REQUESTING THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION TO ESTABLISH A FOSSIL FUEL SUBSIDY AND FARE-FREE TRANSIT FISCAL IMPACT WORKING GROUP TO IDENTIFY THE IMPACTS OF FOSSIL FUEL SUBSIDIES AND THE ECONOMIC, ENVIRONMENTAL, AND HEALTH IMPACTS OF STATEWIDE FARE-FREE PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION.

HCR209

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.C.R. NO.

209

THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2026

STATE OF HAWAII

HOUSE CONCURRENT

RESOLUTION

requesting the department of transportation to establish a
fossil fuel subsidy and fare-free transit fiscal impact working group to
identify the impacts of fossil fuel subsidies and the economic, environmental,
and health impacts of statewide fare-free public transportation
.

����
WHEREAS, the
State is committed to achieving a zero-emissions clean economy by 2045 pursuant
to Act 15, Session Laws of Hawaii 2018; and

����
WHEREAS, transportation
is the largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in the State, with the
majority attributable to on-road gasoline consumption; and

����
WHEREAS, according
to the United States Energy Information Administration, Hawaii consistently
experiences among the highest retail gasoline prices in the United States due
to geographic isolation and reliance on imported petroleum; and

����
WHEREAS, the
Congressional Budget Office and United States Government Accountability Office
have documented that the federal government provides billions of dollars
annually in tax expenditures and other fiscal support benefiting fossil fuel
production and consumption; and

����
WHEREAS, the
International Monetary Fund has found that when accounting for direct fiscal
support and indirect externalized costs, including climate damages, air
pollution-related health impacts, and infrastructure burdens, the effective
subsidy for fossil fuels substantially exceeds direct budgetary expenditures;
and

����
WHEREAS, the
American Public Transportation Association reports that public transportation
reduces household transportation costs, lowers fuel consumption, and decreases
greenhouse gas emissions, with national transit use saving billions of gallons
of gasoline annually; and

����
WHEREAS, research
indicates that fare-free public transportation programs can increase ridership
by twenty to sixty percent depending on service availability and population
density; and

����
WHEREAS, increasing
public transportation ridership in Hawaii could reduce vehicle miles traveled,
lower gasoline consumption, reduce roadway wear and congestion, and generate
long-term public infrastructure savings; now, therefore,

����
BE IT
RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Thirty-third Legislature of the
State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2026, the Senate concurring, that the Department
of Transportation is requested to establish a Fossil Fuel Subsidy and Fare-Free
Transit Fiscal Impact Working Group to identify the impacts of fossil fuel
subsidies and the economic, environmental, and health impacts of statewide
fare-free public transportation; and

����
BE IT FURTHER
RESOLVED that the Fossil Fuel Subsidy and Fare-Free Transit Fiscal Impact
Working Group is requested to:

����
(1)
�
Quantify the total annual amount of federal
taxpayer dollars used to subsidize fossil fuels nationally and estimate the
proportional share attributable to petroleum consumed in Hawaii;

����
(2)
�
Estimate the "true cost" per gallon
of gasoline in Hawaii if federal fossil fuel subsidies were eliminated,
including:

���������
(A)
�
The removal of direct federal tax
expenditures; and

���������
(B)
�
The monetized value of externalized
environmental and public health costs, where feasible;

����
(3)
�
Determine the total annual cost to each county
of providing fare-free public transportation, including the City and County of
Honolulu;

����
(4)
�
Estimate potential state and county government
cost savings associated with fare-free public transportation, including
reductions in:

���������
(A)
�
Roadway maintenance and repair costs;

���������
(B)
�
Congestion mitigation expenditures;

���������
(C)
�
Public health costs associated with vehicle
emissions; and

���������
(D)
�
Administrative costs related to fare
collection;

����
(5)
�
Model a scenario in which statewide public
transportation ridership increases by twenty percent, forty percent, and sixty
percent and calculate:

���������
(A)
�
The estimated reduction in private vehicle
miles traveled;

���������
(B)
�
The estimated reduction in gasoline
consumption by private vehicles;

���������
(C)
�
The corresponding reduction in greenhouse gas
emissions; and

���������
(D)
�
Long-term infrastructure and fiscal savings
associated with fewer vehicles on public roadways;

����
(6)
�
Provide ten-year and twenty-year comparative
projections of:

���������
(A)
�
Business-as-usual transportation expenditures;
and

���������
(B)
�
A fare-free public transportation system
funded through increased petroleum taxation; and

����
(7)
�
Develop policy recommendations consistent with
the State's 2045 zero-emissions mandate; and

����
BE IT FURTHER
RESOLVED that the Director of Transportation, or the Director's designee, shall
serve as the Chairperson of the working group; and

����
BE IT FURTHER
RESOLVED that the working group is requested to include representatives from:

����
(1)
�
The Department of Taxation;

����
(2)
�
The Department of Business, Economic
Development, and Tourism;

����
(3)
�
Each county public transportation agency,
including:

���������
(A)
�
TheBus;

���������
(B)
�
Hele-On Bus;

���������
(C)
�
Maui Bus; and

���������
(D)
�
Kauai Bus;

����
(4)
�
The University of Hawaii Economic Research
Organization;

����
(5)
�
At least one transportation economist to be
invited by the Chairperson;

����
(6)
�
Three representatives from three different organizations
serving working families, to be invited by the Chairperson; and

����
(7)
�
At least one climate or public health expert,
to be invited by the Chairperson; and

����
BE IT FURTHER
RESOLVED that the Department of Transportation is requested to convene the
first meeting of the working group no later than ninety days after the adoption
of this Resolution; and

����
BE IT FURTHER
RESOLVED that the working group is requested to submit a report of its findings
and recommendations, including detailed fiscal tables, gasoline price modeling
scenarios, emissions reduction projections, and any proposed legislation, to
the Legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular
Session of 2027; and

����
BE IT FURTHER
RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the
Director of Transportation; Director of Taxation; Director of Business,
Economic Development, and Tourism; Mayors of each county; Chairpersons of each County
Council; Director of the Department of Transportation Services for the City and
County of Honolulu; Executive Director of the Transportation Agency for the
County of Kaua
ʻ
i;
Director of the Department of Transportation for the County of Maui; and
Administrator of the County of Hawai
ʻ
i
Mass Transit Agency.

OFFERED BY:

_____________________________

Report Title:
�

Fossil
Fuel Subsidy; Free-fare Public Transportation; Working Group