STAND. COM. REP. NO.  1480

 

Honolulu, Hawaii

                  

 

RE:    H.B. No. 206

       H.D. 2

       S.D. 1

 

 

 

Honorable Donna Mercado Kim

President of the Senate

Twenty-Eighth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2015

State of Hawaii

 

Madam:

 

     Your Committee on Ways and Means, to which was referred H.B. No. 206, H.D. 2, S.D. 1, entitled:

 

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO HAWAIIAN PLANTS,"

 

begs leave to report as follows:

 

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to require that all publicly-funded landscaping projects include a minimum percentage of Hawaiian plants, which will contribute to a Hawaiian sense of place, reduce the use of non-native plant species, and support the preservation of Hawaii's cultural and ecological heritage. 

 

     Your Committee received written comments in support of this measure from the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Land Use Research Foundation of Hawaii, Nature Conservatory, Conservation Council for Hawaii, Aha Moku Advisory Committee, Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubs, Ewa Puuloa Hawaiian Civic Club, Hawaii Green Growth, Kalihi Palama Hawaiian Civic Club, King Kamehameha HCC, and seven individuals.  Your Committee received written comments on this measure from the Department of Land and Natural Resources and the State Procurement Office. 

 

     Your Committee finds that the use of Hawaiian plants in landscaping is fundamental to preserving and fostering a Hawaiian sense of place.  Your Committee believes that there has been a relatively recent influx of non-native plant species and invasive species that has displaced and endangered Hawaii's native plants in the State.  State landscaping projects should embody the cultural and ecological heritage of the place in which the landscaping is located.  Your Committee further finds that utilizing and propagating Hawaiian plants is important to biodiversity, ecological stability, and a cultural sense of place.

 

     This measure defines "Hawaiian plants" as "any plant species, including land, freshwater, and marine plant species, growing or living in Hawaii without having been brought to Hawaii by humans; or any plant species, including land, freshwater, and marine plant species, brought to Hawaii by Polynesians before European contact, such as kukui, kalo, wauke, niu, noni, and kamani."  Your Committee notes that the Department of Land and Natural Resources submitted written comments explaining a distinction between endemic and indigenous plant species.  A species is considered to be native to a region if it arrived in that place by natural processes without the aid of humans.  Native species may be either endemic, meaning the species was found only within a particular region, or indigenous, meaning that the species is found in the region and elsewhere.  The Department notes that the current definition of "Hawaiian plants" in the measure may lead to confusion because the definition lumps together native Hawaiian plants and Polynesian introductions, which are two separate categories of species, each with their own unique significance, importance, and considerations.  Your Committee acknowledges that, as this measure moves forward, further discussion will be necessary to clarify the terms used in the measure.

 

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Ways and Means that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 206, H.D. 2, S.D. 1, and recommends that it pass Third Reading.

 

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Ways and Means,

 

 

 

________________________________

JILL N. TOKUDA, Chair