H.B. 769 Summary

• Establishes three new positions within the Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Resource Management Division: one irrigation district manager (SR21), irrigation system worker II positions (BC07), and one office assistant III (SR08)

• Transfers operational authority of the East Kauai irrigation system from the East Kauai Water Users' Cooperative to the Department of Agriculture, contingent upon adoption of administrative rules or determination that the system can operate under existing statutes

• Authorizes the Department of Agriculture to contract with the East Kauai Water Users' Cooperative to collect fees from system users, with all collected fees deposited into the state general fund

• Extends the three-year water licensing deadline by up to two additional years for applicants demonstrating significant progress in the permit application process

• Appropriates general revenues for fiscal years 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 to fund operations, maintenance, and staff salaries for the East Kauai irrigation system, and authorizes general obligation bonds for statewide irrigation system capacity improvements including planning, design, land acquisition, and equipment