REPORT TITLE:
Fireworks Control


DESCRIPTION:
Requires a permit to purchase and explode fireworks at all times;
directs permit fees to the counties for administration and
enforcement of this chapter; establishes mandatory fines for
violating chapter 132D, HRS; establishes a 9 per cent GE tax on
the sale of fireworks.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                        
THE SENATE                              S.B. NO.           141
TWENTIETH LEGISLATURE, 1999                                
STATE OF HAWAII                                            
                                                             
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________


                   A  BILL  FOR  AN  ACT

RELATING TO FIREWORKS. 


BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

 1      SECTION 1.  Chapter 132D, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
 2 amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated
 
 3 and to read as follows:
 
 4      "§132D-     Distribution of fees.  (a)  All fees for permits
 
 5 collected pursuant to section 132D-11 payable to the State shall
 
 6 be distributed to the county in which the permit was obtained by
 
 7 the state director of finance to be used by the county for
 
 8 administering the permitting process and enforcing this chapter.
 
 9      (b)  All fees collected shall be paid into the state
 
10 treasury within ten days after collection, and shall be kept by
 
11 the state director of finance in special accounts for
 
12 distribution as provided in subsection (a).
 
13      (c)  On or before January or July 1 of each year, the state
 
14 director of finance shall compute and pay the amount due as
 
15 provided in subsection (a) to the director of finance of each
 
16 county to become a general realization of the county expendable
 
17 as such, except as otherwise provided by law."
 
18      SECTION 2.  Section 132D-3, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
19 amended to read as follows:
 

 
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 1      "[[]§132D-3[]]  Permissible uses of aerial common, non-
 
 2 aerial common, and special fireworks.  [Non-aerial common] Aerial
 
 3 common, non-aerial common, and special fireworks may be set off,
 
 4 ignited, discharged, or otherwise caused to explode within the
 
 5 State only[:] as allowed by permit pursuant to section 132D-10:
 
 6      (1)  From 9:00 p.m. on New Year's Eve to 1:00 a.m. on New
 
 7           Year's Day; from 9:00 p.m. Chinese New Year's Eve to
 
 8           1:00 a.m. Chinese New Year's Day; and from 9:00 p.m. on
 
 9           the Fourth of July to 1:00 a.m. on July 5; [or] and
 
10      (2)  From 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. [as allowed by permit
 
11           pursuant to section 132D-10] if the proposed use is to
 
12           occur at any time other than during the periods
 
13           prescribed in paragraph (1)."
 
14      SECTION 3.  Section 132D-5, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
15 amended to read as follows:
 
16      "[[]§132D-5[]]  General prohibitions.  (a)  It shall be
 
17 unlawful for any person without a permit to:
 
18      (1)  Remove or extract the pyrotechnic contents from any
 
19           fireworks;
 
20      (2)  Throw any ignited fireworks from a moving vehicle; [or]
 
21      (3)  Purchase any fireworks; or
 
22     [(3)] (4) Set off, ignite, discharge, or otherwise cause to
 
23           explode any fireworks:
 

 
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 1           (A)  At any time [not within the periods for use
 
 2                prescribed in section 132D-3, unless permitted
 
 3                pursuant to section 132D-10];
 
 4           (B)  Within one thousand feet from any operating
 
 5                hospital, convalescent home, home for the elderly,
 
 6                or animal hospital;
 
 7           (C)  In any school building, or on any school grounds
 
 8                and yards without first obtaining authorization
 
 9                from appropriate school officials;
 
10           (D)  On any highway, alley, street, sidewalk, or other
 
11                public way; in any park; within fifty feet from a
 
12                canefield; or within one thousand feet from any
 
13                building used for public worship during the
 
14                periods when services are held; [except as may be
 
15                permitted pursuant to section 132D-10;] and
 
16           (E)  Within five hundred feet from any hotel.
 
17      (b)  It shall be unlawful for any person offering to sell or
 
18 selling fireworks to:
 
19      (1)  Sell any fireworks to any person who does not have a
 
20           valid permit; or
 
21      (2)  Use, store, or deal in any explosives where a
 
22           certificate of fitness issued pursuant to section 396-9
 
23           is required or to sell any explosives to any person who
 

 
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 1           does not possess a certificate of fitness."
 
 2      SECTION 4.  Section 132D-7, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
 3 amended by amending subsection (b) to read as follows:
 
 4      "(b)  It shall be unlawful for any person to purchase, set
 
 5 off, ignite, or discharge aerial common, non-aerial common, or
 
 6 special fireworks at any time [or to set off, ignite or discharge
 
 7 non-aerial common fireworks at any time other than the periods
 
 8 for use prescribed in section 132D-3(1)] in any county unless the
 
 9 person has a valid permit issued by the county in which the
 
10 permitted activity is to occur."
 
11      SECTION 5.  Section 132D-8, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
12 amended by amending subsection (c) to read as follows:
 
13      "(c)  It shall be unlawful for any person, other than a
 
14 wholesaler who is selling or transferring fireworks to a licensed
 
15 retailer, to sell or offer to sell any fireworks:
 
16      (1)  More than seven calendar days prior to the designated
 
17           period for use as described in section 132D-3(1);
 
18      (2)  [At other than the designated periods for use set forth
 
19           in section 132D-3(1), unless] Unless the purchaser
 
20           presents a valid permit; or
 
21      (3)  At any other time, and whenever the sale of special
 
22           fireworks is involved, to any person who does not
 
23           present a permit duly issued as required by section
 

 
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 1           132D-7.  The permit shall be signed by the seller or
 
 2           transferor at the time of sale or transfer of the
 
 3           fireworks, and the seller or transferor shall indicate
 
 4           on the permit the amount and type of fireworks sold or
 
 5           transferred.  No person shall sell or deliver fireworks
 
 6           to any permittee in any amount in excess of the amount
 
 7           specified in the permit, less the amount shown on the
 
 8           permit previously to have been purchased."
 
 9      SECTION 6.  Section 132D-10, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
10 amended to read as follows:
 
11      "[[]§132D-10[]]  Permits.  A permit shall be required for
 
12 the purchase, setting off, ignition, or discharge of[:
 
13      (1)  Any] any aerial common, non-aerial common, and special
 
14           fireworks [when the proposed date of the use of the
 
15           fireworks is not within the periods prescribed in
 
16           section 132D-3(1); and
 
17      (2)  Any aerial common and any special fireworks under all
 
18           circumstances and at any time]."
 
19      SECTION 7.  Section 132D-11, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
20 amended to read as follows:
 
21      "[[]§132D-11[]]  Fee.  The fee for the license required
 
22 under section 132D-7 shall not exceed $110 for each year or
 
23 fraction of a year in which the licensee plans to conduct
 

 
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 1 business and shall be payable to the [department.] State for
 
 2 distribution pursuant to section 132D-    .  The fee for the
 
 3 permit required under section 132D-7 shall be no greater than $25
 
 4 for each year or fraction of a year in which the permittee plans
 
 5 to conduct business and shall be payable to the county in which
 
 6 the permitted activity is to occur."
 
 7      SECTION 8.  Section 132D-14, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
 8 amended by amending subsection (b) to read as follows:
 
 9      "(b)  Except as provided in subsection (a), any person
 
10 violating any other provision of this chapter, shall be guilty of
 
11 a petty misdemeanor[.]; provided that:
 
12      (1)  Any person who purchases, possesses, sets off, ignites,
 
13           or discharges any fireworks without a valid permit
 
14           issued under section 132D-10 shall be assessed a
 
15           mandatory fine of $500;
 
16      (2)  Any person who sells any fireworks to a person who does
 
17           not have and fails to present for inspection a valid
 
18           permit to purchase fireworks shall be assessed a
 
19           mandatory fine of $1,000 for each and every sale; and
 
20      (3)  Any person who violates section 132D-5(b)(2) shall be
 
21           assessed a mandatory fine of $5,000."
 
22      SECTION 9.  Section 237-16, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
23 amended as follows:
 

 
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 1      1.   By amending subsections (a) and (b) to read:
 
 2      "(a)  This section relates to certain retailing in the State
 
 3 as follows:
 
 4      (1)  This section relates to the sale of tangible personal
 
 5           property, for consumption or use by the purchaser and
 
 6           not for resale, the renting of tangible personal
 
 7           property, and the rendering of services by one engaged
 
 8           in a service business or calling, as defined, to a
 
 9           person who is not purchasing the services for resale,
 
10           but does not relate to the sale or rental of tangible
 
11           personal property or the rendering of services to the
 
12           State, its political subdivisions, or agencies or
 
13           instrumentalities of the State or a political
 
14           subdivision, or to the United States or its agencies or
 
15           instrumentalities (other than national banks), or to a
 
16           corporation, organization, or other person designated
 
17           in section 237-23 who is not subject to the tax imposed
 
18           by this chapter, or to a person licensed under this
 
19           chapter in connection with the person's business.
 
20      (2)  This section relates to the business of a contractor,
 
21           as defined, but does not relate to contracting with, or
 
22           any gross income or proceeds of a subcontractor if the
 
23           principal contract is with the State, its political
 

 
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 1           subdivisions, or agencies or instrumentalities of the
 
 2           State or a political subdivision, or with the United
 
 3           States or its agencies or instrumentalities (other than
 
 4           national banks), or with a person designated in section
 
 5           237-23 who is not subject to the tax imposed by this
 
 6           chapter, or with a person licensed under this chapter
 
 7           in connection with the person's business.
 
 8      (3)  This section relates to furnishing of transient
 
 9           accommodations in a hotel, apartment hotel, or other
 
10           place in which lodgings are regularly furnished to
 
11           transients for a consideration which includes the
 
12           rendering of services.
 
13      (4)  This section relates to the sale of fireworks as
 
14           defined and regulated by chapter 132D, and includes
 
15           aerial common fireworks, non-aerial common fireworks,
 
16           and special fireworks as defined in chapter 132D.
 
17      (b)  There is hereby levied, and shall be assessed and
 
18 collected annually, a privilege tax against persons engaging or
 
19 continuing within the State in the retailing to which this
 
20 section relates, on account of such retailing activities, as set
 
21 forth [in subsection (a), equal to four per cent of the gross
 
22 proceeds of sale or gross income received or derived from such
 
23 retailing[.]:
 

 
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 1      (1)  In subsection (a)(1) to (3), equal to four per cent of
 
 2           the gross proceeds of sale or gross income received or
 
 3           derived from the retailing activity; and
 
 4      (2)  In subsection (a)(4), equal to nine per cent of the
 
 5           gross proceeds of sale or gross income received or
 
 6           derived from retailing activities.
 
 7 Persons on whom a tax is imposed by this section hereinafter are
 
 8 called "retailers"."
 
 9      2.   By amending subsection (d) to read:
 
10      "(d)  This section shall not cause the tax upon a taxpayer,
 
11 with respect to any item of the taxpayer's gross income, to
 
12 exceed [four per cent.] the rates set forth in subsection (b)."
 
13      SECTION 10.  Section 132D-4, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
14 repealed.
 
15      ["[§132D-4]  Permissible uses of special and aerial common
 
16 fireworks.  Special and aerial common fireworks may be purchased,
 
17 set off, ignited, or otherwise caused to explode in the State
 
18 only if permitted in writing pursuant to section 132D-10."]
 
19      SECTION 11.  Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed.
 
20 New statutory material is underscored.
 
21      SECTION 12.  This Act shall take effect upon its approval.
 
22 
 
23                           INTRODUCED BY:  _______________________