§171-53  Reclamation and disposition of
submerged or reclaimed public land.  (a)  Any submerged public land or land
beneath tidal waters shall not hereafter be reclaimed by private abutting
owners, except as hereinafter provided.



(b)  As to presently reclaimed land, the board
of land and natural resources, after finding that its disposition is not
prejudicial to the best interest of the State, community or area in which such
reclaimed land is located and after giving public notice in accordance with section
171-16(d) of its intention to dispose, may dispose of it, without recourse to
public auction, to the abutting owner, by sale or lease; provided that if the
reclaimed land has been filled in or made with the prior approval of government
authorities, and not otherwise filled in or made contrary to the public
interest, it may be disposed of at fair market value or fair market rental of
the submerged public land, but if the reclaimed land has been filled or made
otherwise, it shall be disposed of at the fair market value or fair market
rental of the reclaimed land.



(c)  The board, with the prior approval of the
governor and the prior authorization of the legislature by concurrent
resolution, may lease state submerged lands and lands beneath tidal waters under
the terms, conditions, and restrictions provided in this chapter; provided that
the authorization of the legislature shall not be required for leases issued
under chapter 190D; and provided further that the approval of the governor and
authorization of the legislature shall not be required for any grant of
easement or lease of state submerged lands or lands beneath tidal waters used
for moorings, cables, or pipelines; provided further that this exemption shall
not apply to easements for cables used for interisland electrical transmission
or slurry pipelines used for transportive materials, mined at sea, or waste
products from the processing of the same.



The lease shall provide that the lands shall be
reclaimed at the expense of the lessee.  Title to the reclaimed lands shall
remain in the State.



(d)  Whenever in connection with reclaimed
lands or the reclamation of submerged lands or lands beneath tidal waters by
authority of law, the board deems it advantageous to the State in order to
settle the rights (littoral or otherwise), if any, of an abutting owner, to
create public beaches, or to consolidate the holdings of public lands in the
vicinity or provide public ways or access to the public lands, it may, with the
prior approval of the governor, sell, lease, or transfer by way of an exchange,
without recourse to public auction but subject to the limitations contained in
section 171-50 and to the other provisions of this chapter, lands having the
status of public lands. [L 1962, c 32, pt of §2; am L 1965, c 239, §28; Supp,
§103A-50; am L 1967, c 234, §3; HRS §171-53; am L 1981, c 199, §2; am L 1987, c
367, §2; am L 1999, c 176, §1; am L 2000, c 261, §§3, 5; am L 2002, c 68, §2
and c 103, §1(2); am L 2005, c 129, §2]



 



Note



 



  L 2005, c 129, §3,
provides in part:  "... the department of land and natural resources is
urged to commence using the prevailing real property tax assessment value of
the fast land in determining lease rent for a lease of the state submerged land
or land beneath tidal water entered into after July 1, 2006."



 



Cross References



 



  Generally, see
chapter 173.