HSA: "Rail supporters counter that the vast majority of hotel taxes are paid by tourists, not by Hawaii residents, and note that Oahu regularly subsidizes neighbor island projects through the use of gasoline taxes, weight taxes and registration fees that are collected in Honolulu."
Not true. This was the stand only of the legislators who supported SB 4. It's virtually quoting the House Finance Chair, a "rail skeptic." Rail supporters, along with most Oahu voters, called for extending the GET surcharge instead of using the TAT. Supporters, including the mayor, said throughout the process that the surcharge was simpler, more reliable and efficient and less onerous than the TAT. Supporters of the project said repeatedly in their testimony that the GET should be used instead of the TAT and that the GET was broad based, meaning it asked a little bit of everyone and more than 20% of it was paid by nonresidents.