Filing a declaration of water use

(a) Any person making a use of water in any area of the State shall file a declaration of the person's use with the commission within one year from the effective date of rules adopted to implement this chapter. (b) When the commission requires filing of declarations by rules, it shall cause public notice of the rule to be given statewide for filings in the city and county of Honolulu and areawide or countywide and statewide for filings in counties other than the city and county of Honolulu. The commission shall also cause notice of the rules to be given by mail to any person required to file of whom the commission has or could readily obtain knowledge or who has requested mailed notice to be given when the commission adopts rules requiring the filing of declarations. (c) The declarations shall be in such form and contain such information as the commission by rule prescribes, including the quantity of water used, the purpose or manner of the use, the time of taking the water, and the point of withdrawal or diversion of the water. Each declaration shall contain a statement, signed and sworn to by the person required to file the declaration, or by some other person duly authorized in the person's behalf, to the effect that the contents thereof are true to the best of the person's knowledge and belief. (d) If no declaration is filed, the commission, in its discretion, may conclusively determine the extent of the uses required of declaration. (e) The commission shall act upon a declaration within six months after its filing.