STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2891

 

Honolulu, Hawaii

                  

 

RE:    H.B. No. 2041

       H.D. 1

       S.D. 1

 

 

 

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Twenty-Eighth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2016

State of Hawaii

 

Sir:

 

     Your Committee on Water, Land, and Agriculture, to which was referred H.B. No. 2041, H.D. 1, entitled:

 

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO WATER AUDITS,"

 

begs leave to report as follows:

 

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to establish a program to implement standardized water audits of public water systems in accordance with the method adopted by the American Water Works Association's Water Audits and Loss Control Programs, Manual of Water Supply Practices - M36, as amended.

 

     Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the City and County of Honolulu Board of Water Supply, Aha Moku Advisory Committee, Hawaii Green Growth, Hawaii Community Foundation, Hawaii Fresh Water Initiative, Surfrider Foundation's Oahu Chapter, and two individuals.  Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Department of Land and Natural Resources and Department of Agriculture.

 

     Your Committee finds that water conservation is among the least expensive and most efficient ways to increase the available supply of fresh water.  Water conservation requires improving the efficiency of water delivery and identifying losses to the system.  Your Committee further finds that a water audit helps a utility understand how much water is lost from a distribution system through the detailed analysis of data, which the utility can use to make informed decisions to reduce real or apparent losses.  Your Committee acknowledges the testimony of the Department of Land and Natural Resources and supports the suggestion that this measure be amended to reflect the Senate companion bill, S.B. No. 2645, S.D. 2 (Regular Session of 2016), and designate that the water audits required by this measure be conducted by the counties.

 

     Your Committee has amended this measure by:

 

     (1)  Amending language to require the Commission on Water Resource Management to establish a program to provide technical assistance to public water systems and require the counties, rather than the commission, to conduct standardized water audits of public water systems;

 

     (2)  Amending language to require the commission to utilize the American Water Works Association's Free Water Audit Software, Version 5.0 or subsequent versions;

 

     (3)  Inserting language to clarify that validation of water audits shall be level 1 validation;

 

     (4)  Requiring the commission to include, in the water audit program to be implemented on January 1, 2017, a process for level 1 validation of water loss audit reports following the principles and terminology in the American Water Works Association's Water Audits and Loss Control Programs, Manual of Water Supply Practices - M36, as amended;

 

     (5)  Amending language to require the counties to submit an annual report to the commission, rather than requiring the commission to submit an annual report to the Legislature, and beginning on July 1, 2021, requiring all remaining large capacity public water systems and public water systems in water management areas to also submit an annual report to the commission;

 

     (6)  Inserting a definition of "level 1 validation";

 

     (7)  Inserting an appropriation amount of $650,000;

 

     (8)  Inserting an effective date of July 1, 2016; and

 

     (9)  Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for the purposes of clarity and consistency.

 

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Water, Land, and Agriculture that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 2041, H.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 2041, H.D. 1, S.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Ways and Means.

 

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Water, Land, and Agriculture,

 

 

 

________________________________

MIKE GABBARD, Chair