STAND. COM. REP. NO. 997

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2005

RE: S.B. No. 1729

S.D. 2

 

 

Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2005

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Ways and Means, to which was referred S.B. No. 1729, S.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO TOURISM,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to redistribute the transient accommodations tax to facilitate the Hawaii Tourism Authority with existing and expanded programs, and to clarify the administrative authority of the Hawaii Tourism Authority.

This bill also:

(1) Adds the executive director of the State Foundation on Culture and the Arts to the Board of the Hawaii Tourism Authority;

(2) Allows moneys in the convention center enterprise special fund to be placed in interest-bearing accounts and otherwise invested provided that statutory securities and investment guidelines are adhered to;

(3) Requires that moneys in the tourism special fund are placed in interest-bearing accounts and otherwise invested; provided that statutory securities and investment guidelines are adhered to;

(4) Clarifies the management duties of the Board of the Hawaii Tourism Authority for the tourism special fund;

(5) Changes the distribution of revenues from the transient accommodations tax and repeals the transient accommodations tax trust fund; and

(6) Earmarks a percentage of the Hawaii Tourism Authority's revenues for the safety and security program of the Authority.

Upon further consideration, your Committee has amended this bill by:

(1) Changing the cap on the deposit into the convention center enterprise special fund to an unspecified amount on p. 19, lines 2 and 3;

(2) Correcting the reference to "tourism" to "transient" on p. 3, line 10;

(3) Correcting the reference to "34.4" to "35.4" on p. 20, line 3;

(4) Correcting the reference to section 171-15, Hawaii Revised Statutes, to section 171-19 on p. 21, line 18;

(5) Adding a new section 10 to clarify that upon repeal of the transient accommodations tax trust fund in section 9, any remaining moneys shall be transferred to the general fund, and renumbering the remaining sections of the bill appropriately;

(6) Changing the effective date to July 1, 2099, for the purpose of promoting further discussion; and

(7) Making technical nonsubstantive amendments for the purposes of clarity and style.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Ways and Means that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 1729, S.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 1729, S.D. 2.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Ways and Means,

____________________________

BRIAN T. TANIGUCHI, Chair