SB 1652: RELATING TO CLIMATE CHANGE.

THE SENATE	S.B. NO.	1652
THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2025
STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

 

 

relating to climate change.

 

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

 

     SECTION 1.  This Act shall be known and may be cited as the "Climate Change Superfund Act".

     SECTION 2.  The legislature finds that climate change, resulting primarily from the combustion of fossil fuels, is an immediate, grave threat to the State's communities, environment, and economy.  In addition to mitigating the further buildup of greenhouse gases, the State must take action to adapt to certain consequences of climate change that are irreversible, including rising sea levels, increasing temperatures, extreme weather events, flooding, heat waves, toxic algal blooms, and other climate change-driven threats.  Maintaining the State's quality of life into the future, particularly for young people, who will experience greater impacts from climate change over their lifetimes, will be one of the State's greatest challenges over the next three decades.  Meeting that challenge will require a shared commitment of purpose, significant investments in new or upgraded infrastructure, and new revenue sources to pay for those investments.

     The legislature further finds that, based on decades of research, it is now possible to determine with great accuracy the share of greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere by specific fossil fuel companies over the last seventy years or more, making it possible to assign liability to and require compensation from companies commensurate with their emissions during a given time period.

     It is therefore the intent of the legislature to establish a climate change adaptation cost recovery program that will require companies that have contributed significantly to the buildup of climate change-driving greenhouse gases in the atmosphere to bear a proportionate share of the cost of infrastructure investments and other expenses necessary for comprehensive adaptation to the impacts of climate change in the State.

     The obligation to pay under the program established by this Act is based on the fossil fuel companies' historic contribution to the buildup of greenhouse gases that is largely responsible for climate change.  The program will operate under a standard of strict liability, meaning companies will be required to pay into the fund because the use of their products caused the pollution.  No finding of wrongdoing is required.

     Further, payments by historical polluters into the climate change adaptation cost recovery program will be used for new or upgraded infrastructure needs such as coastal wetlands restoration; storm water drainage system upgrades; energy efficient cooling systems in public and private buildings, including schools and public housing; support for programs addressing climate-driven public health challenges; and responses to extreme weather events, all of which are necessary to protect the public safety and welfare in the face of the growing impacts of climate change.  The cost to the State of climate adaptation investments through 2050 is estimated to reach several billion dollars.

     The legislature also finds that recent science has determined that the largest one hundred fossil fuel producing companies are responsible for more than seventy per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions since 1988, and therefore bear a much higher share of responsibility for climate damage to the State than what is represented by the amount assessed against these companies.

     This Act is not intended to intrude on the authority of the federal government in areas where it has preempted the right of the states to legislate.  This Act is remedial in nature, seeking compensation for damages resulting from the past actions of polluters.

     Accordingly, the purpose of this Act is to establish the climate change adaptation cost recovery program to secure compensatory payments from responsible parties based on a standard of strict liability to provide a source of revenue for climate change adaptive infrastructure projects within the State.

     SECTION 3.  Chapter 225M, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new part to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"Part     .  Climate change adaptation cost recovery program

     §225M-A  Definitions.  As used in this part:

     "Applicable payment date" means September 30 of the second calendar year following the effective date of Act      , Session Laws of Hawaii 2025.

     "Climate change adaptive infrastructure project" means an infrastructure project designed to avoid, moderate, repair, or adapt to negative impacts caused by climate change, and to assist communities, households, and businesses in preparing for future climate change-driven disruptions.  "Climate change adaptive infrastructure project" includes but is not limited to:

     (1)  Restoring coastal wetlands and developing other nature-based solutions and coastal protections;

     (2)  Upgrading storm water drainage systems;

     (3)  Preparing for and recovering from hurricanes and other extreme weather events;

     (4)  Undertaking preventative health care programs and providing medical care to treat illness or injury caused by the effects of climate change;

     (5)  Relocating, elevating, or retrofitting sewage treatment plants vulnerable to flooding;

     (6)  Installing energy efficient cooling systems and other weatherization and energy efficiency upgrades and retrofits in public and private buildings, including schools and public housing;

     (7)  Upgrading parts of the electrical grid to increase stability and resilience, including supporting the creation of self-sufficient clean energy microgrids;

     (8)  Addressing urban heat island effects through green spaces, urban forestry, and other interventions;

     (9)  Making defensive upgrades to roads, bridges, and transit systems; and

    (10)  Responding to toxic algae blooms, loss of agricultural topsoil, and other climate-driven ecosystem threats to forests, farms, fisheries, and food systems.

     "Coal" means bituminuous coal, anthracite coal, or lignite.

     "Controlled group" means two or more entities treated as a single employer under section 52(a), 52(b), 414(m), or 414(o) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended.  In applying subsections (a) and (b) of section 52 of the Internal Revenue Code, section 1563 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, shall be applied without regard to section (b)(2)(C).  For the purposes of this part, an entity in a controlled group shall be treated as a single entity for purposes of meeting the definition of responsible party and are jointly and severally liable for payment of any cost recovery demand owed by any entity in the controlled group.

     "Cost recovery demand" means a charge asserted against a responsible party for cost recovery payments under the program for payment to the fund.

     "Covered greenhouse gas emissions" means, with respect to any entity, the total quantity of greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere during the covered period, expressed in metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent as identified in section 225M‑C, including but not limited to releases of greenhouse gases resulting from the extraction, storage, production, refinement, transport, manufacture, distribution, sale, and use of fossil fuels or petroleum products extracted, produced, refined, or sold by the entity.

     "Covered period" means the period that began January 1, 2000, and ended on December 31, 2018.

     "Crude oil" means oil or petroleum of any kind and in any form, including bitumen, oil sands, heavy oil, conventional and unconventional oil, shale oil, natural gas liquids, condensates, and related fossil fuels.

     "Entity" means any individual, trustee, agent, partnership, association, corporation, company, municipality, political subdivision, or other legal organization, including a foreign nation, that holds or held an ownership interest in a fossil fuel business during the covered period.

     "Fossil fuel" means coal, petroleum products, and fuel gases.

     "Fossil fuel business" means a business engaging in the extraction of fossil fuels or the refining of petroleum products.

     "Fuel gases" means methane, natural gas, liquefied natural gas, and manufactured fuel gases.

     "Fund" means the climate change adaptation special fund established pursuant to section 225M-J.

     "Greenhouse gas" means carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, hydroflurocarbons, perflurocarbons, sulfur hexafluoride, and any other substance emitted into the air that may be reasonably anticipated to cause or contribute to anthropogenic climate change.

     "Nature-based solution" means a project that utilizes or mimics nature, natural processes, or functions and that may also offer environmental, economic, and societal benefits, while increasing resilience.  "Nature-based solution" includes both green and natural infrastructure.

     "Notice of cost recovery demand" means the written communication informing a responsible party of the amount of the cost recovery demand payable to the fund.

     "Petroleum product" means any product refined or rerefined from synthetic or crude oil or oil extracted from other sources, including natural gas liquids.

     "Program" means the climate change adaptation cost recovery program established under section 225M-B.

     "Public entity" means any unit of government in this State, including:

     (1)  The State;

     (2)  Any county or combination of counties, department, agency, institution, board, commission, district, council, bureau, office, public trust, governing authority, or other instrumentality of state or county government; and

     (3)  Any corporation or other establishment owned, operated, or managed by or on behalf of the State or any county.

     "Qualifying expenditure" means an authorized payment from the fund in support of a climate change adaptive infrastructure project, including its operation and maintenance, as defined by the office of planning and sustainable development.

     "Responsible party" means any entity, or successor in interest to an entity, which, during any part of the covered period, was engaged in the trade or business of extracting fossil fuel or refining crude oil and is determined by the office of planning and sustainable development to be responsible for more than one billion tons of covered greenhouse gas emissions.  "Responsible party" does not include any person who lacks sufficient connection with the State to satisfy the nexus requirements of the United States Constitution.

     §225M-B  Climate change adaptation cost recovery program; establishment; purpose.  (a)  There is established within the office of planning and sustainable development the climate change adaptation cost recovery program.

     (b)  The purposes of the climate change adaptation cost recovery program shall be the following:

     (1)  To secure compensatory payments from responsible parties based on a standard of strict liability to provide a source of revenue for climate change adaptive infrastructure projects within the State;

     (2)  To determine proportional liability of responsible parties pursuant to section 225M-C;

     (3)  To impose cost recovery demands on responsible parties and issue notices of cost recovery demands;

     (4)  To accept and collect payment from responsible parties;

     (5)  To identify climate change adaptive infrastructure projects;

     (6)  To disperse funds to climate change adaptive infrastructure projects; and

     (7)  To allocate funds; provided that not less than forty per cent of the qualified expenditures from the program shall be allocated to climate change adaptive infrastructure projects that benefit disadvantaged communities.

     §225M-C  Climate change adaptation cost recovery program; responsible party liability; cost recovery demand.  (a)  A responsible party shall be strictly liable, without regard to fault, for a share of the costs of climate change adaptive infrastructure projects, including their operation and maintenance, supported by the fund.

     (b)  With respect to each responsible party, the cost recovery demand shall be equal to an amount that bears the same ratio to $10,000,000,000 as the responsible party's applicable share of covered greenhouse gas emissions bears to the aggregate applicable shares of covered greenhouse gas emissions of all responsible parties.

     (c)  The applicable share of covered greenhouse gas emissions taken into account under this section for any responsible party shall be the amount by which the covered greenhouse gas emissions attributable to the responsible party exceeds one billion metric tons.

     (d)  Where an entity owns a minority interest in another entity of ten per cent or more, the calculation of the entity's applicable share of greenhouse gas emissions taken into account under this section shall include the applicable share of greenhouse gas emissions taken into account under this section by the entity in which the responsible party holds a minority interest, multiplied by the percentage of the minority interest held.

     (e)  In determining the amount of greenhouse gas emissions attributable to any entity:

     (1)  An amount equivalent to nine hundred forty-two and one-half metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent shall be treated as released for every million pounds of coal attributable to the entity;

     (2)  An amount equivalent to 432,180 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent shall be treated as released for every million barrels of crude oil attributable to the entity; and

     (3)  An amount equivalent to 53,440 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent shall be treated as released for every million cubic feet of fuel gasses attributable to the entity.

     (f)  The director of the office of planning and sustainable development may adjust the cost recovery demand amount of a responsible party refining petroleum products, or a party that is a successor in interest to a responsible party refining petroleum products, if the responsible party establishes to the satisfaction of the director that a portion of the cost recovery demand amount was attributable to the refining of crude oil extracted by another responsible party or its successor.

     (g)  Payment of a cost recovery demand shall be made in full on the applicable payment date unless a responsible party elects to pay in installments pursuant to subsection (h).

     (h)  A responsible party may elect to pay the cost of recovery demand amount in twenty-four annual installments; provided that eight per cent of the total due shall be paid in the first installment and four per cent of the total due shall be paid in each of the following twenty-three installments.  If an election is made under this subsection, the first installment shall be paid on the applicable payment date and each subsequent installment shall be paid on the same date as the applicable payment date in each succeeding year.

     (i)  If there is any addition to the original amount of the cost recovery demand for:  failure to timely pay any installment required under this section; a liquidation for sale of substantially all the assets of the responsible party, including in a proceeding under title XI, United States Code, or similar case; a cessation of business by the responsible party; or any similar circumstance, then the unpaid balance of all remaining installments shall be due on the date of the event; provided that, in the event of a proceeding under title XI, United States Code, or similar case, the unpaid balance of all remaining installments shall be due on the day before the petition is filed; provided further that if a buyer of a responsible party  enters into an agreement with the director of the office of planning and sustainable development under which the buyer is liable for the remaining installments, the terms of the agreement shall apply.

     §225M-D  Climate change adaptation cost recovery program; office of planning and sustainable development; responsibilities.  (a)  No later than July 1, 2026, the office of planning and sustainable development shall adopt rules pursuant to chapter 91 to carry out this part, including but not limited to:

     (1)  Adopting methodologies using the best available science to determine responsible parties and their applicable shares of covered greenhouse gas emissions consistent with this part;

     (2)  Registering entities that are responsible parties under the program;

     (3)  Issuing notices of cost recovery demand to responsible parties informing them of:

          (A)  The cost recovery demand amount;

          (B)  How and where cost recovery demands can be paid;

          (C)  The potential consequences of nonpayment and late payment; and

          (D)  Information regarding a responsible party's rights to contest an assessment;

     (4)  Accepting payments from, pursuing collection efforts against, and negotiating settlements with responsible parties; and

     (5)  Adopting procedures for identifying and selecting climate change adaptive infrastructure projects eligible to receive qualifying expenditures, including legislative budget appropriations, issuance of requests for proposals from localities and not-for-profit and community organizations, grants to private individuals, or other methods as determined by the office of planning and sustainable development, and for dispersing moneys from the fund for qualifying expenditures.  When considering projects intended to stabilize tidal shorelines, the office of planning and sustainable development shall encourage the use of nature-based solutions.  Total qualifying expenditures shall be allocated so at least forty per cent of the qualified expenditures from the program, shall go to climate change adaptive infrastructure projects that benefit disadvantaged communities.

     (b)  The office of planning and sustainable development shall hold at least two public hearings, one in-person and one virtual, on proposed regulations, with a minimum of thirty days public notice.

     §225M-E  Master plan.  No later than July 1, 2027, the office of planning and sustainable development shall complete a statewide climate change adaptation master plan for the purpose of guiding the dispersal of funds in a timely, efficient, and equitable manner to all regions of the State in accordance with the provisions of this part.  In completing the statewide climate change adaptation master plan, the office of planning and sustainable development shall:

     (1)  Collaborate with other relevant state and county agencies;

     (2)  Assess the adaptation needs and vulnerabilities of various areas vital to the State's economy, normal functioning, and the health and well-being of residents in the State, including but not limited to:

          (A)  Agriculture;

          (B)  Biodiversity;

          (C)  Ecosystem services;

          (D)  Education;

          (E)  Finance;

          (F)  Health care;

          (G)  Manufacturing;

          (H)  Housing and real estate;

          (I)  Retail;

          (J)  Tourism;

          (K)  Transportation; and

          (L)  Municipal and local government;

     (3)  Identify major potential, proposed, and ongoing climate change adaptive infrastructure projects throughout the State;

     (4)  Identify opportunities for alignment with existing federal, state, and local funding streams;

     (5)  Consult with stakeholders, including local governments, businesses, environmental advocates, relevant subject area experts, and representatives of disadvantaged communities; and

     (6)  Provide opportunities for public engagement in all regions of the State.

     §225M-F  Authorization to enforce.  The office of planning and sustainable development, department of taxation, and the department of the attorney general shall be authorized to implement and enforce the provisions of this part.

     §225M-G  Cost recovery demand; opportunity to contest.  The office of planning and sustainable development or department of taxation shall provide an opportunity to be heard to any responsible party that seeks to contest a cost recovery demand.  Determinations made in favor of a petitioner after a hearing shall be final and conclusive.  A determination in favor of the State may be appealed in accordance with part I of chapter 641.

     §225M-H  Cost recovery demand; deposit of moneys.  Moneys received from cost recovery demands shall be deposited into the climate change adaptation special fund established pursuant to section 225M-J.

     §225M-I  Climate change adaptation cost recovery program; evaluation.  (a)  The office of planning and sustainable development shall conduct an independent evaluation of the climate change adaptation cost recovery program.  The purpose of the evaluation shall be to determine the effectiveness of the program in achieving its purpose as established in section 225M‑B.

     (b)  The office of planning and sustainable development shall submit the evaluation, and any proposed legislation, to the governor and legislature no later than forty days prior to the convening of the regular session of 2028.

     (c)  Any entity contracted by the office of planning and sustainable development to conduct the evaluation shall receive prompt payment of all moneys due upon completion of the evaluation.

     §225M-J  Climate change adaptation special fund.  (a)  There is established in the State treasury the climate change adaptation special fund into which funds collected pursuant to cost recovery demands under section 225M-C shall be deposited.  The climate change adaptation special fund shall be applied, used, and disposed of for the payment of qualifying expenditures pursuant to the climate change adaptation cost recovery program established under section 225M-B.

     (b)  No moneys shall be expended from the fund for any project except qualifying expenditures pursuant to the climate change adaptation cost recovery program, including their operation and maintenance.

     (c)  Revenues in the fund shall be kept separate and shall not be comingled with any other moneys.  Any deposit of revenues shall be secured by obligations of the United States or of the State having a market value equal at all times to the amount of the deposit and any bank and trust companies shall be authorized to give security for the deposit.

     §225M-K  Climate change adaptation cost recovery program; labor and job standards; worker protection; generally.  Any public entity involved in implementing a project funded through the climate change adaptation cost recovery program shall assess and implement strategies to increase employment opportunities and improve job quality.  No later than November 1, 2025, the governor shall publish a report, accessible on the governor's official website, which shall provide:

     (1)  Steps that will be taken to ensure compliance with this part, including the department or office, or combination thereof, charged with implementation of the provisions of this part;

     (2)  Regulations necessary to ensure the prioritization of the statewide goal of creating quality jobs and increasing employment opportunities; and

     (3)  Steps that will be taken with all public entities, including local and county level governments, to implement a system to track compliance, accept reports of non-compliance for enforcement action, and report annually on the adoption of these standards to the legislature no later than forty days prior to the convening of each regular session, beginning with the regular session of 2026.

     §225M-L  Climate change adaptation cost recovery program; labor and job standards; public entities.  In considering and issuing permits, licenses, regulations, contracts, and other administrative approvals and decisions necessary for implementation of projects funded in whole, or in part, through the climate change adaptation cost recovery program, each public entity shall apply the following standards:

     (1)  For any construction work, the payment of not less than prevailing wages for all employees of any contractors and subcontractors, consistent with state law; provided that, in the event a recipient of financial assistance contracts building service work or operations and maintenance work is a building service contractor, the contractor shall be held to the same obligations with respect to prevailing wages as the recipient; provided further that the recipient shall include terms establishing this obligation within any contract signed with a contractor;

     (2)  The public entity may require a private owner, or a third party acting on the owner's behalf, as a condition of receiving funds pursuant to the climate change adaptation cost recovery program, to stipulate to the public entity that it will enter into a labor peace agreement with at least one bona fide labor organization where either the bona fide labor organization is actively representing employees in the job-type or, upon notice, a bona fide labor organization is attempting to represent employees in the job-type.  For the purposes of this paragraph, "labor peace agreement" means an agreement between an entity and labor organization that, at a minimum, protects the State's proprietary interests by prohibiting labor organizations and members from engaging in work stoppages, boycotts, and any other economic interference with the relevant project or program;

     (3)  The inclusion of contract language with a provision that the iron, steel, aluminum, glass, copper, manufactured products, and construction products, including without limitation, vehicles, omnibuses, school buses, trucks, construction equipment, earth moving equipment, cranes, drilling equipment, rolling stock, train control equipment, communication equipment, traction power equipment, rolling stock prototypes, rolling stock frames, rolling stock car shells, batteries, charging equipment, fuel cells, fueling equipment, turbines, nacelles, blades, rotors, generators, motors, hubs, cable, conduit, controllers, towers, photovoltaic cells, solar panels, meters, inverters, pipe, tubing, fittings, tanks, flanges, valves, concrete, rebar, brick, aggregate, concrete block, cement, timber, lumber, tile, and drywall used or supplied in the performance of the contract or any subcontract, shall be produced or made in whole or substantial part in the United States, its territories, or possessions.  In the case of an iron, steel, or aluminum product, all manufacturing shall take place in the United States, from the initial melting stage through the application of coatings, except metallurgical processes involving the refinement of steel additives; provided that the provisions of this paragraph shall not apply in any case or category of cases in which the head of the contracting public entity finds that:

          (A)  Applying paragraph (3) would be inconsistent with the public interest;

          (B)  Products are not produced in the United States in sufficient and reasonably available quantities and of a satisfactory quality; or

          (C)  Inclusion of products produced in the United States will increase the cost of the overall project by more than twenty-five per cent.

          If the head of the contracting public entity receives a request for a waiver under this paragraph, the head of the contracting public entity shall make available to the public on an informal basis a copy of the request and information available to the head of the contracting public entity concerning the request, and shall allow for informal public input on the request for at least fifteen days before making a finding based on the request.  The head of the contracting public entity shall make the request and accompanying information available by electronic means, including on the official public website of the public entity.  The provisions of this paragraph shall not apply for products purchased before July 1, 2025;

     (4)  The head of the contracting public entity may, at the contracting entity's sole discretion, provide for a solicitation of a request for proposal, invitation for bid, or solicitation of proposal, or any other method provided for by law or regulation for soliciting a response from offerors intending to result in a contract pursuant to this subsection involving a competitive process in which the evaluation of competing bids gives significant consideration in the evaluation process to the procurement of equipment and supplies from businesses located in the State;

     (5)  Wherever possible, contractors and subcontractors shall be required to participate in apprenticeship programs in the trades in which they are performing work; provided that for industries without apprenticeship programs, the use of workforce training, preferably in conjunction with a bona fide labor organization, shall be required; provided further that contractors and subcontractors shall utilize registered pre-apprenticeship direct entry programs for the recruitment of local or disadvantaged workers; and

     (6)  Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, all rights or benefits, including terms and conditions of employment, and protection of civil service and collective bargaining status of all existing public employees, shall be preserved and protected.  Nothing in this section shall result in the:

          (A)  Displacement of any currently employed worker or loss of position, including partial displacement such as a reduction in the hours of non-overtime work, wages, or employment benefits, or result in the impairment of existing collective bargaining agreements;

          (B)  Transfer of existing duties and functions related to maintenance and operations currently performed by existing employees of authorized entities to a contracting entity; or

          (C)  Transfer of future duties and functions ordinarily performed by employees of authorized entities to a contracting entity.

     §225M-M  Hawaii jobs plan; requirement.  (a)  Any public entity requesting bids or awarding contracts for renewable energy projects, energy efficiency projects, or other projects funded by the climate change adaptation cost recovery program, except for construction projects, shall require any applicant, bidder, or responder to submit a Hawaii jobs plan as part of its application, bid, or response.  The office of planning and sustainable development, in consultation with the department of labor and industrial relations, shall develop all forms, procedures, evaluation and scoring criteria, and guidance necessary for the implementation of the Hawaii jobs plan.  To the extent feasible, the office of planning and sustainable development, in consultation with the department of labor and industrial relations, shall consider the input and recommendations of relevant public entities on the development of the Hawaii jobs plan.

     (b)  The Hawaii jobs plan shall require applicants, bidders, and responders to provide information on jobs that would result from being awarded the bid or contract for the projects and, at a minimum, shall include the following information for nonsupervisory positions:

     (1)  The number of full-time non-temporary jobs retained, and the number to be created;

     (2)  The number of positions classified as employees and positions classified as independent contractors;

     (3)  The number of jobs to be specifically reserved for individuals facing barriers to employment and the number to be reserved for individuals from disadvantaged communities;

     (4)  The minimum wages and fringe benefits amounts to be paid;

     (5)  The proposed amounts for worker training and information about any existing apprenticeship program or a federally recognized state apprenticeship agency; and

     (6)  In the event that a federal authority specifically authorizes use of a geographic preference or when covered public contracts are funded exclusively through state or local funds, the Hawaii jobs plan shall require information on the number of local jobs to be created.

     (c)  Awarding public entities shall require the same Hawaii jobs plan information to be submitted from all known subcontractors at the time the solicitation or bid for the project is released.

     (d)  Hawaii jobs plan commitments shall be included in the contract awarded by the public entity or its contractors as a material term.

     (e)  For non-competitive public contracts awarded under this part, applicants, bidders, or responders shall create a Hawaii jobs plan as set forth in this section.  For competitive public contracts, public entities shall award contracts using a competitive best-value bid procurement process in accordance with chapter 103D.  The applicant's, bidder's, or responder's Hawaii jobs plan shall be scored as a part of the overall application for the public contract, awarding additional consideration to applicants, bidders, or responders who do any of the following:

     (1)  Have the greatest beneficial economic impact on the state and local economies as a result of receiving the public contract, based on the priority criteria outlined in its Hawaii jobs plan;

     (2)  Enhance the State's commitment to energy conservation, pollution and greenhouse gas emissions reduction, and transportation efficiency;

     (3)  Retain the greatest number of full-time, non-temporary employees compensated at a wage rate for the project jurisdiction as established in the living wage calculator published by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, using the living wage rate for a household of two working adults with two children in the jurisdiction of the project;

     (4)  Make concrete commitments to creating the greatest number of full-time, non-temporary jobs compensating employees at a wage rate at or above the living wage rate for the project jurisdiction as established in the living wage calculator published by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, using the living wage rate for a household of two working adults with two children in the jurisdiction of the project;

     (5)  Commit to at least ninety per cent of the labor on the contract being performed by workers classified as employees;

     (6)  Offer targeted training and opportunities for individuals facing barriers to employment and workers from disadvantaged communities; and

     (7)  The office of planning and sustainable development, in consultation with the department of labor and industrial relations, shall develop a web-based portal to track Hawaii jobs plan commitments and compliance.  Any Hawaii jobs plan commitments and compliance reporting shall be viewable by the public through the web-based portal.  Recipients of public contracts shall, on an annual basis, upload progress reports on each of the commitments included in their Hawaii jobs plan application, for the duration of the covered public contract.

     (f)  Noncompliance with Hawaii jobs plan commitments shall be a violation the terms of the public contract.  At a minimum, these commitments shall be enforceable through standard breach of contract remedies, including but not limited to termination of the public contract.

     (g)  Nothing set forth in this section shall be construed to impede, infringe, or diminish the rights and benefits which accrue to employees through bona fide collective bargaining agreements, or otherwise diminish the integrity of the existing collective bargaining relationship.

     (h)  Nothing in this section shall preclude a public entity from setting additional requirements or standards in addition to those set forth in this part."

     SECTION 4.  Chapter 225M, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by designating sections 225M-1 to 225M-9 as Part I, entitled "General Provisions".

     SECTION 5.  In codifying the new sections added by section 3 of this Act, the revisor of statutes shall substitute appropriate section numbers for the letters used in designating the new sections in this Act.

     SECTION 6.  This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2025.

 

INTRODUCED BY:	_____________________________

 

 

 

Report Title:

OPSD; Climate Change Superfund Act; Climate Change Adaptation Cost Recovery Program; Climate Change Adaptation Special Fund

 

Description:

Establishes the Climate Change Adaptation Cost Recovery Program within the Office of Planning and Sustainable Development to secure compensatory payments from historically responsible parties that contributed to pollution, based on a standard of strict liability to provide a source of revenue for climate change adaptive infrastructure projects within the State.  Establishes the Climate Change Adaptation Special Fund.

 

 

 

The summary description of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.