HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES |
H.R. NO. |
114 |
THIRTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2022 |
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STATE OF HAWAII |
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HOUSE RESOLUTION
URGING FAIR TREATMENT OF HAWAII KAI'S ELDERLY FARMERS BY KAMEHAMEHA SCHOOLS BY EXTENDING THEIR FARM LEASES AND/OR POSTPONING THE DEADLINE FOR CAPPING THEIR CESSPOOLS.
WHEREAS, Hawaii Kai farmers were part of developer Henry Kaiser's plan when he first designed Hawaii Kai as a bedroom community to have its own food basket and set aside ~80 acres for farmers under lease from Kamehameha Schools / Bishop Estate and
WHEREAS, all these farm leases will expire in July 2025 – just two and a half years from now; and
WHEREAS, Kamehameha Schools is now requiring farmers to cap their cesspools and install septic tanks for a cost of ~$35,000+ or be billed by Kamehameha Schools who will do it for them; and
WHEREAS, Most Hawaii Kai farmers are in their seventies and make very little income; and
WHEREAS, Kamehameha Schools claims farmers have "large cesspools" due to "mixed-use" zoning, which are for up to twenty persons, while most of these households are comprised of two to five persons; and
WHEREAS, if not characterized as a "large cesspool", the deadline to cap is not until 2050; and
WHEREAS, with just two and a half years left on their leases, these farmers find the requirement to be a punitive "end-of-lease penalty" rather than an EPA imperative; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Thirty-first Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2022, that Kamehameha Schools consider extending the Hawaii Kai farmers leases for at least ten more years to be able to pay off this required end-of-lease investment; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that Kamehameha Schools consider hiring a septic tank contractor, amortize the cost over a twenty-five-year period, and bill the farmers for three years' usage of the septic tanks; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that Kamehameha Schools negotiate a win-win solution bearing in mind they knew about the EPA requirements three years ago, though only informed the farmers thirty-months prior to their leases' end; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that Kamehameha Schools display sensitivity towards the demographics of the Hawaii Kai farmers who are of advanced age, low income, and in two and a half years' time will be forced to surrender their homes, barns, and other structures upon expiration of their leases without compensation; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to Kamehameha Schools / Bishop Estate.
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OFFERED BY: |
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Urging Kamehameha Schools' fair treatment of Hawaii Kai farmers.