Boosting funds for watershed and forest preservation programs, either through an increase in taxes on expensive real estate transactions or a fee on single-use plastic checkout bags, remains a priority for the Abercrombie administration, the state’s land and natural resources director said.

"There are a lot of things attached to (watershed) restoration, which includes water for agriculture, which includes green forests for tourism, which includes managing soil runoff so it doesn’t end up impacting our coral reefs," William Aila said Monday. "At the end of the legislative session, we just want to have a source of funding."

Aila spoke after a House committee advanced a proposal to increase the conveyance tax on high-priced real estate transactions — those of $2 million or more — and also increase the portion of those taxes that goes to the Natural Area Reserve Fund. The House Water and Land Committee passed the measure with the amounts and percentages to be determined later.

Abercrombie, in his State of the State speech last week, urged lawmakers to create a sustainable, consistent source of money for water preservation and forest programs, proposing either the conveyance tax increase or a 10-cent fee for single-use checkout bags. The proposals would generate about $10 million and $15 million, respectively, he said. Several proposals to impose fees on checkout bags have been introduced, though none has been scheduled for a hearing.

At present, 25 percent of conveyance tax money goes to the Natural Area Reserve Fund, the state’s only dedicated source for watershed protection programs. The bulk of conveyance tax money, 35 percent, goes to the general fund, with 30 percent going to the rental housing trust fund and 10 percent to the land conservation fund.

Conservation groups, including the Sierra Club and The Nature Conservancy, supported the administration proposal.

Opponents, which included the Hawaii Association of Realtors and the Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii, said the measure would be anti-business and questioned whether the proposal was an appropriate use of the conveyance tax.

"The conveyance tax was created to cover the administrative costs of recording the real estate transactions, such as those performed by the Bureau of Conveyance," the Chamber said in written testimony. "We do not believe the conveyance tax is being used in an appropriate manner."

Water and Land Chairwoman Cindy Evans (D, Kaupulehu-Waimea-Halaula) agreed with advocates who said all development and real estate stems from proper stewardship of natural resources.

"It was clear that the more we build houses, the more it impacts our sources of water, and we have to have water to be able to develop housing," Evans said. "So I felt, at that point, I could understand the nexus because without water you can’t build."