HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.R. NO.	246
TWENTY-FOURTH LEGISLATURE, 2008
STATE OF HAWAII

HOUSE RESOLUTION

OFFERING support TO the University of Hawaii in its efforts to enhance and diversify its sources of revenue and maximize use of its facilities.

     WHEREAS, the University of Hawaii (UH) is the premier institution of higher learning in Hawaii and the Pacific region and contributes to the intellectual, artistic, and economic vitality of our state and people; and

     WHEREAS, UH is a publicly-supported institution but also depends on funds from numerous other sources, including federal grants and contracts, private foundation gifts and grants, individual donor contributions, and revenues from tuition and fees, and athletic event ticket sales; and

     WHEREAS, in an effort to enhance and diversify its revenue base, UH seeks opportunities to maximize income from the rental of facilities for public and private non-UH events; and

     WHEREAS, in 1995, the Honolulu City Council, in Condition 14 of Resolution 95-278, and as previously articulated in Council Resolutions 89-411 and 92-286, prohibited the use of the Stan Sheriff Center (Center), also known as the "Special Events Arena," for "activities of a commercial nature"; and

     WHEREAS, UH has been allowed to host activities in the Center that cannot be satisfactorily accommodated at other venues on Oahu, but such opportunities are few and far between; and

     WHEREAS, as an example of the additional revenue that UH could accrue, if not prohibited, in September 2007 the lower UH at Manoa campus facilities, including the Center, Cooke Field, and Les Murakami Stadium, were rented out for approximately one week to Toyota Motor Sales USA for the staging of its National Dealer Meeting for a fee of $500,000; now, therefore,

     BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-fourth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2008, that this body hereby supports UH in its efforts to enhance and diversify its sources of revenue and maximize use of its facilities; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Honolulu City Council is urged to amend Resolution 95-278, Condition 14, and other resolutions, as appropriate, to allow UH maximum flexibility in the use of its facilities for whatever purpose it deems appropriate, by removing the prohibition on the use of the  Center for activities of a commercial nature; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Chairperson of the University of Hawaii Board of Regents, President of the University of Hawaii, Chancellor of the University of Hawaii at Manoa, Mayor of the City & County of Honolulu, and the Chairperson of the Honolulu City Council.

OFFERED BY:

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Report Title: 

University of Hawaii Revenue Maximization