Proposed Changes to Storm Water Management on Oahu

Randall Wakumoto will presenting on proposed changes to storm water management on Oahu. 

Background: The City is looking into changing how it pays for storm water management (runoff and flooding from rainwater, cleaning streams and culverts, maintaining storm water sewers and other infrastructure). Currently, the Department of Facility Maintenance, Storm Water Quality Division (DFM), the department in charge of this, is funded through property taxes. The proposed change, which would have to be approved by the City Council, would involve the creation of a new fee to be assessed on all properties (including those that are currently exempt from property tax, such as those owned by the Federal, State and Local Governments, schools, churches and non-profits).

The model that has been studied by DFM, and which has been adopted by many other jurisdictions around the country, is the formation of a Storm Water Utility, with independent, predictable funding, not dependent on allocations from the City Council. A proposal has been developed, including what the fee would look like, and whether there would be hardship or other credits for properties if they took measures to manage their own runoff on-site. 

Over the past 2 years, we have been conducting outreach, including two rounds of community meetings and meetings with various stakeholders. Currently, we are reaching out to Neighborhood Boards and Rotaries to see if we can present the details of what this change would mean for property owners around Oahu.