Votes at a glance: committee actions Feb. 27 — JHA committee advances, defers and amends multiple bills

The House Committee on Judiciary & Hawaiian Affairs met Feb. 27 and took action on multiple measures. Below is a concise summary of each bill on the agenda, the committee’s action and key decision notes drawn from committee discussion and the public testimony record.

Votes at a glance (committee recommendation / key notes):

- HB211 (stream maintenance) — Deferred. Committee directed redrafting to tie cleanup responsibility to stream ownership/jurisdiction and to account for court‑ordered notice and storage rules; DLNR requested cleanup appropriations.

- HB502 (land use; county-initiated redistricting) — Deferred. OPSD offered to work with the Legislature on a county plan‑based boundary amendment process; committee accepted that path forward.

- HB510 (water shortage & emergencies) — Advanced as is. Committee asked CWRM to conduct transparent Chapter 91 rulemaking for permit classifications and criteria; supporters included CWRM and Board of Water Supply; agriculture groups raised concerns about protections for farming.

- HB511 (public lands survey requirement) — Advanced as is (technical edits). DLNR described Act 90 transfers and told members that requiring surveys before an executive order slows transfers and increases cost; several landholder and agricultural groups voiced support.

- HB661 (environmental review) — Advanced with amendments. Committee incorporated OPSD and DLNR amendments to narrow the bill’s scope to previously permitted or authorized activities and added technical edits after contentious public testimony about HEPA and recent court rulings.

- HB969 (waste or disposal facilities) — Advanced with technical amendments. Committee asked the Department of Health to provide a statutory definition of 'significant aquifer' and made drafting clarifications so definition applies across subsections.

- HB732 (shoreline management thresholds) — Advanced with OPSD amendments. Committee accepted an amendment to defer inflation adjustments until five years after enactment and directed technical drafting improvements.

- HB1137 (beach restoration) — Advanced with technical edits. DLNR supported expanding the statutory definition to include dune management and removal of ecosystem‑risk materials.

- HB1138 (ocean user safety; emergency rule length) — Deferred. Committee concluded the correct response is to increase staffing and capacity for DLNR rulemaking and public engagement rather than extend emergency rule duration.

- HB1141 (update public land leases) — Advanced as is. Committee advanced a measure implementing an auditor recommendation to use contemporary draft forms for lease extensions to reflect current policy.

- HB1348 (recreational residential public‑lottery leases) — Advanced with DLNR technical amendments. Measure aims to authorize recreational residential leases by public lottery, limited to county residents.

- HB1087 (historic‑preservation review; Island Burial Councils) — Advanced with amendments. Committee removed the section transferring burial councils to OHA from this bill and accepted other drafting changes; OHA indicated it will pursue a separate feasibility resolution to study the transfer.

- HB226 (windshield tinting) — Advanced with technical edits.

- HB1159 (commercial harbors; evacuation orders) — Advanced with technical edits. DOT Harbors testified the measure aligns with U.S. Coast Guard port‑closure procedures and applies only to commercial harbors; committee advanced the bill after clarifying language.

- HB302 (cannabis-related) — Advanced as is (decision-making resumed and bill advanced during the session wrap‑up).

Committee voting notes: several bills were advanced with recorded reservations or no votes from individual members; in a number of cases the committee requested agency drafting input or follow‑up (for example DOH to define 'significant aquifer' for HB969 and CWRM to develop permit classification rules for HB510). A handful of measures were deferred to allow additional drafting and stakeholder reconciliation (notably HB211 and HB1138).