STAND. COM. REP. NO. 129

 

Honolulu, Hawaii

                  

 

RE:    S.B. No. 901

       S.D. 1

 

 

 

Honorable Colleen Hanabusa

President of the Senate

Twenty-Fourth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2007

State of Hawaii

 

Madam:

 

     Your Committee on Human Services and Public Housing, to which was referred S.B. No. 901 entitled:

 

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO TAXATION,"

 

begs leave to report as follows:

 

     The purpose of this measure is to establish exemptions from the income tax and general excise tax for certified adult foster homes.

 

     The Hawaii Coalition of Care Home Administrators and two hundred and thirty-five individuals submitted testimony in support of this measure.  The Hawaii Centers for Independent Living submitted testimony in opposition.  The Department of Taxation and the Department of Health submitted comments.

 

     Your Committee received a fiscal impact statement from the Department of Taxation that this measure, if passed, would result in a revenue loss to the State of approximately $11,200,000 per year.  However, the fiscal impact statement submitted did not specify the methodology by which the fiscal impact was calculated.

 

     Your Committee finds that certified adult foster homes play an important role in the care of developmentally disabled and mentally retarded individuals, and enable developmentally disabled and mentally retarded individuals to stay in the community.  Certified adult foster homes provide low-cost health care and other services that alleviate the expense to the State and the federal government of more costly care alternatives.  However, reimbursement for the services that certified adult foster homes provide is low and as a result, certified adult foster homes experience operational and financial hardship.  As the voluminous testimony reveals, community care foster family homes are in the same situation.

 

     It is the Committee's intent to exempt certified adult foster homes and community care foster family homes from the income tax and general excise tax.  Upon further consideration, your Committee has amended this measure by:

 

     (1)  Exempting community care foster family homes from the income tax and general excise tax, as well; and

 

     (2)  Making technical, nonsubstantive changes for the purposes of clarity, consistency, and style.

 

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Human Services and Public Housing that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 901, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 901, S.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Economic Development and Taxation.

 

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Human Services and Public Housing,

 

 

 

____________________________

SUZANNE CHUN OAKLAND, Chair