STAND. COM. REP. NO. 623
Honolulu, Hawaii
RE: S.B. No. 1659
S.D. 1
Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi
President of the Senate
Thirty-Third State Legislature
Regular Session of 2025
State of Hawaii
Sir:
Your Committee on Transportation and Culture and the Arts, to which was referred S.B. No. 1659 entitled:
"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO THE LAHAINA BYPASS,"
begs leave to report as follows:
The purpose and intent of this measure is to:
(1) Add
a special assessment to the Rental Motor Vehicle Surcharge Tax, sunsetting in ten
years, to fund revenue bonds for the Lahaina Bypass North;
(2) Include
payment of principal and interest of revenue bonds for the construction,
operation, and maintenance costs of the Lahaina Bypass North as a permissible
use of the State Highway Fund;
(3) Authorize
the issuance of general obligation and revenue bonds to fund the Lahaina Bypass
North;
(4) Authorize
public-private partnership agreements for the construction, operation,
maintenance, and repair of the Lahaina Bypass North; and
(5) Direct
transient accommodations taxes collected from West Maui transient
accommodations to fund the Lahaina Bypass North.
Your Committee received testimony in
opposition to this measure from Enterprise Mobility.
Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Department of Taxation and Tax Foundation of Hawaii.
Your Committee
finds that the
Lahaina Bypass North Project is vital for improving traffic flow, supporting
emergency response, and providing alternative access routes specifically
serving the communities of West Maui, especially in the wake of recent
wildfires that have highlighted the vulnerabilities of the region's
transportation network. This project is
a necessary but costly improvement to accommodate the projected growth, ensure
the safety and welfare of residents, and maintain the region's economic
vitality. This measure facilitates the
project's completion by allocating new funding sources and authorizing
public-private partnership agreements.
Your
Committee notes the request of the Department of Taxation regarding timelines
and effective dates to allow sufficient time for the various forms, instructions,
and system changes that are necessary for the successful enactment of this
measure. Your Committee finds that this
issue raises concerns that merits further consideration and respectfully
requests that subsequent Committees to which this measure is referred examine
the issues and concerns raised by the testimony.
Your Committee has amended this
measure by:
(1) Changing the rental
car special assessment to an unspecified amount;
(2) Defining
"West Maui" to mean the area congruent to the Maui county council
west Maui residency area and district;
(3) Deleting
language that would have authorized public‑private partnership agreements
for the construction, operation, maintenance, and repair of the Lahaina Bypass;
(4) Changing the appropriations to unspecified
amounts;
(5) Amending
section 1 to reflect its amended purpose;
(6) Adding effective date of January 1, 2026, for
sections 2 and 4 of this measure;
(7) Inserting an effective date of July 1, 2050 to encourage further discussion; and
(8) Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments
for the purposes of clarity and consistency.
As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Transportation and Culture and the Arts that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 1659, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 1659, S.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Ways and Means.
Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Transportation and Culture and the Arts,
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________________________________ CHRIS LEE, Chair |
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