STAND. COM. REP. NO. 468

 

Honolulu, Hawaii

                  

 

RE:    S.B. No. 1405

       S.D. 1

 

 

 

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2021

State of Hawaii

 

Sir:

 

     Your Committee on Agriculture and Environment, to which was referred S.B. No. 1405 entitled:

 

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO THE PLANT QUARANTINE BRANCH,"

 

begs leave to report as follows:

 

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to appropriate general revenues to expand state-run quarantine facilities under the jurisdiction of the Department of Agriculture's Plant Quarantine Branch.

 

     Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Hawaii Coffee Association; Pacific Coffee Research, Inc.; MauiGrown Coffee, Inc.; and one individual.  Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Department of Agriculture.

 

     Your Committee finds that responding quickly to newly detected invasive species can often prevent the species from becoming firmly established, saving taxpayers money in the long term.  The United States Department of Agriculture has stated that foreign pests and disease already cost the United States' economy tens of billions of dollars annually in lower crop values, eradication programs, emergency payments to farmers, and increased costs for food and other natural resources.

 

     Your Committee further finds that the recent detection of coffee leaf rust has shown that the existing facilities are unable to deal with the demand for disease resistant stock.  Even with the expansion of existing facilities with a $1,000,000 increase over two years, this effort would still be inadequate for the total number of plants needed statewide for the entire industry.  The increase in quarantine capacity needed to meet those demands will likely require an additional two to three years and unfortunately may not be timely enough to adequately address the immediate threat to the industry.  The lack of resources and facilities can allow invasive species to become established in the State, making mitigation efforts more protracted and expensive.

 

     Your Committee further finds that the Plant Quarantine Branch of the Department of Agriculture is tasked with preventing the introduction and spread of harmful pests and diseases into the State by regulating domestic import, performing border inspections, and facilitating post-border detection and control of agricultural pests.  The Plant Quarantine Branch is a critical component in meeting the threat of invasive species entering Hawaii and spreading throughout Hawaii through the State's ports of entry.  In the long term, the Department of Agriculture believes that increased capacity to appropriately quarantine regulated plant materials will benefit growers by enhancing the Department of Agriculture's ability to prevent the entry of invasive species.  Accordingly, this measure seeks to expand the abilities under the jurisdiction of the Department of Agriculture's Plant Quarantine Branch to increase screening and enforcement abilities throughout the State.

 

     Your Committee has amended this measure by making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for the purposes of clarity and consistency.

 

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Agriculture and Environment that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 1405, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 1405, S.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Ways and Means.

 


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

 

 

 

________________________________

MIKE GABBARD, Chair