Honolulu is introducing a new hotel tax that will add an additional 3% surcharge to all hotel and short-term accommodation bookings.
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Revenue from the hotel tax will be used to improve local services.
The state collected a 10% hotel tax before the new law and allocated a share to each county based on the size of their population. The revenue from the hotel tax will be used to improve local services and infrastructure for both locals and visitors.
According to the Honolulu Star-Advertiser, the county will allocate a third of the revenue to develop a rail service in Honolulu and 8% to a special fund for natural resources impacted by tourism. The remainder will go to the general fund.
The new tax bill was signed by Honolulu's mayor on Tuesday and will take effect on January 1, 2022.
The introduction of a hotel tax in Kaua'i, Hawai'i, and Maui counties was similar to the situation in Hawaii, which was struggling to cope with an influx of tourists this summer. Increased visitor numbers and reduced resources due to the Pandemic caused issues like traffic congestion, more garbage and lack of transportation resources.
