STAND. COM. REP. 257

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2003

RE: H.B. No. 159

H.D. 1

 

 

 

Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2003

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Agriculture, to which was referred H.B. No. 159 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO AGRICULTURE,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this bill is to support a coordinated, statewide network of agricultural processing, marketing, and shipping facilities by establishing a terminal market pilot program on the island of Hawaii. Specifically, this bill:

(1) Appropriates $200,000 for fiscal year 2003-2004 for the planning of a terminal market pilot program on the island of Hawaii;

(2) Appropriates $50,000 for fiscal year 2003-2004 to hire a consultant to:

(A) Plan terminal markets on the islands of Maui and Hawaii;

(B) Plan for the operation and coordination of facilities on Kauai and Oahu capable of filling military and private orders;

(C) Prepare to build facilities and provide necessary equipment to achieve marketing goals;

and

(3) Appropriates $3,000,000 for construction and equipment costs of a terminal market and vacuum cooling plant for the island of Hawaii through the authorization of general obligation bonds.

The Hawaii Agriculture Research Center and Cannon and Eger supported this bill. The Department of Agriculture (DOA) supported the intent of this bill.

Your Committee recognizes the importance of providing sufficient infrastructure to facilitate the distribution and transportation of agricultural products throughout the State.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Changing the expending agency for all appropriations contained in this bill to DOA;

(2) Clarifying that transportation available at the port of Kahului to ship fresh foods to wholesale buyers be incorporated into the plans for terminal markets on Maui and Hawaii;

(3) Authorizing DOA to hire the consultant, instead of the Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism;

(4) Requiring the consultant to have experience working with agricultural production and marketing, and knowledge of military food purchasing procedures;

(5) Requiring the consultant to coordinate with DOA to form a committee to recommend policies, rules, and procedures to be followed by any operator chosen by DOA to operate terminal markets contained in this bill;

(6) Requiring representation of certain members affected by this bill on the committee;

(7) Allowing the chairperson of this committee to request reimbursement for certain expenses of the committee;

(8) Clarifying that the $3,000,000 in general obligation bonds authorized and appropriated in this bill be used for construction and equipment costs of a terminal market and vacuum cooling plant for the island of Hawaii, including provision of communications capability necessary to coordinate orders from buyers worldwide between facilities on Maui, Hawaii, and Oahu; and

(9) Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for purposes of style and clarity.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Agriculture that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 159, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 159, H.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Finance.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Agriculture,

 

____________________________

FELIPE P. ABINSAY, JR., Chair