HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES |
H.B. NO. |
1349 |
THIRTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2021 |
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STATE OF HAWAII |
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A BILL FOR AN ACT
RELATING TO STATEWIDE COMPOSTING.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:
SECTION
1. The legislature finds that according
to the United States Environmental Protection Agency and United States
Department of Agriculture, food waste is the second largest component that
enters a waste stream and accounts for twenty-five per cent of all materials
sent to landfills. Nearly fifty per cent
of organic materials disposed of in incinerators and landfills can be diverted
for bioconversion, including composting. Landfills across Hawaii are rapidly reaching capacity
and facing the burden of closure and re-siting, a process that will cost each
county hundreds of millions of dollars and create community resentment. Recycling organics, including food waste, into
compost has environmental benefits, such as improving soil health, increasing
drought resistance, and reducing the need for supplemental water, fertilizers,
and pesticides, while also increasing crop yields. Furthermore, applying compost and organic
matter to soil sequesters carbon from the atmosphere, forming the largest
land-based carbon sink, and mitigates climate change by effectively reducing greenhouse
gas emissions. The legislature believes
that food waste diversion and the creation of multi-scale composting operations
across the State will greatly reduce the burdens on landfills, lower county
waste management costs, and move the State closer to achieving its
sustainability and resiliency goals, which include:
(1) The Aloha+ Challenge, which is a statewide
commitment to realize the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals that
sets a goal of seventy per cent waste reduction before disposal and doubling of
local food production by 2030;
(2) The Hawaii 2050 sustainability plan, which
also sets a mandate for the State to achieve full sustainability and resilience
through increased food production and dramatic waste reduction via recycling and
bioconversion strategies; and
(3) Increasing the generation of local compost to
sequester more carbon and mitigate climate change pursuant to the strategy identified
by the greenhouse gas sequestration task force permanently established by Act
15, Session Laws of Hawaii 2018.
The
legislature also finds that the regulation of co-composting in the State is
under the purview of the department of health solid and hazardous waste branch.
Existing regulations have not been updated
in over twenty years, and currently a single application applies to all co—composting
operations regardless of size or scope. The
legislature further finds that the current permitting process is an onerous and
unreasonable barrier to lawful participation for small to midsize composting
operations whose operations present a much lower risk potential. Reform and updating of the composting and co-composting
regulations and permitting process will greatly increase the number of operators
diverting organics from landfills and incinerators, thereby aiding the State
and counties in reaching their sustainability, resilience, and fiscal goals.
Accordingly,
the purpose of this Act is to encourage the diversion of organics from Hawaii's
waste streams and encourage the production of compost by:
(1) Requiring the department of health to
establish a multi-tiered registration and permitting system for all classes of solid
waste composting facilities;
(2) Requiring the department of health to update its co‑composting rules by January 1, 2023, and every ten years thereafter; and
(3) Allowing composting and co-composting operations in agricultural districts.
SECTION
2. Chapter 342H, Hawaii Revised
Statutes, is amended by adding a new part to be appropriately designated and to
read as follows:
"Part . SOLID WASTE COMPOSTING FACILITIES
§342H-
Definitions. For the purposes of this part:
"Class I solid waste composting facility" means a facility where the owner or operator may accept green waste, agricultural plant materials, dead animals, raw rendering material, biosolids, animal waste, food scraps, mixed solid waste, bulking agents, additives, and authorized alternative materials.
"Class II solid waste composting facility" means a facility:
(1) Where the owner or operator may accept green waste, agricultural plant materials, food waste, additives limited to source-separated spent coffee and tea grounds, urea, animal manures, spent mushroom substrate, spent grains, bulking agents, additives, and authorized alternative materials; and
(2) That processes more than fifteen cubic yards, or twelve thousand pounds, whichever is lowest, of total feedstocks per day, as a weekly average, and stores more than fifty cubic yards of non-putrescible bulking agent onsite.
"Class III solid waste composting facility" means a facility:
(1) Where the owner or operator may accept green waste, agricultural plant materials, food waste, additives limited to source-separated spent coffee and tea grounds, urea, animal manures, spent mushroom substrate, spent grains, bulking agents, additives, and authorized alternative materials; and
(2) That processes fewer than fifteen cubic yards, or twelve thousand pounds, whichever is lowest, of total feedstocks per day, as a weekly average, and stores fewer than fifty cubic yards of non-putrescible bulking agent onsite.
"Class IV solid waste composting facility" means a facility:
(1) Where the owner or operator may accept only green waste, agricultural plant materials, bulking agents, additives limited to source-separated spent coffee and tea grounds, urea, spent grain, bacterial or fungal inoculum, and authorized alternative materials; and
(2) That processes fewer than half a cubic yard, or
two hundred pounds, of source-separate food waste per day, as a weekly average.
(b) The
permit standards for class II, class III, and class IV solid waste composting facilities
shall be less stringent than the permit standards for class I solid waste composting
facilities, and limit requirements for capital-intensive infrastructure, such as
impermeable surfaces and leachate management systems; provided that public health
and safety are still maintained.
§342H-
Class I solid waste composting facilities.
Every owner or operator of a class I
solid waste composting facility in the State shall:
(1) Register with the department
pursuant to rules adopted by the department;
(2) Obtain a permit pursuant to section 342H-4 and
rules adopted by the department; and
(3) Complete training and certification on proper operation
and maintenance of class I solid waste composting facilities approved by the department.
§342H- Class
II and class III solid waste composting facilities. (a) Every owner or operator of a class II or class
III solid waste composting facility in the State shall:
(1) Register with the department
pursuant to rules adopted by the department;
(2) Obtain a permit pursuant to section 342H-4 and
rules adopted by the department; and
(3) Complete training and certification on proper operation
and maintenance of class II or class III solid waste composting facilities approved
by the department.
(b)
Class III solid waste composting facilities
processing fewer than two cubic yards of pathogenic materials per day, as a weekly
average, shall be exempt from department rules and regulations requiring the use
of an impermeable surface for composting operations and leachate management infrastructure,
as well as requirements to obtain additional permitting through the National Pollutant
Discharge Elimination System, and the clean air branch and clean water branch of
the department.
(c)
The materials placement area of a class III
solid waste composting facility shall not exceed one hundred
thirty-five thousand square feet of total area on any one premise.
§342H- Class
IV solid waste composting facilities. (a)
Every owner or operator of a class IV
solid waste composting facility in the State shall:
(1) Register with the department
pursuant to rules adopted by the department;
(2) Obtain a permit pursuant to section 342H-4 and
rules adopted by the department; and
(3) Complete training and certification on proper operation
and maintenance of class IV solid waste composting facilities approved by the department.
(b)
Class IV solid waste composting facilities
processing fewer than one half cubic yards of pathogenic materials per day, as a
weekly average, shall be exempt from department rules and regulations requiring
the use of an impermeable surface for composting operations, and leachate management
infrastructure, as well as requirements to obtain additional permitting through
the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System, and
the clean air branch and clean water branch of the department.
§342H- Rules. The department shall adopt
rules under chapter 91 as necessary to carry out the purposes of section 342H-B
and this part."
SECTION
3. Chapter 342G, Hawaii Revised Statutes,
is amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read
as follows:
"§342G- Co-composting; rules. No
later than January 1, 2023, and every ten years thereafter, the department shall
update its rules regarding composting and co-composting."
SECTION
4. Section 205-2, Hawaii Revised
Statutes, is amended by amending subsection (d) to read as follows:
"(d) Agricultural districts shall include:
(1) Activities or uses as characterized by the cultivation
of crops, crops for bioenergy, orchards, forage, and forestry;
(2) Farming activities or uses related to animal
husbandry and game and fish propagation;
(3) Aquaculture, which means the production of
aquatic plant and animal life within ponds and other bodies of water;
(4) Wind-generated energy production for public,
private, and commercial use;
(5) Biofuel production, as described in section
205‑4.5(a)(16), for public, private, and commercial use;
(6) Solar energy facilities; provided that:
(A) This paragraph shall apply only to land with
soil classified by the land study bureau's detailed land classification as
overall (master) productivity rating class B, C, D, or E; and
(B) Solar energy facilities placed within land
with soil classified as overall productivity rating class B or C shall not occupy
more than ten per cent of the acreage of the parcel, or twenty acres of land,
whichever is lesser, unless a special use permit is granted pursuant to section
205-6;
(7) Bona fide agricultural services and uses that
support the agricultural activities of the fee or leasehold owner of the
property and accessory to any of the above activities, regardless of whether
conducted on the same premises as the agricultural activities to which they are
accessory, including farm dwellings as defined in section 205-4.5(a)(4),
employee housing, farm buildings, mills, storage facilities, processing
facilities, photovoltaic, biogas, and other small-scale renewable energy systems
producing energy solely for use in the agricultural activities of the fee or leasehold
owner of the property, agricultural-energy facilities as defined in section
205-4.5(a)(17), vehicle and equipment storage areas, and plantation community
subdivisions as defined in section 205‑4.5(a)(12);
(8) Wind machines and wind farms;
(9) Small-scale meteorological, air quality,
noise, and other scientific and environmental data collection and monitoring
facilities occupying less than one-half acre of land; provided that these
facilities shall not be used as or equipped for use as living quarters or dwellings;
(10) Agricultural parks;
(11) Agricultural tourism conducted on a working
farm, or a farming operation as defined in section 165-2, for the enjoyment,
education, or involvement of visitors; provided that the agricultural tourism
activity is accessory and secondary to the principal agricultural use and does
not interfere with surrounding farm operations; [and] provided further
that this paragraph shall apply only to a county that has adopted ordinances
regulating agricultural tourism under section 205-5;
(12) Agricultural tourism activities, including
overnight accommodations of twenty-one days or less, for any one stay within a
county; provided that this paragraph shall apply only to a county that includes
at least three islands and has adopted ordinances regulating agricultural
tourism activities pursuant to section 205-5; provided further that the
agricultural tourism activities coexist with a bona fide agricultural
activity. For the purposes of this
paragraph, "bona fide agricultural activity" means a farming
operation as defined in section 165-2;
(13) Open
area recreational facilities;
(14) Geothermal
resources exploration and geothermal resources development, as defined under
section 182-1;
(15) Agricultural-based
commercial operations registered in Hawaii, including:
(A) A roadside stand that is not an enclosed
structure, owned and operated by a producer for the display and sale of
agricultural products grown in Hawaii and value-added products that were produced
using agricultural products grown in Hawaii;
(B) Retail activities in an enclosed structure
owned and operated by a producer for the display and sale of agricultural
products grown in Hawaii, value-added products that were produced using agricultural
products grown in Hawaii, logo items related to the producer's agricultural
operations, and other food items;
(C) A retail food establishment owned and operated
by a producer and permitted under chapter 11-50, Hawaii administrative rules,
that prepares and serves food at retail using products grown in Hawaii and
value-added products that were produced using agricultural products grown in
Hawaii;
(D) A farmers' market, which is an outdoor market
limited to producers selling agricultural products grown in Hawaii and value-added
products that were produced using agricultural products grown in Hawaii; and
(E) A food hub, which is a facility that may
contain a commercial kitchen and provides for the storage, processing,
distribution, and sale of agricultural products grown in Hawaii and value-added
products that were produced using agricultural products grown in Hawaii.
The
owner of an agricultural-based commercial operation shall certify, upon request
of an officer or agent charged with enforcement of this chapter under section
205-12, that the agricultural products displayed or sold by the operation meet
the requirements of this paragraph; [and]
(16) Hydroelectric
facilities as described in section 205‑4.5(a)(23)[.]; and
(17) Composting
and co-composting operations.
Agricultural districts shall not include
golf courses and golf driving ranges, except as provided in section
205-4.5(d). Agricultural districts
include areas that are not used for, or that are not suited to, agricultural
and ancillary activities by reason of topography, soils, and other related
characteristics."
SECTION
5. Section 205-4.5, Hawaii Revised
Statutes, is amended to read as follows:
"§205-4.5
Permissible uses within the agricultural districts. (a) Within
the agricultural district, all lands with soil classified by the land study
bureau's detailed land classification as overall (master) productivity rating
class A or B and for solar energy facilities, class B or C, shall be restricted
to the following permitted uses:
(1) Cultivation
of crops, including crops for bioenergy, flowers, vegetables, foliage, fruits,
forage, and timber;
(2) Game
and fish propagation;
(3) Raising
of livestock, including poultry, bees, fish, or other animal or aquatic life that
are propagated for economic or personal use;
(4) Farm
dwellings, employee housing, farm buildings, or activities or uses related to
farming and animal husbandry. "Farm
dwelling", as used in this paragraph, means a single-family dwelling
located on and used in connection with a farm, including clusters of
single-family farm dwellings permitted within agricultural parks developed by
the State, or where agricultural activity provides income to the family
occupying the dwelling;
(5) Public
institutions and buildings that are necessary for agricultural practices;
(6) Public
and private open area types of recreational uses, including day camps, picnic
grounds, parks, and riding stables, but not including dragstrips, airports, drive-in
theaters, golf courses, golf driving ranges, country clubs, and overnight
camps;
(7) Public,
private, and quasi-public utility lines and roadways, transformer stations,
communications equipment buildings, solid waste transfer stations, major water
storage tanks, and appurtenant small buildings such as booster pumping stations,
but not including offices or yards for equipment, material, vehicle storage,
repair or maintenance, treatment plants, corporation yards, or other similar
structures;
(8) Retention,
restoration, rehabilitation, or improvement of buildings or sites of historic
or scenic interest;
(9) Agricultural-based
commercial operations as described in section 205-2(d)(15);
(10) Buildings
and uses, including mills, storage, and processing facilities, maintenance
facilities, photovoltaic, biogas, and other small-scale
renewable energy systems producing energy
solely for use in the agricultural activities of the fee or leasehold owner of
the property, and vehicle and equipment storage areas that are normally
considered directly accessory to the above-mentioned uses and are permitted
under section 205-2(d);
(11) Agricultural
parks;
(12) Plantation
community subdivisions, which as used in this chapter means an established
subdivision or cluster of employee housing, community buildings, and
agricultural support buildings on land currently or formerly owned, leased, or
operated by a sugar or pineapple plantation; provided that the existing
structures may be used or rehabilitated for use, and new employee housing and
agricultural support buildings may be allowed on land within the subdivision as
follows:
(A) The
employee housing is occupied by employees or former employees of the plantation
who have a property interest in the land;
(B) The
employee housing units not owned by their occupants shall be rented or leased
at affordable rates for agricultural workers; or
(C) The
agricultural support buildings shall be rented or leased to agricultural
business operators or agricultural support services;
(13) Agricultural
tourism conducted on a working farm, or a farming
operation as defined in section 165-2, for the enjoyment, education, or involvement
of visitors; provided that the agricultural tourism activity is accessory and
secondary to the principal agricultural use and does not interfere with
surrounding farm operations; [and] provided further that this paragraph
shall apply only to a county that has adopted ordinances regulating agricultural
tourism under section 205-5;
(14) Agricultural tourism activities, including
overnight accommodations of twenty-one days or less, for any one stay within a
county; provided that this paragraph shall apply only to a county that includes
at least three islands and has adopted ordinances regulating agricultural tourism
activities pursuant to section 205-5; provided further that the agricultural
tourism activities coexist with a bona fide agricultural activity. For the purposes of this paragraph,
"bona fide agricultural activity" means a farming operation as defined
in section 165-2;
(15) Wind
energy facilities, including the appurtenances associated with the production
and transmission of wind generated energy; provided that the wind energy
facilities and appurtenances are compatible with agriculture uses and cause
minimal adverse impact on agricultural land;
(16) Biofuel
processing facilities, including the appurtenances associated with the
production and refining of biofuels that is normally considered directly
accessory and secondary to the growing of the energy feedstock; provided that biofuel
processing facilities and appurtenances do not adversely impact agricultural
land and other agricultural uses in the vicinity.
For
the purposes of this paragraph:
"Appurtenances"
means operational infrastructure of the appropriate type and scale for economic
commercial storage and distribution, and other similar handling of feedstock,
fuels, and other products of biofuel processing facilities.
"Biofuel
processing facility" means a facility that produces liquid or gaseous
fuels from organic sources such as biomass crops, agricultural residues, and
oil crops, including palm, canola, soybean, and waste cooking oils; grease;
food wastes; and animal residues and wastes that can be used to generate
energy;
(17) Agricultural-energy
facilities, including appurtenances necessary for an agricultural-energy
enterprise; provided that the primary activity of the agricultural-energy
enterprise is agricultural activity. To
be considered the primary activity of an agricultural-energy enterprise, the
total acreage devoted to agricultural activity shall be not less than ninety
per cent of the total acreage of the agricultural-energy enterprise. The agricultural-energy facility shall be limited
to lands owned, leased, licensed, or operated by the entity conducting the
agricultural activity.
As used in this paragraph:
"Agricultural activity"
means any activity described in paragraphs (1) to (3) of this subsection.
"Agricultural-energy enterprise"
means an enterprise that integrally incorporates an agricultural activity with
an agricultural-energy facility.
"Agricultural-energy
facility" means a facility that generates, stores, or distributes
renewable energy as defined in section 269-91 or renewable fuel including
electrical or thermal energy or liquid or gaseous fuels from products of
agricultural activities from agricultural lands located in the State.
"Appurtenances" means
operational infrastructure of the appropriate type and scale for the economic
commercial generation, storage, distribution, and other similar handling of
energy, including equipment, feedstock, fuels, and other products of
agricultural-energy facilities;
(18) Construction
and operation of wireless communication antennas, including small wireless facilities;
provided that, for the purposes of this paragraph, "wireless communication
antenna" means communications equipment that is either freestanding or
placed upon or attached to an already existing structure and that transmits and
receives electromagnetic radio signals used in the provision of all types of
wireless communications services; provided further that "small wireless
facilities" shall have the same meaning as in section 206N-2; provided further that nothing in this
paragraph shall be construed to permit the construction of any new structure
that is not deemed a permitted use under this subsection;
(19) Agricultural education programs conducted on a
farming operation as defined in section 165-2, for the education and
participation of the general public; provided that the agricultural education
programs are accessory and secondary to the principal agricultural use of the
parcels or lots on which the agricultural education programs are to occur and
do not interfere with surrounding farm operations. For the purposes of this paragraph, "agricultural
education programs" means activities or events designed to promote
knowledge and understanding of agricultural activities and practices conducted
on a farming operation as defined in section 165-2;
(20) Solar energy facilities that do not occupy
more than ten per cent of the acreage of the parcel, or twenty acres of land,
whichever is lesser or for which a special use permit is granted pursuant to
section 205-6; provided that this use shall not be permitted on lands with soil
classified by the land study bureau's detailed land classification as overall
(master) productivity rating class A;
(21) Solar energy facilities on lands with soil
classified by the land study bureau's detailed land classification as overall
(master) productivity rating B or C for which a special use permit is granted
pursuant to section 205-6; provided that:
(A) The area occupied by the solar energy
facilities is also made available for compatible agricultural activities at a
lease rate that is at least fifty per cent below the fair market rent for comparable
properties;
(B) Proof of financial security to decommission
the facility is provided to the satisfaction of the appropriate county planning
commission prior to date of commencement of commercial generation; and
(C) Solar energy facilities shall be
decommissioned at the owner's expense according to the following requirements:
(i) Removal of all equipment related to the solar
energy facility within twelve months of the conclusion of operation or useful
life; and
(ii) Restoration
of the disturbed earth to substantially the same physical condition as existed
prior to the development of the solar energy facility.
For
the purposes of this paragraph, "agricultural activities" means the
activities described in paragraphs (1) to (3);
(22) Geothermal resources exploration and
geothermal resources development, as defined under section 182‑1; or
(23) Hydroelectric facilities, including the
appurtenances associated with the production and transmission of hydroelectric
energy, subject to section 205-2; provided that the hydroelectric facilities
and their appurtenances:
(A) Shall consist of a small hydropower facility as
defined by the United States Department of Energy, including:
(i) Impoundment facilities using a dam to store
water in a reservoir;
(ii) A diversion or run-of-river facility that
channels a portion of a river through a canal or channel; and
(iii) Pumped storage facilities that store energy by
pumping water uphill to a reservoir at higher elevation from a reservoir at a
lower elevation to be released to turn a turbine to generate electricity;
(B) Comply with the state water code, chapter
174C;
(C) Shall,
if over five hundred kilowatts in hydroelectric generating capacity, have the
approval of the commission on water resource management, including a new
instream flow standard established for any new hydroelectric facility; and
(D) Do not impact or impede the use of
agricultural land or the availability of surface or ground water for all uses
on all parcels that are served by the ground water sources or streams for which
hydroelectric facilities are considered.
(b) Uses not expressly permitted in subsection (a)
shall be prohibited, except the uses permitted as provided in sections 205-6
and 205-8, and construction of single-family dwellings on lots existing before
June 4, 1976. Any other law to the
contrary notwithstanding, no subdivision of land within the agricultural
district with soil classified by the land study bureau's detailed land classification
as overall (master) productivity rating class A or B shall be approved by a
county unless those A and B lands within the subdivision are made subject to the
restriction on uses as prescribed in this section and to the condition that the
uses shall be primarily in pursuit of an agricultural activity.
Any deed, lease, agreement of sale,
mortgage, or other instrument of conveyance covering any land within the agricultural
subdivision shall expressly contain the restriction on uses and the condition,
as prescribed in this section that these restrictions and conditions shall be
encumbrances running with the land until such time that the land is reclassified
to a land use district other than agricultural district.
If
the foregoing requirement of encumbrances running with the land jeopardizes the
owner or lessee in obtaining mortgage financing from any of the mortgage
lending agencies set forth in the following paragraph, and the requirement is
the sole reason for failure to obtain mortgage financing, then the requirement
of encumbrances shall, insofar as such mortgage financing is jeopardized, be
conditionally waived by the appropriate county enforcement officer; provided
that the conditional waiver shall become effective only in the event that the
property is subjected to foreclosure proceedings by the mortgage lender.
The
mortgage lending agencies referred to in the preceding paragraph are the Federal
Housing Administration, Federal National Mortgage Association, Department of
Veterans Affairs, Small Business Administration, United States Department of
Agriculture, Federal Land Bank of Berkeley, Federal Intermediate Credit Bank of
Berkeley, Berkeley Bank for Cooperatives, and any other federal, state, or
private mortgage lending agency qualified to do business in Hawaii, and their
respective successors and assigns.
(c) Within the agricultural district, all lands
with soil classified by the land study bureau's detailed land classification as
overall (master) productivity rating class C, D, E, or U shall be restricted to
the uses permitted for agricultural districts as set forth in section 205-5(b).
(d) Notwithstanding any other provision of this
chapter to the contrary, golf courses and golf driving ranges approved by a
county before July 1, 2005, for development within the agricultural district
shall be permitted uses within the agricultural district.
(e) Notwithstanding any other provision of this
chapter to the contrary, plantation community subdivisions as defined in this
section shall be permitted uses within the agricultural district, and section
205-8 shall not apply.
[[](f)[]] Notwithstanding any other law to the
contrary, agricultural lands may be subdivided and leased for the agricultural
uses or activities permitted in subsection (a); provided that:
(1) The principal use of the leased land is
agriculture;
(2) No permanent or temporary dwellings or farm
dwellings, including trailers and campers, are constructed on the leased
area. This restriction shall not
prohibit the construction of storage sheds, equipment sheds, or other
structures appropriate to the agricultural activity carried on within the lot;
and
(3) The lease term for a subdivided lot shall be for
at least as long as the greater of:
(A) The minimum real property tax agricultural
dedication period of the county in which the subdivided lot is located; or
(B) Five years.
Lots created and leased pursuant to
this section shall be legal lots of record for mortgage lending purposes and shall
be exempt from county subdivision standards.
(g)
Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary,
composting and co-composting operations shall be permitted uses within the agricultural
district."
SECTION
6. Statutory material to be repealed is
bracketed and stricken. New statutory
material is underscored.
SECTION 7.
This Act shall take effect upon its approval.
INTRODUCED BY: |
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Report Title:
Composting; Co-Composting; Solid Waste Composting Facilities; Department of Health; Rules; Agricultural Districts
Description:
Requires the department of health to establish a multi-tiered registration and permitting system for all classes of solid waste composting facilities. Requires the department of health to update its co composting rules by 1/1/2023, and every ten years thereafter. Permits composting and co-composting operations in agricultural districts.
The summary description
of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is
not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.