Deferral Doesn’t Mean Death for Hotel-to-Condo Conversion Bill
I can understand and sympathize with those who might think that the deferral of Bill 16 on April 22 by my City Council Committee on Public Safety and Economic Development signals the bill鈥檚 demise.
Nothing could be further from the truth.
As elected lawmakers, we are duty bound to create legislation that is effective, serves its intended purpose, and does not conflict with existing county, state or federal laws.
There are many of us on the City Council who support some kind of regulation on the amount of hotel rooms that can be converted into something less.
We fully understand the economic impact that these conversions have on our city, mainly in the form of lost employment and the hardships they impose on working families.
With that said, we also must be certain that any regulation we adopt will withstand legal tests and that it does not conflict with existing laws that protect the rights of property owners and businesses.
Bill 16 has very complex elements.
This deferral allows my committee and our legal staff to perform the research and analysis needed to ensure that we are proceeding with a law that is under the city鈥檚 authority to regulate.
The research will include examining other municipalities in the U.S. that have successfully implemented similar legislation, to include moratoriums.
We must not subject the city to a protracted court battle that consumes large amounts of time and legal fees by passing a defective law.
About the author: Councilmember Carol Fukunaga is the Chair of the Committee on Public Safety and Economic Development for the Honolulu City Council. She represents District 6 which includes Makiki, Downtown Honolulu, Punchbowl, Pauoa Valley, Nuuanu, Alewa Heights, Papakolea, Fort Shafter, Moanalua, Halewa, Aiea, Kalihi Valley and Liliha.
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