HI HCR61

Endorses and supports the Ala Wai Watershed Partnership, a voluntary coalition of state, county, federal, business, and nongovernmental leaders working to increase resilience and sustainability in the Ala Wai watershed and Waikiki.

Recognizes that a one-hundred-year flood in the Ala Wai watershed would affect approximately 1,358 acres and over 3,000 properties with an estimated $318,000,000 in structural damages, and a category 4 hurricane could result in $30,000,000,000 in economic losses.

Supports five action steps: raising awareness of disaster risk, investigating insurance and risk transfer solutions, exploring community investment vehicles, identifying innovative financing strategies for climate-resilient infrastructure, and coordinating a prize competition for urban planners and designers.

Requests the Chair of the Ala Wai Watershed Partnership submit a progress report to the Legislature no later than twenty days before the 2017 Regular Session convening.

Directs transmission of certified copies to the White House Council on Environmental Quality, White House Office of Management and Budget, Hawaii Governor, Honolulu Mayor, and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Honolulu District.