Hawaii lawmakers have been busy this year assessing whether there should be more or fewer ways to earn state income tax credits, a year after approving historic tax cuts that ramp up through 2031.
At least two dozen bills were introduced this year to establish new tax credits, alter existing ones and abolish others.
Most bills were rather quickly ignored or rejected, though a few still pending would benefit family caregivers, help start hog farms and increase credits for film productions.
The longer list of shelved bills would have established new tax credits for things including hurricane-resistant safe rooms in homes, aquaculture investments, cesspool replacements, telework, electric garbage truck purchases and water delivery service.
There also were rejected bills that would have given credits to residents who pay the state’s hotel room tax, to Hawaii National Guard retirees, to businesses that pay public transportation costs for employees, and to businesses with certain “food and beverage supply chain costs.”
Perhaps the most heavily contested piece of tax credit legislation this year has been House Bill 1369, introduced by Rep. Kyle Yamashita, chair of the House Finance Committee, in an effort to explore eliminating or phasing out many existing tax credits, deductions and exemptions.
Broad review
HB 1369 aims to simplify the state tax system and enhance revenue sustainability by getting rid of close to 20 tax breaks.
Many companies and organizations oppose the bill, which received 351 pages of written testimony for a Feb. 24 hearing. The committee then advanced the measure to the 51-member House of Representatives, where a vote four days later was 40-7 to send the bill to the Senate for consideration.
Among things slated for elimination under the original version of the bill were credits for renewable energy technologies, including rooftop solar systems, and film productions.
The bill also proposed to repeal state general excise tax exemptions for industries and operations including petroleum refiners, independent sugar cane producers, business conducted in an enterprise zone and aircraft maintenance.
Yamashita (D, Pukalani-Makawao-Ulupalakua) said at the outset of the hearing that his aim is to look at the list of tax benefits, most of which were identified by the state auditor for possible repeal, and determine whether they are achieving their intended purposes. Yamashita said he added the film and renewable energy tax credit programs — the two biggest tax credits promoting economic activity — on top of the auditor’s list for review.
“In general, where I’d like to see us move to is to use the tax code primarily to bring money in,” he said, adding that it may be better to provide grants or appropriations, subject to oversight and measurement, as incentives for certain things.
The nonprofit Tax Foundation of Hawaii for years has espoused a similar view, calling tax credits the expenditure of public money “out the back door” that can be hard to quantify before claims are submitted and approved.
“If, in fact, these dollars were subject to the appropriation process, would taxpayers be as generous about the expenditure of these funds when we need money to support victims of natural disasters like the Maui wildfires, there isn’t enough money for social service programs, or our state hospitals are on the verge of collapse?” the foundation said in written testimony on multiple tax credit bills.
Focus on film
Much of the opposing testimony on HB 1369 was concentrated on the film tax credit program, which has existed since 1997 and currently has a $50 million cap for credits after the industry claimed a record $68 million in credits in 2022. Productions, which can include movies, TV shows and commercials, are eligible for credits as a partial rebate on certain spending, and can receive payment for credits exceeding tax liability.
The film tax credit program has long been contentious over whether a financial incentive, or how much of an incentive, is needed to draw film productions to Hawaii, where natural attractions exist.
James Tokioka, director of the state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism, which oversees the film tax credit program, said in written testimony that the program is crucial to attract more industry productions after reductions due to the coronavirus pandemic and industry strikes.
“Reducing the program’s impact would collapse the ability to attract new productions, develop our workforce and justify the demand for additional studio infrastructure investment,” he said. “If the incentive is eliminated, so too will the jobs and livelihoods of our talented crew and acting pool.”
The Motion Picture Association estimates that more than $260 million is paid annually in wages to people working on film, television and streaming produc- tions in Hawaii, and said in written testimony that repealing the tax credit program puts those jobs at risk.
Some supporters of the program encouraged raising the credit cap, including Sally “Kalei” Davis, who said she has worked in Hawaii’s film industry for 40 years. Davis suggested raising the cap to $100 million to avoid having shows depicting Hawaii being filmed in New Zealand or Atlanta.
“If this (bill) passes, it will be the nail in coffin for our Hawaii Film Industry!” Davis said in written testimony. “Why would anyone want that?”
The House Finance Committee amended the bill to exclude the film tax credit from being repealed.
At least a half-dozen other bills were introduced this year to alter the film tax credit program, mostly by increasing benefits, and one is still being considered for enactment.
Senate Bill 732 originally proposed to raise the $50 million annual cap to $60 million. Subsequent drafts don’t specify an increase amount. The Senate passed the bill unanimously March 4, and the measure is pending in the House.
Other additions
A few bills also still pending would provide tax credits for other things.
One of these, HB 701, would establish a tax credit for unpaid family caregivers to essentially recover up to $5,000 in annual caregiving expenses. The bill cited a 2023 AARP report that found 154,000 Hawaii residents provide unpaid caregiving services for a loved one.
The state Department of Taxation estimated that such a credit could reduce state tax collections by $397 million annually.
Another pending bill would provide tax credits on 50% of an investment to convert a dairy farm into a hog farm.
Supporters of this measure, SB 328, included DBEDT and the Hawaii Farm Bureau but no one seeking to use the proposed credit, capped at $1 million. The state Department of Agriculture suggested broadening the credit so it could apply to the transformation of farms and ranches in general.
The Tax Foundation of Hawaii was more critical in its written testimony that said, “The bill appears to be too narrow to be an industry incentive, and smells more like a benefit to a specific taxpayer. If so, the law would be unfair to other taxpayers, especially those in competition with the taxpayer seeking this benefit.”
It’s not uncommon for bills to get introduced on behalf of companies or industries. One piece of legislation introduced this year was promoted by Corteva Agriscience in an effort to undo a change lawmakers made in 2024 to a tax credit for research.
The Legislature in 2024 restricted eligibility for the research tax credit, which is limited to $5 million annually, to businesses with no more than 500 employees.
Corteva has about 22,500 employees and had $16.9 billion in sales in 2024. The company has five seed crop farms in Hawaii.
HB 92 proposed to undo the tax credit’s employee condition. Corteva said in written testimony that it proposed a “fix” to include larger companies, and that 2024’s change threatens growth and sustainability of high-paying research and development jobs and innovation in Hawaii.
The bill stalled in the House after being advanced by one committee.
Because it can be difficult to determine whether a tax credit program serves a public purpose well, Yamashita took another tack this year by introducing a bill he said was aimed at exploring the issue by putting restraints on new or renewed tax credits.
This measure, HB 796, would impose an automatic five-year sunset on every income tax credit established or renewed after the end of this year, or phase out such credits over three years.
HB 796 was widely opposed by several stakeholders, including some organizations that feared it could affect income tax credits available to low-income households.
During a Feb. 24 hearing on the bill, Yamashita asked whether the state Tax Review Commission, which meets every five years, would be better able to analyze merits of existing tax credits.
The commission is expected to convene later this year, and a Tax Department official told Yamashita that the department could suggest to the commission that tax credits are an area of interest for possible review.
