HomeMy WebLinkAbout2024-04-04 PL-CCI-2024-000003 Bill 121 Cathy West Dale From: Cathy West Dale
To: Council Testimony;WPCtestimony
Subject: TAR Bill 121
Date: Thursday,April 4,2024 11:17:53 AM
My testimony from 2018
Sent to all the council members by email today: I am a 100th
generation descendant in Hawaii of my Hawaiian ancestry.
I am a 4th generation descendant in Hawaii of my German ancestry
I am a 5th generation descendant in Hawaii of my English ancestry.
I am a 5th generation descendant in Hawaii of my Chinese ancestry.
I am a 5th generation descendant in Hawaii of my Japanese ancestry.
I am a keiki o ka aina in the truest sense.When I hear reports of people calling owners of vacation rentals"from the
mainland"I cringe.I own vacation rentals and I am not"from the mainland".And
generalizations/assumptions/stereotypes/racisms aside,there is nothing wrong with someone from the mainland
owning a vacation rental in Hawaii.
Hotels and resorts employ a lot of people,but most,if not all the profits go off island,some out of country.Many
hotels are now providing and advertising their hotel"rooms"as vacation rentals and can be found on platforms like
VRBO and AirBnb and others. It is a better financial win for Hawaii Island to have as many independently owned
vacation rentals as possible to keep the money local and keep our island economy healthy.
I pay my property tax,my income tax,my GE tax and my TA tax. When I bear people say that vacation rental
owners don't pay their taxes, I cringe. i pay my taxes. I pay a LOT of taxes!
1 employ house cleaners,handypersons,contractors,architects,draftspersons,yard care persons,pest control
persons,plumbers,electricians,buy supplies,hardware and furniture from local stores,(Water Works,Target, Home
Depot, HPM, Longs,Costco, KTA,Safeway,Walmart, Walgreens, Ross,Macy's, Paradise Plants Hilo,Kitchen and
Beyond,local craft fairs,Ace Hardware, Kaloko Furniture, HomeWorld Furniture, Sears,and more!). I have things
shipped from purchases online that help to employ local people at delivery companies such as UPS, USPS, Fedex
and others.I use local banks and credit unions to do my banking.1 employ a local accountant to help with my taxes.
1 use a local attorney to assist with my legal issues. When 1 hear people say that hotels employ people and vacation
rentals do not,I cringe because I spend a ton of money to nun my vacation rental that stays local and employs local
people.
In the 4+years that I have been owning and running vacation rentals,I have never had a complaint from any
neighbor about noise,too many cars,drunken or obnoxious people or other neighborly upset.I do truly feel badly
for any neighbor that has problems in their neighborhood from vacation rental occupants,but truly,there are many,
many neighborhood problems that arise from people that are not vacation rental guests too. It is a people problem,
not a vacation rental problem.Anywhere and anytime there is disruption to a neighborhood,it should be addressed
with adequate attention as our current laws already provide.Penalizing and regulating an entire"group",whether
they are breaking laws already in place(noise and other illegal activity)or not is not only unfair,it is bad for the
island's economy.
If anything,our vacation rentals are very good neighbors in the neighborhood.We keep the house up in repairs and
cleanings.There are no junk cars or other garbage strewn about the yard.There is no loud music being played or
cars on blocks being worked on in the driveway.There are no vicious dogs,noisy chickens,smelly pigs or other
animals that might bother a neighbor. The property taxes,GE and TA taxes are paid that help to provide services for
the neighborhood,community and island.The values of the properties increase for resale value for the above
reasons.
Problems that need to be addressed:
Enforcement of"under the radar"vacation rentals. These are the properties that are being used as vacation rentals,
but do not pay their GE,TA and income taxes on the business being run.There are many,many,many of these. This
is true for vacation rentals as well as many other"under the radar"businesses that occur all over our island including
road side vendors,business for cash,many(not all)farmer's market vendors,food truck vendors,existing unpaid
property taxes,etc.Do not penalize the vacation rental owners that are doing the right thing,PENALIZE the people
that are tax scofflaws!
Enforcement of noise and disruption of neighborhood from ANYONE that hurts that peacefulness of a
neighborhood.Enforcement when cars are not parked legally.This is a law enforcement issue not a vacation rental
issue.Based on my own experience,there are many long tenn renters and property owners that are the cause of
noise/animal/pot smoke types of neighbor issues.
Delineation between different areas on Hawaii Island.There are vast differences between the Kona Coast Resort
areas and Volcano area,etc.
Long term rental market for local residents.There is no shortage of homes or land to provide housing for any local
residents that want it.The vacation rental market provides an income for many people,owners and workers,so they
can make a living to remain on Hawaii Island.Do not cut off your nose to spite your face! Many vacation rental
owners would not open their vacation homes to long term renters because they want to use the homes for themselves
or friends and family when they want to use them.Many,many,many local residents use vacation rentals
themselves(and pay the going rate for it including the GE and TA taxes)when they go on vacation on the island or
from neighbor islands.There needs to be a REAL effort to work on providing affordable housing to local residents
whether that is by building it anew or forcing developers to provide it when they build new projects or from other
ideas.Please use your energy to work on the housing issue without penalizing,regulating or removing vacation
rentals!
Sent from my Whone