Bill Text: HI SCR178 | 2022 | Regular Session | Amended
Bill Title: Requesting The Department Of Land And Natural Resources, In Consultation With The State Historic Preservation Division And The Island Burial Councils, To Create An Expedited Process To Contract The Review Of Proposed Affordable Housing Projects To Third-party Consultants.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Passed) 2022-06-06 - Certified copies of resolutions sent, 06/06/22. [SCR178 Detail]
Download: Hawaii-2022-SCR178-Amended.html
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THE SENATE |
S.C.R. NO. |
178 |
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THIRTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2022 |
S.D. 1 |
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STATE OF HAWAII |
H.D. 1 |
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SENATE CONCURRENT
RESOLUTION
REQUESTING THE DEPARTMENT OF LAND AND NATURAL RESOURCES, IN CONSULTATION WITH THE STATE HISTORIC PRESERVATION DIVISION AND THE ISLAND BURIAL COUNCILS, TO CREATE AN EXPEDITED PROCESS TO CONTRACT THE REVIEW OF PROPOSED AFFORDABLE HOUSING PROJECTS TO THIRD-PARTY CONSULTANTS.
WHEREAS, the onset of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic led to an unprecedented economic crisis that decimated Hawai‘i's economy and caused its gross domestic product to plummet; and
WHEREAS, the drastic decline in economic activity disproportionately affected the State's most vulnerable populations; and
WHEREAS, the forced shutdown of many sectors of the State's economy triggered mass layoffs and furloughs causing the State's seasonally adjusted unemployment to surge from 2.4 percent in March 2020 to a historical high of 22.3 percent in April 2020; and
WHEREAS, record unemployment, mass layoffs and furloughs, and increased daily expenses for Hawai‘i residents exacerbated challenges already being faced by renter households due to historically high housing cost burdens; and
WHEREAS, economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated the burden on renter households, as more than eleven thousand Hawai‘i tenants fell behind on rent payments and forty percent of rental tenants lost their jobs; and
WHEREAS, while the dissemination of COVID-19 vaccines has allowed Hawai‘i's economy to slowly rebound from the devastating impacts of mass layoffs and economic shutdowns, data from the University of Hawai‘i Economic Research Organization showed that the number of individuals facing homelessness will rise; and
WHEREAS, the decline and cessation of COVID-19 pandemic-related aid, subsidies, and relief for Hawai‘i's residents, including renter households, will increase significant challenges to households struggling to attain jobs, make payments on past due rent, and return to normal life; and
WHEREAS, in February 2022, inflation in the United States hit a record 7.5 percent, increasing the burden on Hawai‘i residents who are continuing to struggle from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic; and
WHEREAS, it is imperative to mitigate the affordable housing crisis that is both ongoing and exacerbated by the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Thirty-first Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2022, the House of Representatives concurring, that the Department of Land and Natural Resources, in consultation with the State Historic Preservation Division and the Island Burial Councils, is requested to create an expedited process to contract its review of proposed state projects, projects on privately-owned historic property, and projects affecting historic properties, to third-party consultants if the projects involve the development of affordable housing; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that in creating the expedited process, the Department of Land and Natural Resources is requested to consider the following processes:
(1) Contracting a third-party consultant to conduct the review of proposed affordable housing projects if, after an initial evaluation, the Department of Land and Natural Resources is not able to provide its written concurrence or non-concurrence within sixty days of the filing of a request;
(2) Receiving pre-approval of the appropriate island burial council before contracting services with a third-party consultant;
(3) Contracting third-party consultants who meet the educational and experiences standards and qualifications for preservation professionals as determined by State Historic Preservation Division rules; and
(4) Requiring third-party consultants to provide a recommendation to the Department of Land and Natural Resources within thirty days of the filing of a request with the Department of Land and Natural Resources; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Land and Natural Resources is requested to submit its findings and recommendations regarding the expedited process, including any proposed legislation, to the Legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2023; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Chairperson of the Board of Land and Natural Resources; Administrator of the State Historic Preservation Division; and Island Burial Councils of Hawaii, Kauai and Niihau, Maui and Lanai, Molokai, and Oahu.
Department of Land and Natural Resources; State Historic Preservation District; Island Burial Councils; Expedited Review Process; Third-Party Consultants; Affordable Housing
