Senate committee narrows motor‑vehicle registration reporting bill to Honolulu after questions on county accounting

Senators advanced HB 2,022 (HD1) on March 24 with a substantive amendment limiting the bill’s scope to the City & County of Honolulu and adding a specific annual reporting deadline. The bill, as introduced, sought greater transparency in how motor‑vehicle registration revenues are collected and spent across islands; members said the measure was intended to hold large jurisdictions accountable for registration revenue use.

Testimony included representatives from the Tax Foundation, the Hawaii Transportation Association (which opposed the bill on cost and pass‑through effects to small businesses), and Megan Johnson from the City & County of Honolulu Department of Customer Services (who testified in opposition to aspects of the measure). William Trujillo, the Division of Motor Vehicles program administrator for the City & County of Honolulu, told the committee that vehicle tax and registration revenue flows into general funds and that the counties administer expenditures locally; he committed to follow up with county breakdowns upon request.

Committee members repeatedly asked for a clear accounting of how registration and weight‑tax funds were used and why island rates differ; one senator said the bill was intended to “hold the city and county of Honolulu accountable” after written testimony from the Hawaii County mayor opposing the measure. After a brief recess, the chairs conferred and agreed to a targeted amendment: the measure will apply only to the City & County of Honolulu and will require an annual report to be submitted no later than 20 days prior to the convening of each regular session. The committee then adopted the chair’s recommendation to pass HB 2,022 with those amendments.

Next steps: The amended measure will proceed following committee report; the City & County of Honolulu committed to provide follow‑up revenue/expenditure breakdowns requested by committee members.