HomeMy WebLinkAboutRapozo, Cheree
Tsuneda, Kaci
From:Cheree Rapozo <cheree@chereerapozo.com>
Sent:Monday, September 14, 2026 2:34 PM
To:Council Testimony
Subject:Bill 147 - Testimony - Attached
Attachments:counciltestimony.pdf
Aloha,
I hope my testimony can be accepted and given serious consideration. I am currently on Kaua‘i, and
power and internet service were only recently restored to my home following Hurricane Lowell. I have
done my best to submit this as soon as I could.
My primary concern with Bill 147 is its definition of “host.” A caretaker, tenant, or property manager
should not replace the actual owner. A true hosted rental should require the owner to use the property as
their principal residence and live on-site during guest stays.
Kaua‘i’s homestay framework uses owner-occupancy requirements. Hawai‘i County should adopt a
similarly clear standard instead of creating a pathway for off-island owners to operate short-term rentals
by placing a caretaker on the property.
Properties should also be properly permitted and registered before operating—not brought into
compliance after the fact. I would gather about 1/4 of the short-term ads of various platforms are
operating illegally and collecting TAT's, GET etc and not paying taxes.
Please find my attached letter explaining my opposition and why the definition of “host” must be
strengthened.
Mahalo for your consideration,
Cheree Rapozo
1
-and-
breakfast. The host should be the property owner and resident of the County of Hawaii, the
are staying. Otherwise, this creates a pathway for off-island/out of state owners to operate
commercial short-term rentals simply by placing a caretaker in one dwelling on the property. Many
of the vacation rentals aka B&B are NOT operated by the owners and they live outside of the
State.
building site while the rental is operatingit does not require that person to own the property. The
bill also treats the owner and host as separate people by making both responsible for violations.
What prevents someone from purchasing a property with two dwellings, a duplex, or several units,
placing a caretaker in one dwelling, and operating the others as short-term rentals? How would that
protect housing for long-term residents?
As an example - The City of Leavenworth in Washington State provides a stronger owner-
occupied model: its bed-and-breakfast rules require the owner to obtain the permit and live on the
City of
Leavenworth
Enforcement must also begin at the advertising level. Bill 147 requires every advertisement to
display the County TVR registration number, but that requirement is only useful if Airbnb, Vrbo,
and other booking platforms must verify the number before allowing a listing to go live. They
already do it for the island of Kauai. The County should also coordinate with the State to verify
applicable tax registration. No valid registration, no online listing.
Otherwise, enforcement will continue chasing illegal operators after they are already accepting
reservations instead of preventing unlawful listings from appearing in the first place.
Mahalo,
Cheree Rapozo