HRS § 171-53 - Reclamation and disposition of submerged or reclaimed public land
AI-assisted research summary: Private abutting owners cannot reclaim submerged public land or tidal-water land unless an exception applies. The board of land and natural resources may dispose of, lease, sell, or transfer certain reclaimed or submerged lands only under stated approvals, notices, and conditions.
(a) Any submerged public land or land beneath tidal waters shall not hereafter be reclaimed by private abutting owners, except as hereinafter provided. (b) As to presently reclaimed land, the board of land and natural resources, after finding that its disposition is not prejudicial to the best interest of the State, community or area in which such reclaimed land is located and after giving public notice in accordance with section 171-16(d) of its intention to dispose, may dispose of it, without recourse to public auction, to the abutting owner, by sale or lease; provided that if the reclaimed land has been filled in or made with the prior approval of government authorities, and not otherwise filled in or made contrary to the public interest, it may be disposed of at fair market value or fair market rental of the submerged public land, but if the reclaimed land has been filled or made otherwise, it shall be disposed of at the fair market value or fair market rental of the reclaimed land. (c) The board, with the prior approval of the governor and the prior authorization of the legislature by concurrent resolution, may lease state submerged lands and lands beneath tidal waters under the terms, conditions, and restrictions provided in this chapter; provided that the authorization of the legislature shall not be required for leases issued under chapter 190D; and provided further that the approval of the governor and authorization of the legislature shall not be required for any grant of easement or lease of state submerged lands or lands beneath tidal waters used for moorings, cables, or pipelines; provided further that this exemption shall not apply to easements for cables used for interisland electrical transmission or slurry pipelines used for transportive materials, mined at sea, or waste products from the processing of the same. The lease shall provide that the lands shall be reclaimed at the expense of the lessee. Title to the reclaimed lands shall remain in the State. (d) Whenever in connection with reclaimed lands or the reclamation of submerged lands or lands beneath tidal waters by authority of law, the board deems it advantageous to the State in order to settle the rights (littoral or otherwise), if any, of an abutting owner, to create public beaches, or to consolidate the holdings of public lands in the vicinity or provide public ways or access to the public lands, it may, with the prior approval of the governor, sell, lease, or transfer by way of an exchange, without recourse to public auction but subject to the limitations contained in section 171-50 and to the other provisions of this chapter, lands having the status of public lands. [L 1962, c 32, pt of §2; am L 1965, c 239, §28; Supp, §103A-50; am L 1967, c 234, §3; HRS ; am L 1981, c 199, §2; am L 1987, c 367, §2; am L 1999, c 176, §1; am L 2000, c 261, §§3, 5; am L 2002, c 68, §2 and c 103, §1(2); am L 2005, c 129, §2] Note Lease of submerged lands at Ala Wai boat harbor exempt from legislative authorization. L 2011, c 197, §8. Cross References Ala Wai boat harbor; leases, see §200-2.6. Reclamation of lands, see chapter 173.