Economics of Taxation
Funding the Hawaii Tourism Authority: TAT vs General Fund…Or?
By James Mak A majority of the states in the U.S. have a government tourism office (also known as Destination Marketing Organization, DMO) that markets their state. The National Council of State Legislatures (NCSL) notes that the most common way for states to fund their tourism offices is by appropriation from their general fund. [1] […]
Read MoreIs a Carbon Tax Viable for a Small Island Economy?
By Maja Schjervheim, Paul Bernstein, Sumner La Croix, Makena Coffman, and Sherilyn Hayashida For the third year in a row, a carbon tax bill fizzled out at the Hawaiʻi State Legislature. Perhaps it was the difficult timing of introducing a new tax in the wake of a pandemic. Perhaps it was due to qualms regarding […]
Read MoreShould the Counties Get a Share of the Transient Accommodation Tax?
By James Mak In the recently-concluded thirty-first legislature (2021), Hawaii state lawmakers passed HB 862 CD1 which would divert to the state government’s general fund (GF) $103 million from the state’s transient accommodation tax collections (TAT) that otherwise would have gone to the counties. In exchange, state lawmakers gave each of the four counties the […]
Read MoreTaxing Income in the New World of Teleworking
By Robert D. Ebel and James Mak Covid-19 has accelerated the growth of teleworking/telecommuting in the U.S. As a result, states are having to confront the challenge of determining how best to tax the incomes of employees who live in one state but work remotely for employers located in another state. In Hawaii a resident […]
Read MoreUnderstanding the Role of the Hawaii Film/TV/Digital Production Tax Credit In Diversifying the Hawaii Economy
By Sumner La Croix and James Mak Blog: The Hawaii Film Tax Credit: An Update Hawaii is one of 32 states in 2020 to offer a tax credit to film, TV, and digital productions through the Hawaii Motion Picture, Digital Media and Film Production Tax Credit (hereafter “film credit”). Since the passage of the film […]
Read MoreThe Hawaii Research Activity Tax Credit: Is It Effective and How Can It Be Improved?
In 2013, the Hawaii State Legislature enacted a tax credit for Hawaii technology firms engaged in qualified research activities satisfying requirements for the federal research tax credit. After reviewing studies in the economics literature on the effectiveness of research tax credits in other states and countries, we conclude that a research tax credit can be […]
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