Hawaii-2012-SB699-Amended

SECTION 1. The legislature finds that the office of environmental quality control is greatly understaffed, and, as a result, struggles to fulfill its duty to ensure environmental protection in Hawaii.

The purpose of this Act is to:

(1) Establish fees to help fund the activities of the office of environmental quality control;

(2) Hire adequate staff;

(3) Support outreach, training, education, and research;

(4) Modernize and maintain technology systems; and

(5) Develop technology training.

SECTION 2. Chapter 341, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding two new sections to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"§341-A Environmental review special fund; use of funds. (a) There is established in the state treasury the environmental review special fund, into which shall be deposited:

(1) All filing fees and other administrative fees collected by the office;

(2) Moneys collected pursuant to section 341-B;

(3) All accrued interest from the special fund; and

(4) Moneys appropriated to the special fund by the legislature.

(b) Moneys in the environmental review special fund shall not supplant the office budget base or any portion thereof and shall be used to:

(1) Fund the activities of the office and the council in fulfillment of their duties pursuant to this chapter and chapter 343, including administrative, staffing, and office expenses and servicing of agency documents relating to the environmental review process; provided that the director may appoint personnel exempt from chapters 76 and 89;

(2) Support outreach, training, education, and research programs pursuant to section 341-4; and

(3) Modernize technology, maintain technology systems, and develop technology training programs within the limits established by section 341-B.

§341-B Fees. (a) The office, in consultation with the council, shall adopt rules pursuant to chapter 91 to establish filing fees and any other fees necessary for the administration and management of the office and the council.

(b) The office shall collect interim filing fees from all applicants, including state and county agencies, required to file environmental review documents pursuant to chapter 343.

Until fees are established by rules adopted by the office pursuant to subsection (a), the office may collect interim filing fees in the following amounts:

(1) $1500 for a draft environmental assessment;

(2) $1000 for a final environmental assessment;

(3) $500 for an environmental impact statement preparation notice;

(4) $4,000 for a draft environmental impact statement;

(5) $3,000 for a final environmental impact statement;

(6) $500 for other significant addendum to a final environmental assessment;

(7) $500 for a final environmental assessment or supplemental environmental impact statement preparation notice;

(8) $2000 for a supplemental draft environmental impact statement; and

(9) $1000 for any supplemental final environmental impact statement.

(1) The cost of the proposed action does not exceed $ ;

(2) The applicant's annual revenue does not exceed $ ; and

(3) The applicant has fewer than ten employees."

SECTION 3. In codifying the new sections added by section 2 of this Act, the revisor of statutes shall substitute appropriate section numbers for the letters used in designating the new sections in this Act.

SECTION 4. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 5. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2050; provided that the interim filing fees established under this Act shall not take effect until 30 days after the enactment of this Act and shall apply to initial filings and all related subsequent filings until such time that fees established by rule pursuant to section 341-B(a), Hawaii Revised Statutes, go into effect; provided further that any environmental studies filed with the office of environmental quality control prior to the enactment of this Act shall be exempt from the payment of any filing fees under section 341-B, Hawaii Revised Statutes, for one hundred eighty days from the date of the enactment of this Act.

THE SENATE	S.B. NO.	699
TWENTY-SIXTH LEGISLATURE, 2011		S.D. 2
STATE OF HAWAII		H.D. 1