STAND. COM. REP. NO. 558

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.B. No. 1133

       S.D. 2

Honorable Colleen Hanabusa

President of the Senate

Twenty-Fourth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2007

State of Hawaii

Madam:

     Your Committee on Economic Development and Taxation, to which was referred S.B. No. 1133, S.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO TAXATION,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this measure is to require businesses with at least fifty employees that receive school repair and maintenance, certain renovation and development, and high technology tax credits under sections 235‑110.2, 235-110.3, 235-110.46, 235‑110.51, 235-110.6, 235‑110.8, 235-110.9, and 235‑110.91, Hawaii Revised Statutes (HRS), to provide experiential learning opportunities to public school students.

     The Department of Taxation (Department) submitted comments on this measure.

     Your Committee finds that experiential learning is an important component of workforce development, particularly in Hawaii's growing technology related sector.  One means of determining the extent of experiential learning opportunities centers on collecting data from businesses that provide these opportunities.

     It is the intent of your Committee to encourage the gathering of information on experiential learning in order to support efforts to increase opportunities for Hawaii's students.

     Your Committee has amended this measure by:

     (1)  Deleting the proposed experiential learning tax credit in chapter 235, HRS;

     (2)  Amending section 231-3.4, HRS, to authorize the Department, in its published reports on tax credits, to include information submitted on a voluntary basis to the department by a taxpayer receiving certain technology related credits, information on experiential learning opportunities provided by the taxpayer to public school students; and

     (3)  Making the measure effective upon approval date and applicable to taxable years beginning after December 31, 2007.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Economic Development and Taxation that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 1133, S.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it be referred to the Committee on Ways and Means, in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 1133, S.D. 2.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Economic Development and Taxation,

____________________________

CAROL FUKUNAGA, Chair