County mayors said they were open to all proposals for closing sizable gaps in their upcoming budgets, but stopped short of saying property tax hikes were inevitable.

“;Everything is on the table,”; was a popular refrain from each of the four county mayors as they presented their budget requests to the Legislature's money committees yesterday.

Two of the four counties—Honolulu and Maui—had no budget requests, in recognition of the dire financial straits facing the state.

But all four were united in asking the Legislature to leave in place the hotel room tax money that typically goes to counties.

  Some senators urges mayors to raise county sales tax

 

Senators Donna Kim and Russell Kokubun think the county mayors should impose their own county sales taxes.

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  Hawaii sales tax on the rise

 

A new proposal under consideration could force you to pay a sales tax to help take care of soaring budget shortfalls.

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Even without their share of the transient accommodations tax, or TAT, each of the counties is facing significant budget holes for the fiscal year that begins July 1, putting even greater importance on the funds from the state.

“;This TAT is not a grant-in-aid to the counties—it's our fair share,”; Big Island Mayor Billy Kenoi said, noting that counties pay for vital services such as public safety.

Taking away the TAT would force counties to look at other sources of revenue, such as property tax rates or fee hikes.

“;We would have to look at all options,”; Kauai Mayor Bernard Carvalho said.

Mayors testified they already have instituted budget restrictions, program cuts, hiring freezes and a limited number of furloughs to close their budget gaps.

A proposal to give counties greater taxing authority was met with concern by some mayors, including Honolulu Mayor Mufi Hannemann.

Hannemann, who noted that the City and County of Honolulu raised property tax rates and various fees last year, said he would rather use existing revenue sources before asking for more taxing power.

“;I'd rather stay with what they've given us,”; Hannemann said. “;I've managed my budget that way. I will make up this shortfall that way as opposed to being very quick to embrace a new tax.”;

Others, such as Kenoi and Maui Mayor Charmaine Tavares, said they would prefer a half-percent surcharge on the general excise tax, similar to what Honolulu has adopted to fund a mass transit system.

Sen. Donna Mercado Kim, the Senate money chairwoman, already has floated the idea of bringing back the proposal for giving counties the sales tax authority.

House Finance Chairman Marcus Oshiro said he would be willing to consider the measure and put it to a public hearing.

Last year, he said, the counties did not support the idea.

“;The counties may have a change of heart, given what they're going through right now,”; Oshiro said. “;I'm glad to hear they're looking at other options.”;