Hawaii lawmakers wrap up session featuring tax cuts, zoning reform and help for fire-stricken Maui
HONOLULU– Hawaii lawmakers concluded a legislative session Friday focused heavily on addressing Maui’s needs following last year’s deadly Lahaina wildfire. They also addressed Hawaii’s housing shortage, tax cuts and measures to support signature Hawaiian agricultural products such as coffee and macadamia nuts. On a lighter note, they adopted the ‘shaka’ as the official state gesture.
Here’s a look at some of the major laws passed during the 60-day session that began on January 17:
MONEY FOR MAUI AND WILD FIRE PREVENTION
Lawmakers have appropriated $1 billion to cover various costs resulting from the Lahaina disaster, including $500 million for emergency housing for displaced people and $124 million in rental assistance for those who do not qualify for assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency .
Recognition of how global warming has increased the risk of wildfires statewide has prompted lawmakers to allocate money for more firefighting equipment, a state fire marshal and forest restoration.
HOUSING AND HOLIDAY RENTALS
Lawmakers addressed Hawaii’s acute housing shortage with bills to reform zoning and tighten regulations on vacation rentals.
The zoning measure requires counties to allow two additional homes on each residentially zoned lot, with the goal of encouraging higher-density development.
House Speaker Scott Saiki, a Democrat, told reporters Wednesday that this differed from recent past efforts to address the state’s housing shortage. This mainly concerned subsidies for affordable housing.
“We see in other states, and even in other countries, that governments view zoning as one of the obstacles to housing development,” Saiki said. “And it was time for Hawaii to take a look at that too.”
The August 8 wildfire put a spotlight on vacation rentals by revealing that a large portion of Maui homes were being rented to tourists on a short-term basis. This prompted lawmakers to pass a bill that would give counties the authority to phase out vacation rentals and make them available to residents. Gov. Josh Green signed the measure into law Friday.
Maui’s mayor immediately acted on this bill by announcing provincial legislation that would phase out vacation rentals in areas zoned for condos. The bill would affect 2,200 West Maui units in and around Lahaina and nearly 5,000 others elsewhere in the county.
BOOST FOR FARMERS
Lawmakers have passed measures creating standards for coffee and macadamia nuts, two of Hawaii’s most valuable crops.
The Coffee Act requires coffee grown and processed in Hawaii to contain no less than 51% coffee from Hawaii as of July 2027. The legislation states that existing law allows coffee blends identified as originating from the Kona, Kau and Kauai coffee growing regions to contain only small amounts of beans from these places. This misleads consumers and harms coffee growers, the report said.
When it comes to macadamia nuts, lawmakers have passed legislation that would force macadamia nut processors from iconic brands like Mauna Loa to disclose whether their products contain nuts grown outside of Hawaii. Currently, some well-known Macadamia nut processors from Hawaii sell imported nuts in island-themed packaging, without indicating where the nuts come from.
TAX REDUCTION
Lawmakers approved tax cuts amounting to $5 billion over the next six years, said Rep. Kyle Yamashita, chairman of the House Finance Committee and a Democrat. The cuts will take the form of a higher earned income tax credit, an increase in the regular tax deduction and adjustments to the income tax brackets.
Lawmakers also eliminated the general excise tax on medical bills for patients with Medicaid, Medicare and Tricare health insurance.
Rep. Lauren Matsumoto, the House minority leader, said these are bills her Republican group has long pushed for.
“Our best bills passed this year were when we introduced them with bipartisanship, when we worked together and had input from everyone,” she said.
STATE GESTURE
Lawmakers moved to make the “shaka” the state gesture and recognize Hawaii as his birthplace. The hand symbol is sometimes known outside the islands as the ‘hang loose’ sign associated with surfing culture. People in Hawaii display the shaka to say hello and goodbye, as well as to say thank you and aloha.