and county council of each county no later
than twenty days prior to the convening of the regular session of 2020, and
every two years thereafter.
(h) In carrying out its duties, the council shall
take appropriate measures to protect from public release any information that
may be withheld from the public under section 92F-13(3) or other applicable
laws, including but not limited to information that, if released, could
reasonably be expected to cause damage to public security.
(i) Nothing in this section shall be deemed to
delegate or detract in any way from the functions, powers, and duties conferred
by law or ordinance on any state or county department or agency."
SECTION 3. Section 128A-2, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
amended by adding three new definitions to be appropriately inserted and to
read as follows:
""Critical
infrastructure sector" means a sector whose assets, systems, and networks,
whether physical or virtual, are vital to the State's security, economic
security, public health or safety, or any combination thereof, including but
not limited to the water, environmental management, transportation, electrical
energy, gas energy, fuel import and refining, interisland transport of property
by water, and communications sectors.
"Electric
grid" means the network of electric generators, transmission and
distribution lines, substations, energy storage devices, and supporting
infrastructure used to produce and deliver electricity to end-users.
"Resiliency"
means the capacity to prevent or reduce the severity of damage from a natural
disaster or manmade emergency, and to enable faster recovery of normal infrastructure
operations after a natural disaster or manmade emergency."
SECTION 4. 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 2019-2020 and the same sum or so
much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2020-2021 for the homeland security and resiliency council to perform its
duties under chapter 128A, Hawaii Revised Statutes.
The sums appropriated shall be expended by the office of homeland security for the purposes of this Act.
SECTION 5. New statutory material is underscored.
SECTION 6. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2050.
Report Title:
Critical Infrastructure Resiliency; Electric Grid; Homeland Security and Resiliency Council; Appropriation
Description:
Establishes a Homeland Security and Resiliency Council to identify electric grid and other critical infrastructure needs and provide recommendations for enhancing the State's grid and critical infrastructure resiliency. Appropriates funds. Effective 7/1/2050. (SD2)
The summary description
of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is
not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.