STAND. COM. REP. NO. 143

 

Honolulu, Hawaii

                  

 

RE:    S.B. No. 696

 

 

 

Honorable Shan S. Tsutsui

President of the Senate

Twenty-Sixth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2011

State of Hawaii

 

Sir:

 

     Your Committees on Public Safety, Government Operations, and Military Affairs and Water, Land, and Housing, to which was referred S.B. No. 696 entitled:

 

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO HOUSING,"

 

beg leave to report as follows:

 

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to establish the County Infrastructure Development Loan Revolving Fund to provide loans to the counties for infrastructure improvements that support transit-oriented affordable housing development.

 

     Your Committees received testimony in support of this measure from one state department, one county department, and one private entity.

 

     Under this measure, the County Infrastructure Development Loan Revolving Fund will provide no-interest loans to the counties for the pre-development, development, or construction of infrastructure projects to expedite the building of transit-oriented affordable housing development.  Permitted uses of the monies in the fund may include planning, design, land acquisition, costs of options, agreements of sale, or other infrastructure-related services or activities.

 

     Your Committees find that rapid transit supports compact development and, at the same time, becomes an incentive for compact development near transit stations.  However, transit-oriented development frequently requires upgrades to the capacities of existing infrastructure while the counties are constantly challenged to maintain even the infrastructure systems they already have, let alone to upgrade these systems.  Your Committees recognize that the State has a role in supporting transit-oriented development and further recognize the need to support the counties by providing another financing resource.

 

     As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Public Safety, Government Operations, and Military Affairs and Water, Land, and Housing that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 696 and recommend that it pass Second Reading and be referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.

 

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committees on Public Safety, Government Operations, and Military Affairs and Water, Land, and Housing,

 

____________________________

DONOVAN DELA CRUZ, Chair

 

____________________________

WILL ESPERO, Chair