Kohala Councilwoman Margaret Wille thinks she may have found the way to eliminate fraudulent use of the homeowner property tax exemption. Wille, who has been serving on the county’s Real Property Tax Task Force, is proposing that the credit only be available for people who file a Hawaii state income tax return listing themselves as full-year residents of the island. That way, Tax Division employees can just compare the list of people claiming the exemption with a list of tax return filers, Wille said. The tax list wouldn’t say how much tax the homeowner paid or reveal any other information. “It’s trying to bring enforce-ability and expediency,” Wille said, adding that it’s not feasible to have county staff individually check each exemption to see if the property owner actually lives at the address right now. Wille said she doesn’t have an exact count for how many people might be claiming the homeowner credit but not actually living there, but does know of some examples. “These are the things that people feel are abusive,” she said. South Kona/Ka‘u Councilwoman Brenda Ford said she knows of a man who owns property in Kona, which he rents out while he lives on the mainland full-time, but still takes the deduction. Wille’s proposal to fix the situation, Bill 292, goes before the County Council’s Finance Committee during its 9 a.m. hearing today in Hilo. Video teleconferencing is available at the West Hawaii Civic Center in Kailua-Kona and the Waimea Council office.
Posted on: Tue, 30 Sep 2014 18:30:01 +0000
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