Senate Water and Land committee advances HB511 with amendments easing survey requirement for some public‑land transfers

The Senate Committee on Water and Land voted March 20 to pass House Bill 511, House Draft 1, with amendments that change when formal land surveys must be completed for transfers or set‑asides of public lands, the committee chair said.

Under the amendments read into the record by the chair, the bill creates tiered survey requirements: “high‑risk” lands (described as conservation lands adjacent to private property with existing infrastructure) would require a survey before transfer; “low‑risk” lands, described as existing state agricultural lands with clear historical records, may have surveys deferred if sufficient mapping or GIS records exist. The amendments also require that if a survey is deferred, the recipient agency must complete a survey within five years unless the Board of Land and Natural Resources (BLNR) grants an exemption based on existing documentation; authorize use of geographic information systems (GIS) and parcel maps as an administrative alternative to a formal survey subject to review by the Land Survey Division of the Department of Accounting and General Services (DAGS); create a centralized digital registry under the Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) to track transfers and maps; and add a mediation process for boundary disputes before litigation.

Why it matters: The change affects how Quickly transfers between state agencies may proceed and how boundary certainty is established. Supporters said the amendments can speed transfers between state departments and reduce costs for agricultural producers; opponents raised due‑process, fiduciary and Indigenous trust concerns and warned that removing pretransfer surveys could create legal and factual uncertainty.

Department and stakeholder positions

Cedric Gates, speaking for the Department of Agriculture, told the committee the department supports the bill’s intent while seeking clarifications and offered written testimony. "The department offered its comments on this measure, supporting the intent and asking for clarification on some things," Gates said.

Nicole Galassi of the Hawaii Cattlemen’s Council said producers support removing the survey prerequisite when transfers are intra‑state and costly surveys are holding up transfers. "Surveys are expensive. They take a long time, and they may not be the best use of funds seeing as how these lines are transferring between departments within the same state," Galassi said, adding that a full transfer of a lease (rather than partial transfers) would avoid the need for surveys in at least one pending case, which she identified as Kapopala Ranch.

Brian Miyamoto, president of the Hawaii Farm Bureau, told the committee the bureau stands on its written testimony in support.

Opposition and constitutional concerns

Tara Roxas, testifying in strong opposition, argued the amendments would undermine procedural protections for property rights and the state’s fiduciary duties over public (Crown) lands. Roxas cited legal concepts and constitutional provisions in urging rejection: "By removing surveys as a prerequisite to land transfers, HB511 violates these critical procedural safeguards, ignoring clear legal boundaries and therefore undermining due process," she said, and added that the change "weakens the state's capacity to protect the steward nonresponsibly."

Committee action and next steps

The committee chair said amendments would be added to HB511, House Draft 1, then moved the committee’s recommendation to pass the measure with those amendments. The committee recorded the following votes: Chair (Sen. Inouye) — aye; Vice Chair (Sen. Lafontaine) — aye; Sen. Chang — aye; Sen. McKelvie — yes; Sen. Descartes — no. The chair announced the recommendation adopted. The chair also said the measure will be referred to the Committee on Judiciary for further consideration.

Clarifying procedural points recorded in the hearing include a two‑minute time limit for public testimony, that live video of the hearing was available on the Senate’s YouTube channel, and that decision making followed the testimony portion of the hearing.

Ending

With the committee’s action, HB511, House Draft 1, as amended, moves next to the Senate Committee on Judiciary for additional review.