Tax Appeal of Reel Hooker Sportfishing, Inc. v. State, Department of Taxation

Opinion of the Court by

LEONARD, J.

This is a tax appeal case in which the taxpayers, who are in the charter boat fishing business, challenge the assessment of Hawai'i General Excise Tax (GET) on their businesses on the ground that a federal statute limiting nonfederal taxes upon vessels operating in U.S. navigable waters, 33 United States Code (U.S.C.) § 5(b) (2006), preempts the application of the Hawai'i GET statute, Hawaii Revised Statutes (HRS) § 237-13(6)(A) (2001 & Supp. 2008), to their charter fishing revenue. Plaintiffs-Appellants Reel Hooker Sportfishing, Inc., Exact Game Fishing,…