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Witnesses urge restoring nighttime spearfishing restrictions as committee advances coral restoration bill with delay to Holomua start date
Summary
Testimony from UH students, the Ocean Legislative Task Force, and reef groups urged restoring a prior HD1 amendment that would have temporarily banned nighttime spearing of uhu and kala; the committee advanced SB2972 but moved the Holomua Marine Initiative start date to July 1, 2027.
Senate Bill 2972, SD1, HD1, which requires the Division of Aquatic Resources to begin the Holomua Marine Initiative process for Oʻahu, drew testimony urging immediate interim protections for herbivorous reef fish.
Frederick Smith, a graduate student at UH Hilo living in Kealakekua Bay, opposed the HD1 version because it removed an earlier temporary ban on nighttime spearing of uhu and kala; he said the prior version provided meaningful interim protections and urged the committee to restore it. Hannah Lieziac (Ocean Legislative Task Force) and Ted Bolan (Hawaii Reef and Ocean Coalition) also supported restoring the original prohibition on nighttime spearing, arguing uhu and kala are key herbivores that support reef resilience and that interim protections are needed while Holomua rulemaking proceeds.
At decision‑making the chair recommended moving SB2972 forward with technical amendments and delayed the required initiation of the Holomua process on Oʻahu from July 1, 2026 to July 1, 2027 to allow DAR more time to prepare; the committee adopted the recommendation with members recording reservations. Proponents had urged earlier, on‑the‑water protections, while the committee opted for a later start date plus technical edits.
Next steps for SB2972 will be committee transmission with the adopted technical changes and the revised initiation date for Holomua rulemaking.
