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3. PLANNING DEPARTMENT PRESENTATION: Presentation of long-range land use and <br /> infrastructure planning goals for lands under the jurisdiction of the Leeward Planning <br /> Commission based on the Kona Community Development Plan (CDP), South Kohala CDP, <br /> North Kohala CDP and Hawaii County General Plan. <br /> The Commission took up this item at 10:35 a.m. Ms. Surprenant gave a PowerPoint <br /> presentation, followed by a question-and-answer opportunity. <br /> This item ended at 11:33 a.m. [SEE PRESENTATION TRANSCRIPT EXHIBIT BJ <br /> PLANNING DIRECTOR'S REPORT <br /> 1. Report on Short Term Vacation Rental(STVR)program for lands under the <br /> jurisdiction of the Leeward Planning Commission. <br /> At 11:33 a.m. Chairman Vitousek introduced this item. Mr. Roy reiterated the information in the <br /> report that had been distributed to the Commissioners earlier[SEE OVERVIEW OF STVR <br /> PROGRAMFOR HAWAII COUNTY—EXHIBIT Q. <br /> Commissioner Yates commented that her concern had been about many STVR owners not <br /> paying the taxes that they should have been paying. She asked how that has changed in terms of <br /> numbers because of this law. In response Director Kern explained the two categories created by <br /> the STVR ordinance: STVRs in the permitted areas and those holding a Non-conforming Use <br /> Certificate ("NUC") in other areas. He said that those STVRs in the permitted areas have to <br /> show required information, including their general excise tax and transient accommodations tax <br /> ("TAT") licenses, to get a registration; however, once registered, there is not a set of follow-up <br /> procedures. He said that the NUC on the other hand has to be renewed each year with a fee and <br /> certain information, such as evidence of tax payment. He said that therefore the STVRs with <br /> NUC, which are now less than a quarter of the overall STVRs, are being monitored while not <br /> much monitoring is being done of the standard STVRs. He said that especially since the County <br /> is now responsible for collecting its own TAT, the County Council, the Mayor's Office, the Real <br /> Property Tax Office, and the Planning Department are collectively working on amending the <br /> STVR ordinance, which will be brought to the Commission, so that annual monitoring of those <br /> STVRs is also done as a way to ensure that compliance is happening. He said that after a very <br /> heavy lifting that the Planning Department had to do after the passage of the ordinance, they are <br /> now back to a base level where they can see what is not working and what is ready for <br /> improvement. He noted that they are seeing an increase in the number of STVR registrations in <br /> the permitted zones, such as resort areas and certain condominiums, whereas the STVRs with <br /> NUC, which can no longer be applied for, are decreasing because of the owner's decision to <br /> discontinue the use or renewal being denied due to noncompliance. Commissioner Yates further <br /> commented that her concern was about fairness; since the rest of property owners are being <br /> tracked and penalized for delinquent taxes, those STVR owners should be treated the same and <br /> pay their fair share. Director Kern responded that the framework for the amendment bill focuses <br /> on that point, as well as making sure that the property tax classification lines up with that use. <br /> There being no further questions, Chairman Vitousek concluded this item at 11:42 a.m. <br /> 4 <br /> Leeward Planning Commission <br /> January 20,2022,Meeting Minutes <br />