[PART I. 
GENERAL PROVISIONS]



 



Note



 



  Part designation added by revisor.



 



[§163D-1]  Findings and purpose.  The
legislature finds that the downsizing of the sugar and pineapple industries is
presenting an unprecedented opportunity for the conversion of agriculture into
a dynamic growth industry.  Within the next decade, seventy-five thousand acres
of agricultural lands and fifty million gallons per day of irrigation water are
expected to be released by plantations.  The downsizing of the sugar and pineapple
industries will idle a valuable inventory of supporting infrastructure
including irrigation systems, roads, drainage systems, processing facilities,
workshops, and warehouses.  The challenge to government and business is to
conserve and convert the arable lands and their associated production
infrastructure in a timely manner into new productive uses that are based upon
strategies developed from detailed marketing analysis and monitoring of local,
national, and international opportunities.  Constantly evolving economies
require an aggressive and dynamic leadership for the promotion and development
of agricultural enterprises, and centralized leadership to coordinate industry
development, provide industry-wide services, provide marketing assistance, and facilitate
investments and coventures in viable enterprises.



The purpose of this chapter is to create a
vehicle and process to make optimal use of agricultural assets for the
economic, environmental, and social benefit of the people of Hawaii.  This
chapter establishes a public corporation to administer an aggressive and
dynamic agribusiness development program.  The corporation shall coordinate and
administer programs to assist agricultural enterprises to facilitate the
transition of agricultural infrastructure from plantation operations into other
agricultural enterprises, to carry on the marketing analysis to direct
agricultural industry evolution, and to provide the leadership for the
development, financing, improvement, or enhancement of agricultural enterprises.
[L 1994, c 264, pt of §1]