KAILUA-KONA — Kua Bay likely will go another year without lifeguards.
House Bill 2044, which would have appropriated funding for four full-time lifeguards to keep watch over the Kekaha Kai State Park beach, failed to secure a hearing before the state Senate Committee on Ways and Means by the Friday bill decking deadline.
The measure, which passed the state House, followed nearly the same track as a proposal in the 2017 Legislature, dying a few steps short of approval.
However, a bill seeking funding for lifeguards throughout the state remains alive.
“Even though my bill specifically for Kua Bay lifeguard positions is now dead, it’s hopeful that there is still a vehicle to provide funding for this,” said HB 2044 co-introducer Rep. Nicole Lowen, D-North Kona. “What matters at the end of the day is that we prioritize safety and hopefully save lives, and not whose name is on the bill that passes.”
HB 2044, in its final amended form, sought $340,355 for fiscal year 2018-19 for the state Department of Land and Natural Resources to contract with Hawaii County to hire four full-time lifeguards to watch over the bay within Kekaha Kai State Park.
The measure also sought $80,000 in general funds that fiscal year for a lifeguard tower, radios, protective equipment and an all-terrain vehicle.
From 2013-16, emergency medical services responded to 28 calls from the Kua Bay area, with 19 of those calls resulting in hospitalization for traumatic injury. Since 2013, three people have died at the beach, according to the state Department of Health.
Though the bill to bring ocean safety personnel specifically to Kua Bay is dead, House Bill 2097 remains alive.
The measure, which deals mainly with lifeguard liability, includes an appropriation request for $1 million from the tourism special fund for DLNR’s Division of State Parks to contract with the counties for lifeguard services at designated state beach parks.
State Parks said in January that Kua Bay would be the next state park site to receive lifeguard services.
The bill was heard Thursday by a joint Senate committee on Ways and Means and Judiciary, which recommended the bill be passed on third reading on the Senate floor, which is set for today.
Other bill moves:
• Senate Bill 2079, which would have provided protection for all sharks and rays within state waters, has died. After passing its third reading in the state Senate and being sent over to the House for further consideration, it failed to secure a hearing before the House Judiciary Committee, the second of two required committee hearings.
• House Bill 1757, which would have required ready-to-drink coffee products labeled as Hawaii coffee to contain at least 10 percent Hawaii-grown coffee, has died. After passing its third reading in the state House and being sent over to the Senate for further consideration, it failed to secure a hearing before the Committee on Commerce, Consumer Protection, and Health.
Email Chelsea Jensen at cjensen@westhawaiitoday.com.