THE SENATE	S.B. NO.	2813
THIRTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2022
STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

relating to conveyance tax.

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

SECTION 1. The legislature finds that the State desperately needs to increase the development and construction of affordable housing units. The legislature passed Act 127, Session Laws of Hawaii 2016, which established a rental housing goal of developing at least 22,500 rental housing units to be ready for occupancy between 2017 and 2026. The rental housing revolving fund, which provides low-interest loans or grants to qualified owners and developers constructing affordable housing units, can help to fulfill the housing need.

The legislature further finds that under the existing statute, fifty per cent or $38,000,000, whichever is less, is paid annually from the state conveyance tax into the rental housing revolving fund. In three of the last five fiscal years, the existing cap limited rental housing revolving funds from the conveyance tax to $38,000,000. If there were no cap to these funds, the rental housing revolving fund would have had an additional $21,555,000 over this time period. The amount allocated to the fund should not be arbitrarily capped, as the fund should reflect increases and decreases based on the health of the economy and conveyance tax revenue collections.

Increasing the statutory cap would have the potential to increase the amount available in the rental housing revolving fund to be used for the development, pre-development, construction, acquisition, preservation, and substantial rehabilitation of rental housing units.

Accordingly, the purpose of this Act is to increase the cap of funds paid from conveyance tax revenues into the rental housing revolving fund.

SECTION 2. Section 247-7, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

"§247-7 Disposition of taxes. All taxes collected under this chapter shall be paid into the state treasury to the credit of the general fund of the State, to be used and expended for the purposes for which the general fund was created and exists by law; provided that of the taxes collected each fiscal year:

(1) Ten per cent or $5,100,000, whichever is less, shall be paid into the land conservation fund established pursuant to section 173A-5; and

(2) Fifty per cent or [$38,000,000,] $43,000,000, whichever is less, shall be paid into the rental housing revolving fund established by section 201H‑202."

SECTION 3. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 4. This Act shall take effect upon its approval.

INTRODUCED BY:

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Report Title:

Real Estate Conveyance Tax; Disposition; Rental Housing Revolving Fund; Cap

Description:

Increases the cap to be paid into the Rental Housing Revolving Fund from Conveyance Tax revenues from $38,000,000 to $43,000,000.

The summary description of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.