S.B. 848 Summary

• Establishes a desalination planning task force within the department of land and natural resources to assess the feasibility of large-scale desalination for water consumption in Hawaii.

• Task force comprises representatives from the departments of health and agriculture, commission on water resource management (serving as chair), office of Hawaiian affairs, legislative committees on water and land, and county water supply departments.

• Task force shall study water demand across housing, agriculture, and industrial sectors; evaluate desalination as a supplement to groundwater and surface water; and assess impacts on meeting future water needs and resilience, particularly regarding Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility contamination.

• Task force must examine environmental and cultural concerns including effects on historical sites, Native Hawaiian cultural sites and burial sites, energy consumption, and brine disposal.

• Task force shall submit findings, recommendations, and proposed legislation to the legislature no later than twenty days before the 2026 regular session and cease to exist on June 30, 2026.