House Standing Committee on Tourism

Good morning and welcome to our first hearing for the House Committee on Tourism. Today is February 3, 2026. Tuesday time is 8:30am we are here in Conference Room 423 at the Hawaii State Capitol for the purposes of hearing two measures, a little bit of housekeeping.

As you can see we have new microphones that is embedded into the ceiling. So if you plan on whispering and saying something mean, it's best to take it outside. Other things to be aware of, please try to keep your testimony concise.

We do have your written testimony, so if you would like to stand on your testimony, that's fine. If you have anything else to add, feel free to come up to the podium.

If you are not on the testifier list and you do want to testify on the measure, please come to the podium and state your name and whether you support, oppose or provide comments on the measure for us.

Please refrain from any kind of swearing or inappropriate behavior as this is all recorded and I think we are ready to go. All right, first up on the agenda we have House Bill 1944 relating to tourism.

It establishes and designates the Corporation for stewardship of the Hawaii Tourism for whole of Hawaii Tourism, a non profit organization as the official destination stewardship organization for the state and repeals the Hawaii Tourism Authority. First up to testify we have DCCA.

Hawaiian Chair, Vice Chair, Members of the Committee available for any comments.

Thank you. Next up we have Department of Taxation. Thank you. Next up we have DBEDT.

Respectfully DBEDT stands in opposition to this bill. I think what happened last year with the passage of SB 1571 the Legislature the intent was to right the ship at HTA and I think the passage of that bill has done a lot to achieve that. We understand the purpose of the bill but we still respectfully oppose it.

And if you have any questions we'll be available to answer that. Thank you very much.

Thank you. Next up we have the Hawaii Tourism Authority.

Aloha Chair Tammy Vice Chair Templa and Members of the Committee. You have our written testimony. Sorry, I am Caroline Anderson, Interim President CEO of the Hawaii Tourism Authority. We respectfully oppose House Bill 1944. You have a reasons again honor testimony and if you have any questions please let us know.

Thank you. Next up we have on Zoom Fernell Oku. That is all that we have signed up to testify or submit oral testimony. Is there anyone else in person willing wanting to testify on House Bill 1944? Is there anyone on zoom wanting to testify on on House Bill 1944? Seeing none. Members, any questions on House Bill 1944.

Okay, chair does have a question. This is for either HTA or DBEDT. Can you please come up and just kind of explain to the Committee where did this bill come from?

Yes, sir, it is, I believe from the governance study that was enacted or completed two years ago. And in our discussions with Members of the Legislature, especially you, Chair, I think what the intent is is to use some of the guidance of the study. And I think that's a good thing.

But I think the way that HTA has been working now towards that end is something that we don't. HTA, I should say it doesn't need a bill to achieve some of those things that are being requested by the study. But the study in its totality is very drastic.

So the recommendation from the governor's office and from my and from DBEDT is to give this, give the HT some time to work out what happened and what has been implemented from SB 1571 and see where that goes because it was just passed last year.

I think that with the addition of David Uchiyama and, and Caroline and her team working together to accomplish many of those things in the governance study, it's moving in that direction.

So for that reason, Chair, that's why we would oppose it, to give us some time to address the issues that the Legislature has had and what the governance study has had to achieve the similar goals.

Thank you, Members. Any other questions? Okay, I guess we'll move on to the next Bill. Next Bill, we have House Bill 1590 relating to vacation rentals. It requires banks and lenders with a Lien upon an illegal short term rental to foreclose if the Lien is not settled within five years.

It allows counties to use timestamp screenshots as evidence for informing. Enforcement of short term vacation rentals requires short term vacation rental brokers to provide certain data to the Department of Taxation on or before March 31st following the close of the calendar year. It authorizes the Department of Taxation to issue fines. It includes short term rental.

Short term vacation rental enforcement in the Hawaii tourism authorities plans, practices and efforts involving destination management. Clarifies that the counties may use revenue from the county transient accommodations tax for the enforcement of short term vacation rentals and appropriate funds. First up we have Department of Taxation. Thank you. Next up we have Hawai' I terms of authority.

Next up we have Chamber of Progress.

I'll defer to my written testimony. Good morning, Chair Tam, Vice Chair Templo. Members of the Committee just quickly highlight some things. My name is Robert Singleton. I serve as the Senior Director of West Coast Policy at Chamber of Progress, where a tech industry association supports inclusive innovation.

I'm here today in respectful opposition to HB 1590, which we believe would harm lawful home sharing opportunities for local residents and raise costs for visitors by creating a confusing statewide enforcement scheme tied to county rules and by forcing banks and lenders into mandatory foreclosure actions over certain liens on properties deemed to be illegal short term rentals.

While we share the goal of addressing truly unlawful short term rental activity and improving tax compliance, HB 1590 would do so in ways that risk significant harm to responsible hosts and visitors. HB 1590 expands enforcement authority by layering new state level enforcement mechanisms top of existing county short term rental ordinances without clearly defining their respective roles.

For hosts and homeowners, this lack of clarity increases the risk of the duplicative enforcement, conflicting notices and inconsistent penalties for the same alleged violation. When multiple agencies claim overlapping authority, residents are left unsure which rules apply and who has the final decision making authority and how to comply.

Increased compliance burdens, data reporting requirements and enforcement actions can raise operating costs for platforms and hosts alike. These costs often pass on to visitors through higher rental prices and fees affecting both residents and visitors without guaranteeing improved compliance outcomes.

And our biggest concern is HB 1590 requires banks and lenders to foreclose on properties associated with legal short term vacation rentals if the lead is not resolved in five years.

This provision places financial institutions in the role of enforcement agents even though lenders have no control of how property is used on a day to day basis and likely do not want to serve in this capacity. For homeowners, this creates significant and disproportionate risk.

A zoning or permitting dispute that renders a rental illegal under county ordinance, both often complex and subject to change, could ultimately trigger foreclosure even if the homeowner is actively attempting to resolve the issue. So in some cases this could cut off the economic lifeline that enables homeowners to avoid foreclosure in the first place.

So this provision removes flexibility, discretion and due process from the situation that should be handled by regulatory agencies, not private lenders. I'll defer to my written testimony.

Next up we have Hawaii Credit Union League. Thank you. Next up we have Miyoko Itor Tifrini Yajima with comments. Okay, is there anyone looking to testify on this measure in this room that is not on the list of testifiers.

That you should be on the list? Attorney General's Office.

Oh, Attorney General. Oh yeah, you're on the List. But I just didn't say that you wanted to testify in person. No, don't worry. You want to come up?

Good morning, Chair, Members of the Committee, I am Maya Van Drunen from the Attorney General's office. Our office provided written testimony providing comments and recommendations regarding the provisions of the bill that set the definition of illegal short term vacation rental and the requirement that HTA ensure vacation rentals are lawful. I'm available for questions.

Thank you. Is there anyone else willing to testify on the mic? OH, deep.

Thank you, Chair Tam, Vice Chair Templo and Members of the Committee. The provisions of this bill, 1590 HB 1590. We agree with most of it, but the biggest part of it that we don't agree with is the enforcement part, which HTA has no enforcement powers. I think the intent is good.

As you've seen throughout the state, many vacation rentals have been taken away in many cases, especially the ones that are not permitted rental housing or purchase housing from local people. And that's the governor's biggest issue right now, is housing for local people. So that part of it we totally agree.

It's the enforcement of HTA that or HTA having the enforcement of this Bill that we can't support. So if those details are clarified, it'll make it a lot easier for us to submit testimony and support.

Thank you. Is there anyone on Zoom wishing to testify on this measure? Members, any questions? Okay, I do have a question for the Hawaii Credit Union Week. Sorry, put you on the spot.

So my, the reason why I put the lien measures in is because I don't know whether or not lenders and banks are okay with their properties being used illegally and accumulating these liens as they've given the mortgage.

If I were to give a loan to someone for a house and they decided to use it in a fashion that is illegal, I would not be happy. And I don't think banks and lenders would be happy either.

What do banks and lenders do to try to like, you know, ensure that there is some kind of legality in the properties that they lend mortgages and loans to.

So once the mortgage is done, we have no legal standing to police usage. After that point, I would have to go and check with our legal counsel to see what exactly the parameters are. But that is my understanding. But I can check to make sure.

Okay. Members, any other questions? All right, that's all.

Thank you.

Thank you. We're going to recess for quorum and we will return at 11 O'Clock. Thank you. Recess for quorum.

We are reconvening this morning's hearing for the House Committee on tourism. Today is February 3, 2026 Tuesday time is 8:30am for the 8:30am agenda now at 11 here in Conference Room 423 at the Hawaii State Capitol. First up we have House Bill 1944 relating to tourism.

So the recommendation of the Chair is to defer this measure primarily because it does need a lot of work. Even though this study was conducted in 2024. I'm happy that we were able to have this discussion here and we're going to continue to move forward to see what the future of HTA is going to look like.

But the recommendation for now is to defer it. Thank you. Next up we have House Bill 1590 relating to vacation rentals. Chair's recommendation is to pass this out with amendments. We are grateful for all the testifiers that worked with us on it and the following amendments are going to go as follows.

We're going to remove the requirement that short term vacation rental brokers collect certain data on short term rentals that insert the contents of House Bill 2330, which requires hosting platforms to register with the Department of Taxation as tax collecting agents and report, collect and remit the get and tat on behalf of operators.

Next, we're going to adopt the recommendations from the Attorney Generals defining illegal short term vacation rentals on Section 1, page 1, lines 9 to 12 as any short term vacation rental that a court has determined violates a county ordinance relating to a short term vacation rental, minimum stay requirements or zoning.

Next, we're going to remove the lien and foreclosure language on page two.

Next we're going to replace the language in Section two requiring HTA to ensure that vacation rentals are lawful and that all state and county laws and ordinances are enforced and replaced with it with the following language which is to promote positive experiences with stays in traditional lodgings like hotels or timeshares or alternatives like legal vacation rentals so that visitors avoid illegal short term vacation rentals and places where communities have not allowed them and any technical and non substantive amendments.

Members any questions or comments, see None. Vice Chair for the vote okay Voting.

On House Bill 1590, Chair's recommendation is to pass with amendments. [Roll Call] Chair, your recommendation is adopted.

Thank you. This hearing is adjourned.