Standards and criteria for the reclassification or rezoning of important agricultural lands
HRS §205-50
in effect205-50. Standards and criteria for the reclassification or rezoning of important agricultural lands
(a) Any land use district boundary amendment or change in zoning involving important agricultural lands identified pursuant to this chapter shall be subject to this section.
(b) Upon acceptance by the county for
processing, any application for a special permit involving important
agricultural lands shall be referred to the department of agriculture and the office
of planning and sustainable development for review and comment.
(c) Any decision by the land use commission or
county pursuant to this section shall specifically consider the following
standards and criteria:
(1) The relative importance of the land for
agriculture based on the stock of similarly suited lands in the area and the
State as a whole;
(2) The proposed district boundary amendment or zone
change will not harm the productivity or viability of existing agricultural
activity in the area, or adversely affect the viability of other agricultural
activities or operations that share infrastructure, processing, marketing, or
other production-related costs or facilities with the agricultural activities
on the land in question;
(3) The district boundary amendment or zone change
will not cause the fragmentation of or intrusion of nonagricultural uses into
largely intact areas of lands identified by the State as important agricultural
lands that create residual parcels of a size that would preclude viable
agricultural use;
(4) The public benefit to be derived from the
proposed action is justified by a need for additional lands for nonagricultural
purposes; and
(5) The impact of the proposed district boundary
amendment or zone change on the necessity and capacity of state and county
agencies to provide and support additional agricultural infrastructure or
services in the area.
(d) Any decision pursuant to this section
shall be based upon a determination that:
(1) On balance, the public benefit from the proposed
district boundary amendment or zone change outweighs the benefits of retaining
the land for agricultural purposes; and
(2) The proposed action will have no significant
impact upon the viability of agricultural operations on adjacent agricultural
lands.
(e) The standards and criteria of this section
shall be in addition to:
(1) The decision-making criteria of section 205-17
governing decisions of the land use commission under this chapter; and
(2) The decision-making criteria adopted by each
county to govern decisions of county decision-making authorities under this
chapter.
(f) Any decision of the land use commission
and any decision of any county on a land use district boundary amendment or
change in zoning involving important agricultural lands shall be approved by
the body responsible for the decision by a two-thirds vote of the membership to
which the body is entitled.
(g) A farmer or landowner with qualifying
lands may also petition the land use commission to remove the "important
agricultural lands" designation from lands if a sufficient supply of water
is no longer available to allow profitable farming of the land due to
governmental actions, acts of God, or other causes beyond the farmer's or landowner's
reasonable control. If the "important agricultural lands" were
designated by a declaratory order in combination with the reclassification of
land in the agricultural district to the rural, urban, or conservation district
pursuant to section 205-45, the commission shall not remove the designation
unless the legislature provides prior authorization by adoption of a concurrent
resolution in accordance with section 205-45.
[L 2005, c 183, pt of §2; am L
2008, c 233, §20; am L 2021, c 153, §8]
Source: Hawaii State Legislature (capitol.hawaii.gov), via Internet Archive capturesURL: http://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/Vol04_Ch0201-0257/HRS0205/HRS_0205-0050.htmFetched: 11/10/2026