Hawaii Bucks National Trend: Tax Collections Up
Most states saw tax revenues fall in 2010, but Hawaii was an anomaly. The Aloha State’s tax collections actually rose.
Nationally, Hawaii had the fifth highest tax revenue jump, increasing collections 2.66 percent from $4.20 billion in 2009 to $4.36 billion in 2010, according to a .
A number of factors could be behind the increase: a slightly larger state population, more people doing business in Hawaii or from new taxes levied by the Legislature, or a combination of the three.
The screenshot below shows where Hawaii ranks among the states in terms of increasing tax revenue in 2010:
As a whole, tax revenues in the United States fell 2 percent. State governments collected $704.6 billion in taxes in fiscal year 2010, down from $718.9 billion in fiscal year 2009.
Four states had a 10 percent or more drop in tax revenue in 2010 compared to 2009. These included: Montana, Oklahoma, Louisiana and Wyoming.
In Hawaii, corporation taxes, public service company taxes, insurance premium taxes and transient accommodations taxes all had the biggest increases in 2010. This could indicate an influx of business in the state, which also accounts for some of the additional revenue.
In terms of new taxes added by the Legislature, the state increased the tobacco tax and the barrel tax, according to the .
The table below shows Hawaii’s tax revenus from 2009 and 2010, as well as estimates for revenues through fiscal year 2015. Figures are in thousands of dollars and come from a January .
| Type of Tax | FY 2009 (Actual) | FY 2010 (Actual) | FY 2011 | FY 2012 | FY 2013 | FY 2014 | FY 2015 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| General Excise & Use | $2,417,580 | $2,316,434 | $2,548,624 | $2,695,863 | $2,880,109 | $3,080,182 | $3,291,380 |
| Income – Individual | $1,338,451 | $1,527,619 | $1,297,862 | $1,547,406 | $1,632,550 | $1,725,164 | $1,815,170 |
| Income – Corporation | $53,522 | $59,186 | $48,482 | $56,362 | $63,372 | $75,917 | $88,085 |
| Public Service Company | $126,069 | $157,661 | $186,723 | $211,625 | $233,775 | $253,784 | $272,134 |
| Insurance Premiums | $93,720 | $104,721 | $130,755 | $126,222 | $133,538 | $140,226 | $143,833 |
| Tobacco & Licenses | $76,955 | $85,503 | $103,757 | $102,480 | $92,336 | $68,074 | $59,270 |
| Liquor & Permits | $47,242 | $44,074 | $42,780 | $39,685 | $37,900 | $36,369 | $35,068 |
| Banks & Other Finance | $26,075 | $18,666 | $21,831 | $24,349 | $27,206 | $29,380 | $30,877 |
| Inheritance & Estate | $274 | $0 | $8,200 | $19,600 | $19,600 | $19,600 | $19,600 |
| Conveyance | $8,311 | $18,216 | $21,833 | $21,622 | $15,405 | $15,155 | $14,918 |
| Miscellaneous | $536 | $781 | $13,985 | $13,972 | $13,959 | $13,947 | $13,936 |
| Transient Accommodations | $13,566 | $31,698 | $70,664 | $85,860 | $91,999 | $98,456 | $13,936 |
Taxes aren’t the only area where Hawaii has shown an independent streak as of late.
Back in November, the state achieved the most Legislature in the country, when a Republican wave swept over most of the U.S.
