Bill > SB677

This bill requires the Office of Planning and Sustainable Development to create a comprehensive Hawaii Climate Adaptation and Resilience Implementation Plan, recognizing the state's unique vulnerability to climate change impacts such as hurricanes, rising temperatures, flooding, coastal erosion, and wildfires. The plan must align with existing state and county planning documents and serve four key purposes: determining the overall financial risks associated with climate change, aggregating climate risk data, assessing adaptation options for multiple hazards, and recommending land use and infrastructure strategies to protect local economies, environments, and communities. The plan must incorporate recommendations from various existing sustainability, sea level rise, hazard mitigation, drought, and community protection plans. To support this effort, the bill appropriates funding for two planner V positions, one planner IV position, and related expenses like computers, publication costs, and public outreach. The office is required to submit the implementation plan to the legislature twenty days before the 2028 regular legislative session, with the bill's provisions set to take effect on January 1, 2050. By creating this comprehensive plan, Hawaii aims to proactively address and mitigate the potential impacts of climate change on the state's infrastructure, economy, and communities.

Agriculture and Natural Resources, Budget and Finance

https://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/session/measure_indiv.aspx?billtype=SB&billnumber=677&year=2025