As lawmakers continue to support car rental tax increases, local residents and businesses will continue to suffer, according to an opinion piece submitted by Americans for Tax Reform published in the Hawaii Reporter.

The group strongly opposes car rental taxes in Hawaii, citing that the tax hikes can be detrimental to the local businesses and Hawaii’s tourism industry. The piece discussed a recent study that showed a 9 percent reduction in car rentals after a recent tax increase. Furthermore, the study showed as much as an 86 percent decrease in the number of days cars were rented.

Additionally, the opinion piece discussed how lawmakers often target the car rental industry for tax increases because they believe visitors, who cannot vote or hold lawmakers accountable, should take the brunt of the tax burden. However, the tax reform group maintains that the majority of car rentals are made by local Hawaiian residents and businesses.