Senate President Donna Mercado Kim鈥檚 to abolish the state Land Use Commission seems doomed to fail after four committee chairs didn’t schedule a hearing for the bill in time for an internal Senate deadline Friday.
Sen. Laura Thielen, who chairs the Water and Land Committee, said she doesn’t plan to hold a hearing for the bill.
鈥淚 do not support the abolition of the Land Use Commission,鈥 Thielen said in an email.
The measure was also referred to the committees on agriculture, public safety and transportation.
The panels would have to jointly take up the proposal by Friday in order for the measure to advance this session, according to the Senate鈥檚 internal deadlines.
The idea could resurface in another bill if lawmakers decide to amend other measures to keep the proposal alive.
But that’s unlikely. While Kim made headlines last month by announcing her desire to abolish the commission that makes key decisions on development statewide, the idea didn鈥檛 have much support in the Senate.
Only three of Kim鈥檚 24 colleagues signed on to the measure: Sens. Breene Harimoto, Ronald Kouchi and Glenn Wakai. The bill was also referred to four committees in addition to the Senate money committee, an assignment some saw as a sign that it didn’t have a chance.
Kim told Civil Beat that she didn鈥檛 expect the measure to pass. But she said she introduced it because she served on the City Council Zoning and Planning Committee for over a decade and believes that the state鈥檚 land use process unnecessarily duplicates the city鈥檚.
That鈥檚 a familiar argument for getting rid of the commission, which was established in 1961. Every few years, lawmakers debate whether or not to abolish the agency in response to complaints from developers that the state land use process is costly and long.
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About the Author
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Anita Hofschneider is a reporter for Civil Beat. You can reach her by email at anita@civilbeat.org or follow her on Twitter at .