Bill > HB2551

This bill appropriates funds for an area-wide fruit fly suppression program, recognizing that fruit flies are a significant agricultural pest in Hawaii causing millions of dollars in losses and hindering agricultural expansion due to federal quarantines. The bill references a successful program initiated in 1999 by the United States Department of Agriculture's Agriculture Research Service (ARS) that used a combination of field sanitation, protein bait sprays, and male-lure traps to reduce fruit fly infestations and insecticide use, and notes that the department of agriculture and biosecurity is reinitiating this program to evaluate and update the ARS's original methods. The funds are to be used by the department of agriculture and biosecurity for fiscal year 2026-2027, and the act will take effect on July 1, 3000.

Agriculture and Natural Resources, Budget and Finance

https://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/session/measure_indiv.aspx?billtype=HB&billnumber=2551&year=2026