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CRAIG T. KOJIMA / CKOJIMA@STARADVERTISER.COM
Protesters rallied against the Public Land Development Corp. in a demonstration at the state Capitol on Nov. 13.
State House lawmakers, acknowledging that they made a mistake two years ago in creating the Public Land Development Corp., voted unanimously today to repeal the law.
The PLDC was granted broad exemptions from land use regulations to attract private developers to projects on underused state lands. But the state agency has not developed a single project because of public opposition.
“We all make mistakes, and it was a mistake that we passed it out. And we’re glad that (we were) able to rectify it — not all the time it happens,” House Speaker Joseph Souki told reporters after the vote. “And this Legislature was very courageous to listen to the public and to admit that it made a mistake.”
The state Senate Ways and Means Committee has scheduled a hearing for Friday morning on a PLDC repeal.
Senate President Donna Mercado Kim said the Senate will likely vote for its version of a PLDC repeal or the House version.
