RELATING TO SMALL BOAT HARBORS.
HB649 revises Hawaii law governing permits and fees for state small boat harbors, coastal areas, and ocean waters. It requires a vessel owner to obtain written authorization from the Department of Land and Natural Resources before mooring in a state small boat harbor, and it adds an explicit requirement to pay fees set under the bill. The measure also updates permit application and renewal requirements, including proof of vessel inspection, proof of ownership, and age verification, and it authorizes the department to collect application fees, utility charges, and common-area maintenance fees.
The bill changes how moorage and commercial use fees are calculated. For most permits, fees are tied to the impact of the activity on natural resources, public access, and program administration, with appraisal-based fair market value used in many cases. It also creates or clarifies special fee rules for liveaboard recreational vessels and for vessels carrying passengers for hire, including a percentage-of-gross-revenue option and per-passenger minimums. In addition, the bill addresses commercial permit transfers, business entity ownership changes, renewal timelines, and a one-time extension process for late renewals.
HB649 amends section 200-10 of the Hawaii Revised Statutes, expanding and refining the Department of Land and Natural Resources’ authority over small boat harbor permits, moorage, and related fees. It affects vessel owners, commercial ocean operators, liveaboard permittees, and business entities holding commercial use permits by imposing updated application, renewal, transfer, and fee requirements. The bill also directs revenues from these operations into the boating special fund and preserves preexisting rights, duties, penalties, and proceedings.
The available legislative history suggests broad support for the bill. It passed the Senate Water, Land, and Agriculture Committee, the Senate Ways and Means Committee, and conference unanimously or near-unanimously, with no recorded opposition in the provided votes. The bill’s findings frame it as part of a broader ocean recreation management package intended to improve enforcement and resource protection, indicating a generally favorable view of the measure’s policy goals.
The main policy tension appears to be between stronger regulation/fee collection and the interests of commercial and recreational harbor users. The bill is designed to give the department more tools to address overcrowding, environmental impacts, and underfunding, which may be welcomed by resource managers and public-interest advocates. At the same time, commercial operators and permit holders may be affected by higher or more variable fees, minimum revenue standards, and tighter renewal and transfer rules, especially where fees are based on gross revenue, passenger counts, or appraised fair market value.