STAND. COM. REP. 2098

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2004

RE: S.B. No. 2125

 

 

Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2004

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Water, Land, and Agriculture, to which was referred S.B. No. 2125 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO CONVEYANCE TAX,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to impose a sliding scale for taxing transfers or conveyances of real property interests. Specifically, the measure imposes rates of ten cents per $100 for the first $385,000 of consideration; twenty cents per $100 for any consideration over $385,000 and up to $1,000,000; and thirty cent per $100 for any consideration over $1,000,000.

Testimony in support of the measure was submitted by KAHEA: The Hawaiian-Environmental Alliance; Conservation Council for Hawai`i; The Nature Conservancy; Coordinating Group on Alien Pest Species; Sierra Club, Hawaii Chapter; and the Hawaii Audubon Society. Testimony in opposition to the measure was submitted by Director of Taxation, Chairperson of the Board of Land and Natural Resources, Land Use Research Foundation of Hawaii, and Hawaii Association of Realtors. The Tax Foundation of Hawaii submitted comments on the measure.

Your Committee finds that Hawaii's conveyance tax is among the lowest in the nation, and that the relatively modest increase will benefit the State.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Water, Land, and Agriculture that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2125 and recommends that it pass Second Reading and be referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Water, Land, and Agriculture,

____________________________

LORRAINE R. INOUYE, Chair