HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0675.032 2022-2024 From: Nathan Eggen <neggen@gmail.com>
Sent: Monday,January 22, 2024 11:59 AM
To: Council Testimony
Subject: Testimony on Bill 121/TAR, Bill 122 B&B repeal, Bill 123 Ohana dwellings
Aloha Council Members, ,a . -
� C�K
.-1y
I am sharing my testimony against Bill 121/TAR. I do not support Bill 121 for several reasons.
sv �v
First the TAR regulation as written will have a negative revenue consequence for Hawaii County by ;' .
shutting down hundreds of resident owned and occupied vacation rentals.Those residents pay millions
of dollars of TAT tax revenue to Hawaii County every year.
Second, it will lead to job loss and reduce GE income from the business that support TARs such as
cleaners, landscapers, repair people due to the shrinkage of this market.
Third,this bill will make TAR in the small towns and rural areas mostly illegal because they are mostly
zoned in Ag zoning.Ag zoning makes up about 48%of the entire island. It means that the visitor economy
in the smaller towns in Hawaii County will collapse leading to further tax revenue decline for the county
and job loss at restaurants, stores, arts, culture, and other venues as they shrink or close. Look at towns
in districts such as North Kohala, Kau, Hamakua, Puna -the retail experiences in these locations are
primary visitor supported.These small towns were hurting badly for decades after the end of sugar.The
visitor economy is their primary source of revenue.
Fourth,the bill as written appears to have many legal problems that will almost certainly result in costly
litigation for the County of Hawai'i spending taxpayer money for years.The County of Hawai'i and
therefore Hawaii County tax payers could also be liable due to constitutional takings of individual
property rights through this regulation.The 180 day restriction has already been blocked by a federal
injunction and Hawaii County appears to be blindly walking into that same mistake.
Consider that the housing crisis existed in Hawaii well before AirBnB/VRBO or even the internet. It is now
a decades-long problem.The majority of Hawaii County's housing issues are due to issues like zoning,
difficult development processes in planning(rezoning, subdividing), lengthy permitting delays,the huge
affordable housing department corruption scandal, the cost of land, and the general low cost of Hawaii
County property taxes for non resident owners. Hawaii County could help affordable housing a lot more
by creating more residentially zoned land and removing barriers to new housing development instead of
putting more barriers up.
Gutting the county's largest source of tax revenue is not a good idea.
I am also sharing my testimony against Bill 122 to repeal B&Bs. B&Bs are an integral part of rural Hawaii
visitor experience.They already have a rigorous regulation process.
�Mahalo, Comm. No .�1
Nathan Eggen Ref. To: /Ala �I
Ref. Date 2 2024