HomeMy WebLinkAboutHCR208_HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
THIRTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE,2023 H C R NO
STATE OF HAWAII U U
HOUSE CONCURRENT
RESQLUTION
REQUESTING EACH COUNTY TO DEVEIacP A COMPREHENSIVE INTEGRATED
WASTEWATER MANAGEMENT PLAN AND FINANCIAL STRATEGY TO
UPGRADE OR CONVERT CESSPOOLS LOCATED WITHIN ITS RESPECTIVE
JURISDICTION BY 2050.
WHEREAS,there are approximately eighty-three thousand
2 cesspools across the State,with 48,596 on the island of Hawaii;
3 14,300 on Kauai;11,038 on Maui;7,491 on Oahu;and 1,400 on
4 Molokai;and
5
6 WHEREAS,Act 125,Session Laws of Hawaii 2017,requires
7 every cesspool in the State,excluding cesspools granted
8 exemptions by the Director of Health,to be upgraded or
9 converted to a Director-approved wastewater system or connected
10 to a sewerage system byJanuary 1,2050;and
11 V
12 WHEREAS,according to the Cesspool Conversion Working Group
13 Final Report to the 2023 Regular Session Legislature,the cost
14 of conversions to most private and residential property owners
15 is significant,ranging from an estimated collective total of
16 $880,000,000 to more than $5,300,000,000,with only three
17 percent.of all residents unburdened by the cost to convert;and
18
19 WHEREAS,many properties in rural areas,especially on the
20 neighbor islands,may not be in areas where existing county
21 infrastructure allows for easy conversion and connection to
22 sewer systems;and
23
24 WHEREAS,undertaking a massive infrastructure project,such
25 as converting eighty-three thousandcesspools by 2050,requires
26 proper planning and administration across various stakeholders
27 and governmental institutions,including those of the counties;
28 now,therefore,
29 .
30 BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the
31 Thirty-second Legislature of the State of Hawaii,Regular
2023-2154 HCR SMA.docx
~
Page2 H.C.R.NO.zc~
I Session of 2023,the Senate concurring,that each county is
2 requested to develop a comprehensive integrated wastewater
3 management plan and financial strategy to upgrade or convert
4 cesspools located within its respective jurisdiction by 2050;
5 and
6
7 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that each county is requested to
8 include the following information in its comprehensive
9 integrated wastewater management plan and financial strategy;
10
11 (1)Planned connections to both centralized public and
12 private treatment systems;
13
14 (2)Locations where individualized treatment systems will
15 be needed;
16
17 (3)Locations where smaller-scale cluster treatment
18 systems may be utilized;
19
20 (4)Individual treatment system needs for homes having
21 cesspools,including whether there is appropriate
22 existing infrastructure capacity to handle the
23 conversion of cesspools by 2050;and
24
25 (5)Financial needs,funding mechanisms,and financing
26 strategies to assist with cesspool conversions;and
27
28 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that each county is requested to
29 submit its respective comprehensive integrated wastewater
30 management plan and financial strategy,including any proposed
31 legislation,to the Legislature no later than twenty days prior
32 to the convening of the regular session of 2024;and
33
34 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this
35 Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Director of Health,
36 Mayor of the City and County of Honolulu,Mayor of the County of
37 Hawaii,Mayor of the County of Maui,and Mayor of the County of
38 Kauai.
OFFERED B ______________________________
MAR I Ii 2023
2023-2154 NCR SMA.docx 2
~