Bill > SB958

This bill addresses the environmental and financial challenges posed by cesspools in Hawaii by appropriating $5 million over two fiscal years (2025-2026 and 2026-2027) to continue the Cesspool Compliance Pilot Grant Project. The legislature recognizes that failing cesspools are contaminating groundwater, streams, and coastal ecosystems, and that upgrading or converting these systems creates a significant financial burden for low- and moderate-income families. The bill establishes three full-time equivalent (FTE) positions within the Department of Health to administer the grant project, which will help property owners, including lessees on Hawaiian home lands, convert their cesspools to approved wastewater systems or connect to sewerage systems. This builds upon a previous initiative (Act 153 from 2022) that originally established the pilot program but saw its funding lapse on June 30, 2024. The bill aims to provide continued financial assistance to help property owners comply with the state's requirement to upgrade or convert cesspools by 2050, with the Act itself taking effect on December 31, 2050.

Budget and Finance, Health and Social Services

https://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/session/measure_indiv.aspx?billtype=SB&billnumber=958&year=2025