STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1307

 

Honolulu, Hawaii

                  

 

RE:    H.B. No. 142

       H.D. 1

       S.D. 1

 

 

 

Honorable Colleen Hanabusa

President of the Senate

Twenty-Fifth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2009

State of Hawaii

 

Madam:

 

     Your Committee on Ways and Means, to which was referred H.B. No. 142, H.D. 1, entitled:

 

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO INTRA-STATE AVIATION,"

 

begs leave to report as follows:

 

     The purpose of this measure is to exempt the general excise tax and use tax on fuel sold from a foreign-trade zone by a common carrier for use in inter-island air transportation.

 

     Your Committee received one written comment on this measure.  The written comment may be reviewed on the Legislature's website.

 

     Your Committee finds that inter-island air transportation is vital for businesses and residents of the State.  As the only island state in the nation, transportation within the State is limited to air and sea.  With the absence of a commuter ferry system, passenger travel, unlike cargo and freight, is exclusively by air.

 

     Your Committee also finds that air transportation costs have a direct effect on tourism and the economy.  The high cost of inter-island travel creates a barrier for visitors and residents to visit neighbor islands, reducing the amount of commerce for businesses, services, and accommodations.  Your Committee believes that exempting the general excise tax and use tax on inter-island jet fuel will benefit consumers and the State.

 

     Your Committee has amended this measure by changing the effective date to July 1, 2050, to facilitate further discussion on this measure.

 

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Ways and Means that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 142, H.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 142, H.D. 1, S.D. 1.

 

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Ways and Means,

 

		____________________________ DONNA MERCADO KIM, Chair