Maui County Council members Thursday advanced a measure designed to broaden and streamline emergency building procedures in a move that aims to speed up construction approvals in the wake of the Aug. 8 wildfires.

Bill 21, approved 7-0 by the Council’s Water and Infrastructure Committee, would amend the Maui County Code to broaden the applicability of emergency- repair provisions and clarify the approval procedures for emergency-repair permits.

Nearly 10,000 people were displaced by the wind-driven wildfires that roared through Lahaina, Kula and other areas of Maui in August. At least 100 people died and nearly 4,000 properties were destroyed in a disaster that caused billions of dollars in damage.

The legislation, submitted by the county’s Department of Public Works, is intended to help the rebuilding of housing, public facilities and businesses damaged or destroyed by the fires.

Approximately 1,100 residential properties would qualify under the bill’s expedited permitting process, according to the county’s Office of Recovery.

Currently, only the owners of single-family residential structures qualify for the expedited emergency procedures in disaster areas. Under Bill 21 the expedited procedures would be expanded to apartments and other multifamily structures, as well as commercial buildings and other categories.

Jordan Molina, Maui’s director of public works, said the county is in the process of hiring a consultant to handle what is expected to be a surge of emergency building permits in the coming months. The consultant, he said, will allow the current staff to continue to process an existing three- to six-month backlog of permit applications.

Molina said the consultant should be on board by April with a three-year contract. The biggest surge of applications, he said, is expected in the first two years.

Council member Gabe Johnson questioned whether three years was enough time to handle the emergency permits.

“Hurricane Katrina was in 2005. That’s almost 20 years ago and FEMA is just now leaving. So I wonder if that contract of three years would be sufficient,” Johnson said. “These are just monumental tasks we are asking.”

Molina said a lot of it will depend on the property owners and what their situation is. Some people, he said, have left the island already, while others are underinsured. Second-home owners might not feel the urgency to rebuild, while primary homeowners will want to get underway soon.

“There’s definitely going to be a range of rebuild. With that range comes different timing on when those permit surges are anticipated,” he said.

Once the immediate surge is over, officials can reassess whether the consultant will still be needed to handle emergency permits, Molina said.

The current emergency application allows electrical and plumbing permits to be consolidated with the building permit application to reduce the number of applications that a property owner must submit. Under Bill 21 the application also allows for the consolidations of driveway and grading permits and possibly others if needed.

Under the bill, owners of vacant lands within the disaster area also would be eligible to undertake construction of new structures.

Given the immense housing need, allowing new construction on vacant parcels is a strategy to offer more housing opportunities for Lahaina survivors, Molina said.

Bill 21 would allow qualified applicants to bypass required reviews by other agencies, except when it is deemed necessary. It is considered necessary when applications involve commercial structures, lots with more than two dwellings and other situations where an agency determines that review is necessary.

Under the bill, once all required information is submitted, a property owner can request the department to approve their application if no action is taken on the application within 15 days. However, approvals may be withheld if disaster debris removal is not complete, essential services are not restored, an agency review is required or a land use approval is pending.

Permit fees also will be deferred until the structure is ready for final inspection.

Another provision allows owners who want to rebuild structures that were constructed within the previous five years to be reissued permits using the same construction plans that are on file.

These projects are not so old for there to be a need to re-review their permits, Molina said. What’s more, reissuing permits can be completed quickly, lessening the demand for permitting services.

Bill 21 also would apply to future disasters.