RELATING TO SHORELINE SETBACKS.

SB723

THE SENATE

S.B. NO.

723

THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2025

STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

relating
to shoreline setbacks
.

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

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SECTION
1
.
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The legislature finds that real property in
the State is often vulnerable to hazards such as coastal erosion and flooding
from tsunamis, storms, and high waves.
�

These hazards can be exacerbated by sea level rise and human-caused
interruptions to natural sand supply.
�
In
Hawai
�
i, all beaches are prone to seasonal or
episodic erosion from high waves and storms.
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In addition, chronic erosion affects seventy per cent of the beaches on
O
�
ahu,
Maui, and Kaua
�
i.

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The
legislature further finds that numerous court decisions have affirmed that
privately owned oceanfront land is lost when shorelines undergo landward
retreat and oceanfront properties become smaller.
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Since oceanfront properties experience
landward retreat, building setbacks need to be adjusted to respond to this new
geographic landscape.

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Accordingly, the purpose of this Act
is to establish greater shoreline setback requirements.

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SECTION

2
.
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Section
205A-43, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsection (a) to read
as follows:

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"(a)
�
Setbacks along shorelines [
are established
of not less than forty feet inland from the shoreline.
]
shall be
calculated as follows:

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(1)
�
A shoreline setback determined by
taking the average lot depth, subtracting one hundred feet, dividing by two,
and adding forty feet; provided that:

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(A)
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For lots with naturally occurring
rocky shorelines, the shoreline setback line shall be not less than forty feet;

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(B)
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For all other lots, the shoreline
setback line shall be not less than sixty feet; and

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(C)
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For all lots, the maximum setback
shall be one hundred feet; or

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(2)
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For all lots with an average lot
depth of over two hundred twenty feet, the greater setback of the following
shall apply:

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(A)
�
Forty feet inland from the
shoreline, and an altitude of at least two meters above the shoreline; or

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(B)
�
A shoreline setback of one hundred
feet from the shoreline established by the board of land and natural resources
pursuant to section 205A-42.

For the
purposes of this subsection, "average lot depth" means the
measurement obtained by adding the lengths of the two sides of a lot that are
at or near right angles with the shoreline, or the seaward boundary of the lot
that runs roughly parallel to the shoreline if the property is not abutting the
shoreline, to the length obtained by drawing a line from a point in the center
of the makai side of the lot to a point in the center of the mauka side of the
lot and dividing the resulting sum by three.
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For irregularly shaped lots including flag lots, triangular parcels,
lots on peninsulas, and lots having ocean on two or more sides of the lot, the
average lot depth shall be determined by the department.
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The department shall adopt rules pursuant to
chapter 91, and shall enforce the shoreline setbacks and rules pertaining
thereto."

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SECTION
3
.
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Section 205A-44, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
amended by amending subsection (b) to read as follows:

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"(b)
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Except as provided in this section, structures are prohibited in the
shoreline area without a variance pursuant to this part.
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Structures in the shoreline area shall not
need a variance if:

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(1)
�
They
were completed prior to [
June 22, 1970;
]
January 1, 2024;

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(2)
�
They
received either a building permit, board approval, or shoreline setback
variance prior to June 16, 1989;

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(3)
�
They
are outside the shoreline area when they receive either a building permit or
board approval;

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(4)
�
They
are necessary for or ancillary to continuation of existing agriculture or
aquaculture in the shoreline area on June 16, 1989;

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(5)
�
They
are minor structures permitted under rules adopted by the department which do
not affect beach processes or artificially fix the shoreline and do not
interfere with public access or public views to and along the shoreline; or

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(6)
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Work
being done consists of maintenance, repair, and minor additions or alterations
of legal boating, maritime, or watersports recreational facilities, which are
publicly owned, and which result in little or no interference with natural
shoreline processes;

provided
that permitted structures may be repaired, but shall not be enlarged, rebuilt,
or replaced within the shoreline area without a variance."

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SECTION 4.
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This Act does not affect rights and duties that matured, penalties that
were incurred, and proceedings that were begun before its effective date.

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SECTION 5.
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Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken.
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New statutory material is underscored.

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

INTRODUCED BY:

_____________________________

Report Title:

Shoreline
Setbacks

Description:

Increases
shoreline setback requirements.

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