Creating agriculture markets, curbing invasive species and collecting local farm data are some of the tasks county officials hope to see the new Department of Agriculture take on.

After Maui County became the first county in Hawaii to establish its own Department of Agriculture earlier this year, a Maui County Council committee on Tuesday unanimously voted to recommend a bill outlining the department’s duties.

Agriculture and Public Trust Committee Vice Chairperson Gabe Johnson, who introduced the bill and engaged with the community, thanked the Ag Working Group of community members, nonprofits and farming organizations for their yearlong efforts and input to help formulate the department’s responsibilities.

“Creating a Department of Agriculture at the county level is huge, and once again, Maui County is leading the forefront on food security and farming and diversifying our economy,” Johnson said.

He added that the document was built from “the bottom up” based on the needs and the input of “the farmers, ranchers, the folks who have their hands in the soil.”

According to the proposed bill, the department would help to develop agriculture infrastructure; create agriculture markets and distribution networks; support agriculture research and development; provide education, outreach and advocacy; provide policy and regulation assistance; promote workforce development; minimize invasive species, pests and threats; promote resource regeneration and protection; and address transportation issues.

The department will also be responsible for minimizing agricultural theft, vandalism and liability by working with police, prosecuting attorneys, county and state to address the losses from agricultural-related theft and vandalism.

The department will assist with contracts and procurement by providing assistance to promote local food production and import substitution with a focus on local food security, as well as promote agency coordination by collaborating with the agricultural sector, developing shared goals and visions for the county and developing strategic plans to achieve those goals.

Annual reporting requirements will also be among the department’s duties, including collaborating with existing efforts and agencies to collect data on labor demographics, number of farms, size of farms, crops grown, value per acre, water use, education and outreach, number of grants disbursed, number and type of livestock and more.

Recently appointed Agriculture Director Rogerene “Kali” Arce and Deputy Director Weston Yap will be responsible for implementing and administering these policies.

“We just wanted to acknowledge and mahalo the Community Impact Working Group for their time and effort dedicated to drafting this bill, which essentially provides the Department of Ag with the road map of defined rules and responsibilities,” Arce said during the committee meeting on Tuesday afternoon. “We definitely will consider it when developing our strategic plan.”

Before the committee recommended passage of the bill with amendments, testifiers expressed their support and encouragement of the bill because of its ability to support the farming and ranching communities.

“This legislation will help the Department of Agriculture create more sustainable and self-sufficient food systems that benefit our residents, our economy and our delicate ecosystems,” said Lauren Nelson, who’s with the Maui Food Alliance but spoke as a private individual.

Warren Watanabe of the Maui County Farm Bureau said that the bureau supports the intent of the bill considering the many urgent issues currently facing farmers and ranchers, such as drought, axis deer and access to funding and grant writing support.

“I think this is a very helpful bill to give guidance to the department as it gets up and running,” said Hana resident and working group member Scott Crawford, who also works with the Hana chapter of the Hawaii Farmers Union United. “There will have to be provisions made about prioritizing because we can’t do everything all at once necessarily. … Overall, I think it’s very well-thought guidance coming from a very diverse community of knowledge.”

Council Members Kelly King, Alice Lee, Mike Molina, Tamara Paltin and Keani Rawlins-Fernandez supported the recommendation to pass the bill.

Creating this bill that will serve as a framework for the new department was “no small feat,” said King.

“This ordinance came out of extensive community discussion facilitated by the Community Impact Working Group,” Committee Chairperson Shane Sinenci said.

The committee later voted to recommend passage of another bill to administratively attach the Kula Agricultural Park Committee to the Department of Agriculture.

* Dakota Grossman can be reached at dgrossman@mauinews.com.