Relating To Integrated Land Use.
HB1016 requires the Office of Planning and Sustainable Development (OPSD) to conduct an integrated land use study focused on Hawaii’s agricultural districts. The study is intended to compile and analyze existing data on competing land uses and determine how much land is needed to meet the state’s climate, sustainability, and housing targets. It must incorporate prior planning and climate-related studies, including the Hawaii 2050 sustainability plan, state land use reviews, sea level rise vulnerability and adaptation work, and the state’s broader climate, sustainability, and housing goals.
The bill directs OPSD to produce county-specific recommendations and to gather input from state agencies, counties, the University of Hawaii, utilities, nonprofit agricultural organizations, and the agricultural community. It also requires public outreach to support county and community acceptance, and it calls for analysis of available acreage and potential impacts of any proposed land-use changes. The office must submit an interim report in 2026 and a final report in 2027 to the Legislature and the Land Use Commission.
HB1016 would expand the responsibilities of the Office of Planning and Sustainable Development by creating a formal statewide planning study for agricultural lands and by adding a dedicated planner position exempt from chapter 76 civil service rules. It appropriates $350,000 for fiscal year 2025-2026 and $150,000 for fiscal year 2026-2027 to support staffing, data analysis, outreach, travel, and other project costs. The bill does not directly rezone land or change agricultural district classifications, but it would create a planning framework intended to influence future land-use decisions, especially where housing, renewable energy, food production, and conservation goals compete for agricultural land.
The bill appears generally supportive of coordinated planning and data-driven decision-making. Its findings frame the measure as a response to multiple statewide climate, sustainability, and housing mandates and to public opposition around development on agricultural land. Because no committee transcripts or votes are provided, there is no recorded formal debate or vote history to indicate broader legislative support or opposition, but the bill’s structure suggests an effort to balance competing policy priorities rather than advance a single land-use outcome.
The main points of contention implied by the bill are the competing uses of agricultural land: affordable housing, renewable energy development, food production, and preservation of agricultural acreage. The bill specifically notes public opposition to affordable housing and renewable energy projects on agricultural land, suggesting that land conversion and siting decisions are likely to be sensitive. Another possible issue is the creation of a new exempt planner position and the associated appropriations, which may raise questions about administrative expansion and spending, though no explicit objections are recorded in the provided materials.