HI SR61

Requests the Department of Agriculture to submit a report on pesticide inspections conducted within the past five years and recommend measures to strengthen statewide enforcement of restricted use pesticide violations.

Requires the Department of Agriculture to include findings, recommendations, and proposed legislation in the report submitted to the Legislature no later than twenty days before the 2023 Regular Session convening.

Cites multiple cases of pesticide misuse in Hawaii, including a 2016 incident where 19 workers were exposed to chlorpyrifos on Kauai, resulting in federal fines and settlements totaling millions of dollars.

References Act 45 (2018) which established additional state requirements for restricted use pesticides, prohibited their use in school buffer zones, and banned pesticides containing chlorpyrifos.

Notes that current state law allows first-time pesticide regulation violators to receive only a written warning regardless of whether the violation caused injury or illness.