The following testimony was submitted by the Grassroot Institute of Hawaii for consideration by the Kauai County Council on July 31, 2024.
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July 31, 2024, 8:30 a.m.
Historic County Building
To: Kauai County Council
Mel Rapozo, Chair
KipuKai Kuali‘i, Vice Chair
From: Grassroot Institute of Hawaii
Jonathan Helton, Policy Researcher
RE: Bill 2928 — RELATING TO REAL PROPERTY TAX
Aloha Chair Rapozo, Vice-Chair Kuali‘i and other members of the Council,
The Grassroot Institute of Hawaii would like to offer its support for Bill 2928, which would create a real property tax credit for individuals who become eligible for the owner-occupied or owner-occupied mixed-use tax classes after the Sept. 30 application deadline.
The tax credit would be calculated by the difference between the tax rate of the class the property was in — perhaps vacation rental or non-owner-occupied residential — and the rate of the class it should be in. It would only apply to the second half of the tax year.
The intent of this measure is to give a break to owners who might have purchased a dwelling after the annual deadline to apply for homeowner-related tax relief. Right now, a homeowner in this situation would pay higher taxes for at least half a tax year before they could apply to move into the owner-occupied tax class.
For example, if a person bought a $750,000 home in the non-owner-occupied residential class, they would pay $4,088 in property taxes for the year — compared to $1,944 for the owner-occupied class. If the property was in the vacation rental class, the tax difference would be even more significant.
Grassroot believes the Council should pass this measure to grant tax relief to those who are eligible for it. The implementation of this bill could also serve as a model for the other counties to create similar programs.
Thank you for the opportunity to testify.
Jonathan Helton
Policy Researcher
Grassroot Institute of Hawaii
