STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1582

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.C.R. No. 139

S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirtieth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2019

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committees on Government Operations and Energy, Economic Development, and Tourism, to which was referred S.C.R. No. 139 entitled:

"SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION REQUESTING THE AUDITOR TO CONDUCT A SUNRISE REVIEW OF THE REGISTRATION AND REGULATION OF TRANSIENT VACATION UNIT OWNERS,"

beg leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to request that the Auditor conduct a sunrise review of the registration and regulation of transient vacation unit owners.

Your Committees received testimony in support of this measure from Hawaii's Thousand Friends, Frazer-Frantz Family Hui, Kohala Coast Resort Association, Hawaii Advocates for Consumer Rights, and nine individuals. Your Committees received comments on this measure from the Office of the Auditor.

Your Committees find that transient vacation units are increasingly located in residential areas, often in violation of zoning laws and in conflict with residential neighbors. Due to the difficulty in identifying the properties being used as transient vacation units, your Committees further find that a centralized and publicly searchable database of transient vacation units, including addresses, unit numbers, and tax map numbers would help identify properly registered transient vacation units. This measure requests the Auditor to conduct a sunrise review of transient vacation unit owners as proposed by S.B. No. 960, Regular Session of 2019.

Your Committees have amended this measure by:

(1) Updating the findings to note the proliferation of single family dwellings being offered for short-term vacation rentals, that these dwellings are not identified or obligated to meet certain standards and laws, and it is in the best interest of the State for these standards to be applied and met;

(2) Clarifying that transient vacation rental owners should be evaluated by the Auditor as "professional guest house operators"; and

(3) Updating its title accordingly.

As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Government Operations and Energy, Economic Development, and Tourism that are attached to this report, your Committees concur with the intent and purpose of S.C.R. No. 139, as amended herein, and recommend that it be referred to your Committee on Ways and Means, in the form attached hereto as S.C.R. No. 139, S.D. 1.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committees on Government Operations and Energy, Economic Development, and Tourism,

________________________________ GLENN WAKAI, Chair

________________________________ LAURA H. THIELEN, Chair