RELATING TO PESTICIDES.

HB1284

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.B. NO.

1284

THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2025

STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

RELATING TO PESTICIDES
.

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

����
SECTION 1.
�
The
legislature finds that pesticide exposure can cause significant harm to public
health and the environment.
�
Restricted
use pesticides have been deemed to have high potential to cause harm to
surrounding communities, farm workers, pollinators, the environment, and other
crops.
�
Comprehensive pesticide use data
is therefore essential to accurately assess risks and ensure that communities
are protected from adverse impacts.

����
The
legislature further finds that Act 45, Session Laws of Hawaii 2018, established
requirements intended to address pesticide abuse in Hawai
ʻ
i,
including requiring all users of restricted use pesticides to annually report
on their use of restricted use pesticides to the department of
agriculture.
�
However, robust and
meaningful analysis of environmental and public health impacts of pesticides is
contingent on more comprehensive reporting.

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The
legislature also finds that currently, pesticide users are required to report
the address, tax map key, and location of the application site, but are not
required to provide specific geospatial data that could provide comprehensive
mapping of pesticide impacts.
�
This poses
difficulties to communities who live adjacent to large tracts of agricultural
land.
�
According to the state-sponsored
Joint Fact Finding Study Group, Pesticide Use by Large Agribusinesses on Kaua
ʻ
i
(2016), "more information is needed about the time and place of
applications along with greater oversight to ensure compliance on all
Islands.
�
Again, California appears to
lead the nation in studies of chronic health effects and/or associations with pesticide
use.
�
They are able to reach this level
of scientific inquiry because they require careful reporting of pesticide
applications that specify what was sprayed, where, when, and in what
quantities."
�
Improved reporting in
Hawai
ʻ
i can provide policymakers and public
health experts with important data with which to make evidence� based decisions
about pesticide use.

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The
purpose of this Act is to protect the health of Hawai
ʻ
i's
environment and people and enable more informed public health decision�making
through improving reporting requirements for restricted use pesticides by:

����
(1)
�
Requiring quarterly rather than annual
reporting of all use of restricted use pesticides;

����
(2)
�
Amending the contents of the reports to
include detailed geospatial information and increased detail and uniformity
regarding the amount of product and chemicals applied; and

����
(3)
�
Requiring the department of agriculture
to develop an online reporting tool for restricted use pesticides.

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SECTION

2
.
�
Section
149A-26, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

����
"[
[
]
�149A-26[
]
]
�
Post-application reporting of pesticide use.
�
(a)
�
[
Beginning
January 1, 2019, every
]
Every
user of restricted use pesticides
shall be subject to the requirement to submit to the department, for
departmental use, [
an annual
]
a quarterly
report of all use of
restricted use pesticides as provided in this section.

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(b)
�
No later than thirty days following the end
of each calendar [
year,
]
quarter,
every entity that uses
restricted use pesticides shall provide to the department a report of all
restricted use pesticides used during the preceding calendar [
year.
]
quarter.

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(c)
�

The department shall adopt rules pursuant to chapter 91 requiring that
the [
annual
]
quarterly
reports include the following information:

����
(1)
�
A listing, by federal and state
registrations or permit numbers, commercial product names, and active
ingredients, of all restricted use pesticides used;

����
(2)
�
The total quantities used for each
restricted use pesticide[
;
]
, listed by type in pounds of active ingredient
applied and percentage of active ingredient found in any restricted use
pesticide applied;

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(3)
�
A
[
general
]
detailed
description of the geographic location,
including, at a minimum[
, the
]
:

���������
(A)
�
Geospatial data and information up
to an area of one square mile; and

���������
(B)
�
The
tax map key number, at which
the restricted use pesticides were used; and

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(4)
�
The
date on which the restricted use pesticide application occurred."

����
SECTION
3
.
�
Section 149A-27, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
amended to read as follows:

����
"[
[
]�149A-27
[
]
]
�
Public reports; contents.
�
The department shall produce a
summary, for public disclosure, by county, that includes:

����
(1)
�
The total quantities used, by federal
and state registrations or permit numbers, commercial product names, and active
ingredients, for each restricted use pesticide used[
; and
]
, including
a breakdown by type in pounds of active ingredient applied and percentage of
active ingredient found in any restricted use pesticide applied;

����
(2)
�
The amount of area in the county in which the
restricted use application occurred[
.
]
; and

����
(3)
�
Geospatial data and information up to an
area of one square mile where the restricted use pesticide application
occurred.
"

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SECTION
4.
�
The department of agriculture shall
develop an online reporting tool for restricted use pesticide reporting
pursuant to section 149A-26, Hawaii Revised Statutes.

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SECTION 5.
�

Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken.
�
New statutory material is underscored.

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SECTION 6.
�

This Act shall take effect upon its approval.

INTRODUCED BY:

_____________________________

Report Title:

DOA;
Pesticides; Restricted Use; Geospatial Data; Reports; Online Reporting Tool

Description:

Requires
quarterly rather than annual reporting of all use of restricted use
pesticides.
�
Amends the contents of
reports to include specific geospatial data and information and increased
detail on the amount of restricted use pesticides used.
�
Requires the Department of Agriculture to
develop an online reporting tool for restricted use pesticides.

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not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.