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SB2174
THE SENATE
S.B. NO.
2174
THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2026
STATE OF HAWAII
A BILL FOR AN ACT
relating
to agriculture
.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:
����
SECTION
1
.
�
Section 141-3, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
amended to read as follows:
����
"
�141-3
�
Designation of pests; control or eradication
of pests; emergency power.
�
(a)
�
The department of agriculture and biosecurity
shall designate the coqui frog as a pest.
�
All other pest designations shall be established by rule, including the
criteria and procedures for the designation of pests for control or
eradication.
����
(b)
�
The department of agriculture and biosecurity shall, so far as
reasonably practicable, assist, free of cost to individuals, in the control or
eradication of insects, mites, diseases, noxious weeds, or other pests
injurious to the environment or vegetation of value; and in the investigation,
suppression, and eradication of contagious, infectious, and communicable
diseases among domestic animals; and shall in like manner distribute to points
where needed, beneficial insects, or pathogens and other antidotes for the
control of insects, mites, diseases, or other pests injurious to the
environment or vegetation of value, and for the control or eradication of
vegetation of a noxious character.
����
(c)
�
Notwithstanding subsection (a), if the department finds the incipient
infestation of a pest that has an adverse effect on the environment or that is
injurious or deleterious or that is likely to become injurious or deleterious
to the agricultural, horticultural, aquacultural, or livestock industries of
the State without immediate action, it may proceed without prior notice or upon
a minimum of forty-eight hours notice and hearing to adopt an emergency rule
for the eradication of the pest to be effective for a period of not longer than
one hundred eighty days without renewal.
����
(d)
�
Notwithstanding subsections (a) and (c), the department may declare an
emergency quarantine pursuant to chapter 150A when it has been reasonably
determined that there is a threat to the environment in the State or an area of
the State is discovered to be infected with an animal disease or infested with
a high-impact invasive species or pest.
�
As part of their emergency quarantine powers, the department may order
the halt of any operations related to or within the affected area for a period
of ninety-six hours; provided that, during this timeframe, the board of
agriculture and biosecurity may vote to extend the period to address the
emergency or initiate mitigation or treatment options.
"
����
SECTION
2
.
�
Section 150A-8, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
amended to read as follows:
����
"
�150A-8
�
Transporting in State.
�
(a)
�
Flora [
and
]
,
fauna
, and any other article or material
specified by rules and regulations of the department shall not be moved from
one island to another island within the State or from one locality to another
on the same island except by a permit issued by the department.
����
(b)
�
The department may quarantine any business or other area that is known
or reasonably suspected to be, based on the results of systematic surveys or
reports or proximity to known populations, infested or infected with a pest or
any other prohibited, restricted, or unlisted organism in violation of this
chapter or any rule adopted under this chapter to prevent the movement of articles
or materials to or from the infested location.
����
[
(b)
]
(c)
�
The
movement between the islands of the State of the following articles, viz.,
nursery-stock, tree, shrub, herb, vine, cut-flower, cut-foliage, cutting,
graft, scion, bud, seed, leaf, root, or rhizome; nut, fruit, or vegetable;
grain, cereal, or legume in the natural or raw state; moss, hay, straw, dry‑grass,
or other forage; unmanufactured log, limb, or timber, or any other plant-growth
or plant-product, unprocessed or in the raw state; soil; microorganisms; live
bird, reptile, nematode, insect, or any other animal in any stage of
development (that is in addition to the so-called domestic animal, the
quarantine of which is provided for in chapter 142); box, vehicle, baggage, or
any other container in which the articles have been transported or any packing
material used in connection therewith shall be made in the
following
manner [
hereinafter set forth
]:
����
(1)
�
Inspectional requirements.
�
Any person who receives for transport, or
brings or causes movement between the islands of the State, as freight, air
freight, baggage, as ship's stores, or otherwise, any of the foregoing
articles, shall ensure that the articles comply with inspectional requirements
pursuant to rules and shall provide upon the inspector's request the waybill
number, container number, name and address of the consignor, name and address
of the consignee or the consignee's agent, marks, number of packages,
description of contents of each package, and any other information that may be
necessary to inspect, locate, or identify the same.
�
If the articles are not inspected pursuant to
rules, the articles shall be held in a manner that [
they will not
]
prevents
spread or [
be likely to spread
]
the likelihood of spreading
any
infestation or infection of insects, diseases, or pests that may be present
until an inspection can be made by the inspector to determine whether any
article, or any portion thereof, is infested or infected with insects or
diseases, or contains any pest.
�
The
department may adopt rules to define inspectional requirements of specific
articles.
�
Failure to obtain
certification that the articles have met the inspectional requirements prior to
movement between the islands of the State [
is
]
shall be
a
violation of this section;
����
(2)
�
Labels.
�
Each container in which any of the [
above-mentioned
] articles are
transported between the islands of the State shall be plainly and legibly
marked, in a conspicuous manner and place, with the name and address of the
shipper or owner forwarding or shipping the same, the name or mark of the
person to whom the same is forwarded or shipped or the person's agent, and a
statement of the contents of the container.
�
Failure to comply with this paragraph [
is
]
shall be
a
violation of this section;
����
(3)
�
Authority to inspect.
�
Whenever the inspector has good cause to
believe that the provisions of this chapter are being violated, the inspector
shall:
���������
(A)
�
Enter and inspect any aircraft, vessel,
or other carrier at any time whether offshore, at the pier, or at the airport,
for the purpose of determining whether any of the articles or pests enumerated
in this chapter or rules adopted [
thereto,
]
pursuant to this chapter
is present;
���������
(B)
�
Enter into or upon any pier, warehouse,
airport, or any other place in the State where any of the [
above-mentioned
]
articles are moved or stored, for the purpose of ascertaining, by inspection
and examination, whether or not any of the articles is infested or infected
with any pest or disease or contaminated with soil or contains prohibited
plants or animals;
���������
(C)
�
Inspect any baggage or personal effects
of passengers, officers, and crew members on aircraft or vessels moving between
the islands of the State to ascertain if they contain any of the articles or
pests enumerated in this chapter;
���������
(D)
�
Baggage or cargo inspection shall be
made at the discretion of the inspector, on the pier, vessel, or aircraft or in
any quarantine or inspection area; and
���������
(E)
�
Whenever the inspector has good cause
to believe that the provisions of this chapter are being violated, the
inspector shall require that any box, package, suitcase, or any other container
carried as ship's stores, cargo, or otherwise by any vessel or aircraft moving
between the islands of the State, be opened for inspection to determine whether
any article or pest prohibited by this chapter or by rules adopted pursuant [
thereto
]
to this chapter
is present.
�
It is
a violation of this section if any prohibited article, pest, or any article
infested with an insect or disease is found;
����
(4)
�
Place of inspection.
�
The inspector shall make a determination
whether it is necessary or advisable to move any of the [
above-mentioned
]
articles, or any portion thereof, to a place more suitable for inspection than
the pier, airport, or any other place where they are initially presented for
inspection.
�
All costs and expenses
incident to the movement and transportation of the articles to [
such
]
the
place shall be borne by the consignee or the consignee's agent;
����
(5)
�
Disinfection or quarantine.
�
If, upon inspection, any article intended for
movement between the islands of the State is found to be infested or infected
with an insect, disease, or pest, or there is reasonable cause to presume that
it is infested or infected and the infestation or infection can, in the
judgment of the inspector, be eradicated, a treatment shall be given [
such
]
the
article [
prior to
]
before
movement between the islands
of the State.
�
The treatment shall be at
the expense of the owner or the owner's agent, and the treatment shall be as
prescribed by the department.
�
The
article shall be quarantined at the expense of the owner or the owner's agent
at a satisfactory place approved by the department for a sufficient length of
time to determine that eradication has been accomplished.
�
If the infestation or infection is of [
such
]
the
nature or extent that it cannot be effectively and completely
eradicated, or after treatment it is determined that the infestation or
infection is not completely eradicated, or if the owner or the owner's agent
refuses to allow the article to be treated or to be responsible for the cost of
treatment and quarantine, the shipment, article, or any portion thereof,
together with all packing and containers, shall not be certified for movement
between the islands of the State.
�
An
article infested or infected with an insect, disease, or pest that is not
widespread in the State shall be destroyed at the expense of the owner or the
owner's agent; provided that no treatment exists that would eradicate the
insect, disease, or pest to the satisfaction of the department.
�
[
Such
]
The
destruction shall
not be made the basis of a claim against the department or the inspector for
damage or loss incurred; and
����
(6)
�
Disposition.
�
Upon completion of inspection, the inspector
shall conspicuously affix to the article, container, or to the delivery order
or other similar document, a tag, label, or stamp to indicate that the article has
been inspected and can be moved between the islands of the State."
����
SECTION
3
.
�
Section 150A-9.5, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
amended by amending subsections (a) and (b) to read as follows:
����
"(a)
�
The department shall have the power, subject to the provisions of this
section, to establish, implement, and enforce interim rules governing the
transporting of flora [
and
]
,
fauna
, and other materials
into and within the State.
�
[
Such
]
The
rules shall not be subject to chapter 91.
����
(b)
�
An interim rule may be adopted in the event that the importation or
movement of any flora [
or
]
,
fauna,
or materials,
in the
absence of effective rules, creates a situation dangerous to the public health
and safety or to the ecological health of flora or
,
fauna present in the
State [
which
]
that
is so immediate in nature as to constitute an
emergency.
�
No interim rule shall be
adopted without [
such
] a finding by the advisory committee on plants and
animals created under section 150A-10."
����
SECTION 4.
�
Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken.
�
New statutory material is underscored.
����
SECTION 5.
�
This Act shall take effect upon its approval.
INTRODUCED BY:
_____________________________
Report Title:
DAB; BAB;
Emergency Quarantine; Pests
Description:
Authorizes
the Department of Agriculture and Biosecurity to declare an emergency
quarantine when it has been reasonably determined that there is a threat to the
environment in the State.
�
Authorizes the
Department to halt operations related to or within the affected area for 96
hours, subject to extension by vote of the Board of Agriculture and
Biosecurity.
�
Authorizes the Department
to
quarantine any business or other area that is known or reasonably
suspected to be infested or infected with any pest or any other prohibited,
restricted, or unlisted organism.
�
Authorizes
the Department to establish interim rules governing the transportation of any
material into and within the state that creates a situation dangerous to public
or ecological health.
The summary description
of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is
not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.