THE SENATE	S.R. NO.	5
THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2026
STATE OF HAWAII

SENATE RESOLUTION

URGING THE UNITED STATES CONGRESS TO provide owner-occupants WITH COMPARABLY equivalent tax DEDUCTIONS afforded to business entities FOR EXPENSES RELATED TO PROPERTY OWNERSHIP.

WHEREAS, under current federal tax law, business entities, such as real estate investment trusts (“REITs”) are able to deduct a wide array of expenses related to property ownership; and

WHEREAS, categories eligible for deduction include interest, depreciation, property taxes, insurance, maintenance fees, utilities, and more; and

WHEREAS, this favorable treatment allows large real estate investors to enjoy massive tax savings, though if this same property were owned by the average homeowner, they would only be able to deduct a fraction of this amount; and

WHEREAS, Hawaii’s aspiring homeowners’ number one barrier is cost, and with this structural tax disadvantage, where they are only able to deduct mortgage interest and receive no depreciation or business equivalent deductions, they are subjected to yet another hurdle; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Thirty-third Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2026, that the United States Congress is urged to provide owner-occupants with comparably equivalent tax deductions afforded to business entities for expenses related to property ownership; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to leadership of the United States Congress and the State of Hawaii’s delegation to the United States Congress.

OFFERED BY:

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Report Title:

Tax Deductions; Equity; Homeowners