Hawaii-2021-HB260-Amended

SECTION 1. The legislature finds that Hawaii has been struggling with the issue of affordable housing for decades. Challenges range from land and infrastructure costs to funding, over-regulation, and permitting. According to the department of business, economic development, and tourism report, "Measuring Housing Demand in Hawaii, 2015-2025", the forecast demand for additional housing units in the counties totals 64,693 during the 2015-2025 period. The legislature recognizes the immense housing supply problem in the State and that creative solutions are needed to build more housing at all price points.

The legislature further finds that the land use commission is responsible for the classification of certain land parcels into the urban, rural, agricultural, and conservation districts. The land use commission also acts on land use district boundary amendment petitions involving the reclassification of lands in the conservation district, land areas greater than fifteen acres, and lands delineated as important agricultural lands.

Enabling the counties to reclassify certain lands intended for affordable housing development will make larger scale projects economically feasible for infrastructure to be built, such as a water treatment plant or connectivity to an existing sewer system, which are added costs that smaller projects cannot absorb. Opening up land for affordable housing projects will also facilitate the State's goal of increasing the supply of much needed affordable housing while being budget neutral to the State.

The purpose of this Act is to allow the counties to reclassify certain rural, urban, and agricultural lands that are:

(1) Fifty acres in certain rural, urban, and agricultural districts in which fifty per cent of the housing units on the land to be classified are set aside for persons and families with incomes at or below one hundred forty per cent of the area median income if fifty per cent of the housing units are set aside for households with incomes at one hundred forty per cent of the area median income; and

(2) Seventy-five acres in certain rural, urban, and agricultural districts in which one hundred per cent of the housing units on the land to be classified are set aside for persons and families with incomes at or below one hundred forty per cent of the area median income if one hundred per cent of the housing units are set aside for households with incomes at one hundred forty per cent of the area median income.

SECTION 2. Chapter 205, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"§205- Penalty. (a) Any petitioner for an amendment to a district boundary that:

(1) After a hearing conducted in accordance with land use commission rules and chapter 91, is found to have violated a condition of the decision and order of the land use commission with regard to a district boundary amendment or any representation made therein; or

(2) Neglects, fails to conform to, or comply with this chapter or any lawful order of the land use commission,

may be subject to a civil penalty not to exceed $50,000 for each day that the violation, neglect, or failure occurs, or reversion pursuant to section 205-4(g), but not both. The civil penalty shall be assessed by the land use commission after a hearing conducted in accordance with chapter 91.

(b) Upon written application filed within fifteen days after service of an order imposing a civil penalty pursuant to this section, the land use commission may remit or mitigate the penalty upon terms that the commission deems proper.

(c) If any civil penalty imposed pursuant to this section is not paid within a time period as directed by the land use commission, the attorney general shall institute a civil action for recovery of the civil penalty in circuit court."

SECTION 3. Section 205-3.1, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

"§205-3.1 Amendments to district boundaries. (a) [~~District~~] Except for lands under subsection (b)(3) and (b)(4), district boundary amendments involving lands in the conservation district, land areas greater than fifteen acres, or lands delineated as important agricultural lands shall be processed by the land use commission pursuant to section 205-4.

(b) Any department or agency of the State, and department or agency of the county in which the land is situated, or any person with a property interest in the land sought to be reclassified may petition the appropriate county land use decision-making authority of the county in which the land is situated for a change in the boundary of a district involving lands [~~less~~]:

(1) Less than fifteen acres presently in the rural and urban districts [~~and lands less~~];

(2) Less than fifteen acres in the agricultural district that are not designated as important agricultural lands[.];

(3) Fifty acres in the rural and urban districts and fifty acres in the agricultural district that are not designated as important agricultural lands; provided that fifty per cent of the housing units on the land sought to be reclassified under this paragraph are set aside for persons and families with incomes at or below one hundred forty per cent of the area median income; and

(4) Seventy-five acres in the rural and urban districts and seventy-five acres in the agricultural district that are not designated as important agricultural lands; provided that one hundred per cent of the housing units on the land sought to be reclassified under this paragraph are set aside for persons and families with incomes at or below one hundred forty per cent of the area median income.

Any county reclassification of lands under paragraphs (3) or (4) shall be consistent with county general plans and community development plans.

Lands in the agricultural district that are not designated as important agricultural lands under paragraphs (3) or (4) refers to lands in which the soil is classified by the land study bureau's detailed land classification as overall (master) productivity rating class C or lesser, and the land is contiguous to the urban district.

(c) District boundary amendments involving land areas [~~of fifteen acres or less, except as provided~~] described in subsection (b)[,] shall be determined by the appropriate county land use decision-making authority for the district and shall not require consideration by the land use commission pursuant to section 205-4; provided that such boundary amendments and approved uses are consistent with this chapter. The appropriate county land use decision-making authority may consolidate proceedings to amend state land use district boundaries pursuant to this subsection, with county proceedings to amend the general plan, development plan, zoning of the affected land, or such other proceedings. Appropriate ordinances and rules to allow consolidation of such proceedings may be developed by the county land use decision-making authority.

(d) The county land use decision-making authority shall serve a copy of the application for a district boundary amendment to the land use commission and the department of business, economic development, and tourism and shall notify the commission and the department of the time and place of the hearing and the proposed amendments scheduled to be heard at the hearing. A change in the state land use district boundaries pursuant to this subsection shall become effective on the day designated by the county land use decision-making authority in its decision. Within sixty days of the effective date of any decision to amend state land use district boundaries by the county land use decision-making authority, the decision and the description and map of the affected property shall be transmitted to the land use commission and the department of business, economic development, and tourism by the county planning director.

(e) Parceling of lands for development shall be prohibited.

As used in this subsection, "parceling" means the subdivision of lands under subsection (b)(3) and (b)(4) into two or more parcels, more than one of which is then proposed for reclassification within a ten-year period from the date of the subdivision."

SECTION 4. Section 205-4, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsection (a) to read as follows:

"(a) Any department or agency of the State, any department or agency of the county in which the land is situated, or any person with a property interest in the land sought to be reclassified, may petition the land use commission for a change in the boundary of a district. This section applies to all petitions for changes in district boundaries of lands within conservation districts, lands designated or sought to be designated as important agricultural lands, and lands greater than fifteen acres in the agricultural, rural, and urban districts, except as provided in [~~section~~] sections 201H-38[.], 205-3.1(b)(3), and 205-3.1(b)(4). The land use commission shall adopt rules pursuant to chapter 91 to implement section 201H‑38."

SECTION 5. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 6. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2050.

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.B. NO.	260
THIRTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2021		H.D. 1
STATE OF HAWAII