Fellow Owners,
We are very pleased to deliver some great news and some pretty good news on the tax increase proposals in the State of Hawaii.
First the great news: the proposed increase in the transient accommodation tax of over 300% did not get approved by the Legislature. The final bill has been sent to the Governor for signature and does not include the proposed increase. This is tremendous news as the timeshare industry came together quickly and showed the State Senators and Representatives the tremendous financial impact that timeshare owners have on the State of Hawaii.
Now, the pretty good news. The Mayor of Maui has clearly heard the anger from the timeshare community and has lowered his proposed real property tax increase on timeshare properties from $5.60 to $1.45. Although the 40% increase is no longer on the table, this is still a 10% increase. The Mayor’s new proposal attempts to even out the increases and includes similar increases in the tax rates for other classifications such as a 9.6% increase in the tax rate on hotel/resort properties. What the Mayor is not addressing is the fact that timeshare properties already pay a significantly higher tax rate than all of the other classifications. We feel that timeshare is already paying more than its fair share of taxes and we are opposed to any increase.
We will continue the fight against this increase and will keep you informed as this issue is resolved.
Mahalo
Kevin Blair
President
Sands of Kahana Vacation Club