But critics say that relaxing the estate tax would benefit only Hawaiʻi’s wealthiest residents while costing the state some $43.3 million per year in lost revenue.

Gavin Thornton, executive director of the Hawaiʻi Appleseed Center for Law & Economic Justice, told lawmakers the measure would only benefit the wealthiest 0.2 percent of Hawaiʻi residents.

“We cannot afford to provide a $43 million tax break at a time of such great need for our broader community: Maui wildfire relief; hazard pay for state workers; and numerous other services and supports for Hawaiʻi’s people,” Thornton said in written testimony.

Senate Bill 3289 sparked a heated debate on the House floor on Friday, with a dozen Democrats voting against the bill and other lawmakers expressing reservations about the measure. Rep. Burt Kobayashi, a member of the Finance Committee, urged his colleagues to reject the bill.

“I’ve decided that this bill puts you on the side of either for the people, or for the very wealthy, and by very wealthy I mean couples that have an estate exceeding $11 million, which are very, very few,” Kobayashi said.

He said the state and the community have no guarantee that granting the tax break to some of Hawaiʻi’s wealthiest families will result in any benefit to anyone else.