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Daily Smile

[{"type":"text","text":"When a service dog sits in front of you on a plane..."}]

Smile 26 3 18

<title>Daily Smile: Wednesday, March 18, 2026</title>

When a service dog sits in front of you on a plane...

Daily Smile: Wednesday, March 18, 2026

 When a service dog sits in front of you on a plane...

Square Mike Brestovansky Headshot RGZ3736 Large

Michael Brestovansky

Government & Politics

Hawai‘i’s energy future is natural gas, claims a $2 billion development proposal by a Japanese energy company.

In October 2025, Gov. Josh Green traveled to Tokyo to sign 

 for the state to partner with JERA Co. Inc. — the largest power generation company in Japan, supplying about one-third of the nation's electricity, according to the Hawai‘i State Energy Office — to help the state meet its clean energy goals.

On Tuesday, Green’s office announced that JERA has submitted 

for how it would modernize O‘ahu’s energy grid, including the construction of a natural gas-fired power plant in Kapolei that would generate about 500 megawatts of power per year.

According to Hawaiian Electric, O‘ahu’s various power plants generate a combined 1,516 megawatts.

JERA has proposed investing — along with “local partners” — $2 billion into a Kapolei plant fed by imported liquefied natural gas, delivered via an undersea pipeline connecting to tankers moored offshore. The facility would connect to the existing O‘ahu power grid, distributing power through most of urban Honolulu.

Such a facility would be necessary for the state to meet its legally mandated energy goals, claims JERA’s proposal. In 2022, the state passed a law requiring that 100% of the state’s net electricity generation come from renewable sources by 2045, and 40% by 2030.

To meet those goals, O‘ahu’s oil power plants must be replaced, but JERA’s proposal states that the growth of renewable energy generation on the island isn’t fast enough to fill the gap left behind by oil plants. But a liquified natural gas plant could fill that gap.

While liquified natural gas is not a renewable fuel, it is less expensive and generates less emissions than petroleum, JERA claims.

If implemented, JERA’s proposal claims that the state could save about $170 million per year compared to the state’s annual oil expenses, while households could save an average of $500 per year.

Furthermore, investments in the plant would not be wasted after 2045, as JERA claims that about 90% of the facility could be repurposed to deliver clean energy: the pipeline could be used to deliver an unspecified “clean fuel,” a floating fuel storage and regasification unit could be used as a “floating gas station” to refuel ships, and the plant itself could be adapted to work with hydrogen, ammonia or other fuel sources with “limited upgrades.”

JERA’s proposal suggests that the plant and most of the necessary infrastructure could be constructed by the end of 2030. During construction, JERA proposes the project could increase the state’s GDP by $150 million per year and create some 1,100 jobs.

Once completed, those benefits shrink, with JERA projecting only an additional $52 million annually to the state GDP and 167 permanent jobs. JERA also estimates that the annual cost of operating the facility would be about $670 million per year.

Green’s announcement comes just three days after the Asia-Pacific Energy Security Forum, where Japan 

 up to $56 billion in energy projects in America, primarily focusing on oil imports and natural gas, liquified and otherwise. JERA was reportedly tied to some of these deals, including a $1.5 billion investment into natural gas production in the southern U.S.

JERA’s Hawai‘i proposal and Green’s announcement Tuesday name Hawai‘i Gas and Pasha Hawai‘i as specific local partners for the project. Hawai‘i Gas CEO Alicia Moy said in a statement that her company supports the expansion of liquified natural gas availability and would develop the pipeline infrastructure necessary to deliver it and other renewable fuels throughout the state.

Green’s own statement on Tuesday touted JERA’s proposal a “transformative overhaul of our electrical grid and a tangible step to move Hawai‘i off its historic dependence on oil.”

Nonetheless, the proposal isn’t a done deal. The state Public Utilities Commission must approve the project, along with several other state and federal agencies, many of which will require public outreach. JERA predicts the permitting phase alone won’t be completed until mid-2028.

 For the latest news of Hawai‘i, sign up 

Untitled design 3 1 16x9

<title>Japanese energy company proposes natural gas plant in Kapolei</title>

Gov. Josh Green announced a proposal by Japanese energy producer JERA to partner with the state.

Japanese energy company proposes natural gas plant in Kapolei

Adam manalo camp

Adam Keawe Manalo-Camp

Viewpoints

Hawaii History

This past January 17, marches unfolded across two island homelands, separated by thousands of miles, yet shaped over time by similar attempts by foreign powers to determine their futures.

In both places, these communities rejected the premise that their homelands could be treated as strategic assets rather than places of kinship, memory, culture, and political authority.

In Nuuk, the capital of Kalaallit Nunaat (Greenland), thousands gathered in what the Naalakkersuisut (the Greenlandic government) described as the largest protest in the country’s history. Participants carried the red and white Erfalasorput flag and chanted, “Kalaallit Nunaat, Kalaallit pigaat.” Translated, it means “Greenland belongs to Greenlanders.”

The demonstration followed renewed and aggressive annexation rhetoric from U.S. political leaders, framed through the lens of national security, Arctic competition and tariffs. Greenlandic officials have made it clear that they vehemently oppose annexation of their country to the United States.

Meanwhile, in Honolulu, in a pair of back-to-back marches held on January 16 and 17, thousands of Kānaka Maoli marched from Maunaʻala to ʻIolani Palace to mark 133 years since the overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom on January 17, 1893.

 recalls the intersection of economic pressure, political maneuvering, and the enforcement of U.S. Marines that ended the constitutional government of Queen Liliʻuokalani.

Kalaallit Nunaat means “the land of the Kalaallit” and is the Indigenous name for Greenland. The Kalaallit are Inuit and they comprise about 90% of the population. The name reflects political and demographic reality. Kalaallit Nunaat is an Indigenous homeland with its own parliament, electorate, and language. Greenlandic Inuit is the sole official language of the country, and cultural revitalization efforts have been central to contemporary public life.

Danish colonization of Kalaallit Nunaat began in 1721. Trade, missionization, and administrative governance gradually reshaped Inuit society. In the 20th century, colonial policy emphasized modernization and integration.

In 1951, Danish authorities removed Inuit children from their families to be educated in Denmark in what later became known as the “Little Danes” project. Inuit women were also subjected to coercive birth control measures in what is now referred to as the “Spiral Case.” These initiatives were framed as “reform.” Their consequences included family separation and intergenerational harm that remain within living memory.

Since 1979, Kalaallit Nunaat has exercised home rule and expanded self-government while temporarily remaining within the Kingdom of Denmark. Across party lines, there is broad support for eventual independence. Debate centers on economic sustainability and institutional capacity, but independence is widely discussed as a matter of when, not if.

U.S. interest in Kalaallit Nunaat is not new. American officials discussed its annexation in the 19th century during the same period of territorial expansion that included the U.S. “purchase” of Alaska from Russia and its growing interest in Puʻuloa (Pearl Harbor).

Some proposals imagined exchanging Kalaallit Nunaat for Mindanao during the American colonial period in the Philippines. After World War II, the Truman administration formally offered Denmark one hundred million dollars in gold for the island. Denmark declined.

Kalaallit Nunaat’s geographic position between North America and Europe placed it within Cold War defense planning. That logic shaped the construction of Thule Air Base, now Pituffik Space Base, and the forced relocation of Inuit families in the early 1950s.

It also shaped the response to the 1968 crash of a U.S. bomber carrying nuclear weapons near Thule, which dispersed radioactive contamination around the settlement of Narssassuk. That episode remains a historical flashpoint.

Recent arguments in Washington, D.C., once again emphasize tariffs and Kalaallit Nunaat’s strategic value. For many in Hawaiʻi, the structure of those arguments is familiar.

In the late 19th century, U.S. tariff policy destabilized the Hawaiian Kingdom. The McKinley Tariff of 1890 altered Hawaiʻi’s economic position and strained the Reciprocity Treaty. Within three years, U.S. Marines landed in Honolulu.

By 1898, Hawaiʻi, and particularly Puʻuloa, was described as “indispensable” to American military supremacy in the Pacific. Comparable political rhetoric today characterizes Kalaallit Nunaat as essential to Arctic security and geopolitical competition for the U.S.

The prioritization of strategic value over local consent persists in Hawaiʻi today.

At the Pōhakuloa Training Area, the military controls 133,000 acres of conservation-zoned land which it uses for training. Pōhakuloa sits above an aquifer and lies within a landscape dense with ancestral trails, burials, and cultural sites, yet its cultural and ecological importance is treated as peripheral to its value for U.S. national defense.

Across the Pacific, similar thinking continues to shape policy in Guåhan (Guam), the Marshall Islands, and Okinawa, where Indigenous lands host substantial U.S. military infrastructure. U.S. expansion beyond the North American continent is framed as a military necessity and as an economic benefit to impacted communities. Their consent becomes secondary and any resistance is reframed as ingratitude.

For many Kānaka Maoli, the renewed discussion of the annexation of Kalaallit Nunaat – regardless of what its Indigenous population wants – generates a visceral reaction based on historical resonance.

The Kūʻē Petitions of 1897, signed by 95% of Native Hawaiians who were living at that time, remain documentary evidence that annexation did not reflect the will of the Hawaiian people. The annual ʻOnipaʻa March is a reminder of this continued resistance.

In Kalaallit Nunaat, protesters are stating their position with equal clarity. When they declare that Kalaallit Nunaat belongs to the Kalaallit, they are asserting political authority over their homeland in defiance of the rhetoric that attempts to diminish their land and sovereignty as nothing more than a foreign country’s strategic military asset.

This article is reprinted with permission from 

OHA's Ka Wai Ola newspaper: "Threats to Greenland recall the annexation of Hawaiʻi" by 

, in its March 2026 issue, Vol. 43 No. 3. Read more at 

For the latest news of Hawai‘i, sign up 

Unsplash Greenland Flag

<title>Community Voices: Threats to Greenland recall the annexation of Hawaiʻi</title>

In Nuuk, the capital of Kalaallit Nunaat (Greenland), thousands gathered in what the Naalakkersuisut (the Greenlandic government) described as the largest protest in the country’s history. Similarly, Kanaka Maoli march annually to mark 133 years since the overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom. For both island homelands, foreign powers attempt to determine their futures.

Community Voices: Threats to Greenland recall the annexation of Hawaiʻi

Kelsey Kukaua Medeiros Headshot

Kelsey Kukaua Medeiros

Aloha Spirit

 hit the Islands this past weekend, with another storm forecasted this week. Aloha State Daily has compiled a list of organizations and causes to consider giving to for assistance with recovery services and damages affecting community.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"italic"}],"text":"GoFundMe"}]

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Help couple that lost house on Maui"}]

 lost their home in Wailuku. According to GoFundMe, “Donations will go toward immediate needs such as safe temporary housing, replacing essential belongings, debris removal, and beginning the process of rebuilding their lives.”

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Help Waialua farmers rebuild"}]

GoFundMe Organizer Kristy Kono said her family, who take care of 2.12 acres in Waialua, was “facing unimaginable loss.”

“Overnight, their farmland in Waialua went from knee-high water to neck-high, submerging about 40 acres and wiping out everything they had worked so hard to build,” she wrote. “Farming is not just their livelihood —it’s their passion and their only source of income. They have always grown just enough to meet their needs and serve local families, but now, everything they have steadily built is gone.”

Funds raised will go toward purchasing essential supplies and “

help them get back on their feet and continue their mission of bringing fresh, local food to our island families

Separately, farmers who rent a 1-acre lot “lost everything – their crops, equipment and the materials they need to keep going," per GoFundMe.

“We understand that many people were also impacted by this flood, and our hearts go out to everyone,” wrote their daughter. “We appreciate all the love and support — every single penny is greatly appreciated. If you’re not able to help financially, sharing or praying will also be a huge help.”

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Wahiawā resident’s heart for homeless"}]

This GoFundMe will go toward homeless outreach efforts on O

ahu. The organizer plans “to hand out warm foods, dry clothing, help with laundry expenses, provide tarps to keep belongings dry moving forward, etc.”

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Support from Kentucky native"}]

 to those impacted by these terrible floods." 

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"italic"}],"text":"Food & Shelter"}]

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"American Red Cross"}]

On Saturday, Red Cross was “urgently” recruiting volunteers for the remaining shelters on Maui Lāna‘i, Molokai and the Big Island, per a March 15 statement from the organization. Volunteers provide safe shelter, food, water, disaster health services and emotional support.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"The Salvation Army"}]

The Salvation Army Hawaiian & Pacific Islands Division deployed its Emergency Disaster Services team, serving hundreds of meals to first responders and residents taking shelter over the weekend.

“As long as there is community need, we’ll be there,” said Maj. Troy Trimmer, divisional commander for The Salvation Army Hawaiian & Pacific Islands, in a Saturday statement. “Our corps officers, staff, and volunteers continue to stand alongside our first responders and community members needing assistance.”

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Foodbank"}]

Hawai‘i Foodbank works with a network of more than 250 hunger-relief partners on O‘ahu and Kaua‘i, along with affiliate food banks The Food Basket and Maui Food Bank, to provide food assistance to the state.

More resources on disaster preparedness are available at 

hawaiifoodbank.org/what-we-do/disaster-preparedness-hawaii.

EDITOR’S NOTE: This is not an exhaustive list. If we missed something that matters to you, please email us.

For the latest news of Hawai‘i, sign up 

Salvation Army Hilo 2

<title>Ways to help with storm recovery</title>

Looking to give back to organizations and causes across the Islands impacted by severe weather? Here’s some ideas spanning from GoFundMe campaigns for Waialua farmers to campaigns for local nonprofits.

Ways to help with storm recovery

Christian Shimabuku Headshot

Christian Shimabuku

Sports

Before the University of Hawai‘i men's basketball team embarked on its 2025-2026 campaign, Isaac "Big Fish" Johnson sat in a hot tub with some of his teammates. Life after basketball came up, and it was there that Johnson shared this particular season would probably be it for him as far as organized hoops is concerned. 

Following a two-year church mission in Ohio, Johnson began his collegiate career at the University of Oregon in 2021. The 7-foot center from Utah arrived as the No. 61 ranked player nationally in his high school class, according to ESPN Recruiting. But college ball was a different story at first, and Johnson played in just 14 games as a true freshman. He then transferred to Utah State, where he started 31 games in the 2023-2024 season but saw his role diminish the following year. 

With one year of eligibility remaining, Johnson hit the NCAA transfer portal one last time, landing with UH. The plan was to play for the Rainbow Warriors for one year, then get a job while supporting his wife, Audrah, an outside hitter for Chaminade's women's volleyball team. 

Johnson has started all 28 games for the Rainbow Warriors thus far, quickly earning fan favorite status. Whether it's an electrifying dunk, swished 3-pointer or an emphatic block, fans can be seen motioning their arms and performing a chomping motion in support of Big Fish.

Each game with the 'Bows has reminded Johnson why he began playing in the first place. He loves the sport. And he has a lot more to give to it. 

"Being here has ignited that fire back in me, and it feels amazing to be in that position and to have that love rekindled," Johnson said. "It's been pretty awesome.

"It's been consistently throughout the season, there's been moments and being a part of this team, meeting with this coaching staff that treats us like adults and like real human beings instead of a number. The community loves us so deeply. There's just so many little things that have helped grow it."

While being a member of the team has reignited Johnson's love for the sport, his play on the court has revived a program that was coming off a disappointing 2024-2025 season. The Rainbow Warriors went 15-16 overall and 7-13 in Big West play, missing the conference tournament entirely. Heading into their final set of home games in 2025-2026, the Rainbow Warriors are 21-7 overall and 13-5 in conference games. 

If the Rainbow Warriors were to defeat UC Riverside on Thursday and Long Beach State on Saturday, coupled with a UC Irvine loss on Thursday or Saturday, the 'Bows would be crowned Big West regular season champions. Two wins, regardless of UC Irvine's results, would guarantee the 'Bows a top 2 seed and valuable double bye in the conference tournament, which runs from March 11-14 in Henderson, Nev. 

Hawai‘i head coach Eran Ganot believes Johnson has a true shot at winning conference Player of the Year. His impact on the court is felt well beyond his 13.7 points and 5.8 rebounds per game. 

"Big Fish is up there for Player of the Year, and he's a guy who's come from winning programs, but now he's had to have the task of being a more impactful player on a winning program," Ganot said. "He's done that, and it's been fun to watch. And I think he has a bright future."

Following Saturday's home finale against Long Beach State, Johnson will be one of six seniors honored following the game, along with Harry Rouhliadeff, Gytis Nemeikša, Hunter Erickson, Dre Bullock and Yacine Toumi. Point guard Tanner Cuff is also listed as a senior but is expected back for the 2026-2027 campaign after a knee injury sidelined him in November. 

"Just to see all those guys smile, this is what they wanted, and they wanted to play for a good program, to have success as a team," Ganot said of his senior class. "Then the added benefit of doing it in this state with this fanbase, I couldn't thank them more. I always say this, and I'll say it again over the course of the week, people ask me about the seniors. Hire them. They're guaranteed. And number two, just very grateful for them, thankful that they're in our lives."

The Rainbow Warriors will head to Nevada for the Big West tournament next week, where they'll aim to punch a ticket to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 10 years. Regardless of how the season ends, it won't be the end of Johnson's playing career. 

"Life is short. This is for Fish or anybody, whatever path they choose: Do what you love, where you love, with the people you love, and do it at a place where you can improve. Development's really important," Ganot said. "For me as a coach, you could see the joy, because he loves Hawai‘i, he loves his team and he loves the game, and so that's a big part of why he's improved, because he's happy, and that's a credit to the people of Hawai‘i, the University of Hawai‘i, his teammates, himself. Everybody deserves to be happy."

Isaac Johnson 030426

<title>Hawai‘i men's basketball standout Isaac "Big Fish" Johnson rediscovers his love for the…</title>

Johnson, a senior transfer and one of the team's star players, has been one of the biggest keys in the program's turnaround in the 2025-2026 season.

Hawai‘i men's basketball standout Isaac "Big Fish" Johnson rediscovers his love for the game in Islands

A proposal to increase liquor taxes in the state has brewers and barkeeps concerned.

 this legislative session that propose various increases to the state liquor tax. One of those bills, 

, appears to be moving forward, with the House Committee on Commerce and Consumer Protection voting Tuesday to give the bill a favorable recommendation, despite concerns by liquor producers.

As written, the bill deletes the current state law definitions of “liquor,” “beer,” “distilled spirits,” “wine” and the like. Instead, alcohol would be taxed based on alcohol-by-volume quantities, setting higher tax rates for beverages with higher alcohol content.

At the same time, the tax rates for various alcohol categories would still increase. Currently, the state liquor tax for non-draft beer is 93 cents per gallon; for draft beer, it is 54 cents per gallon. Under HB 1991, the tax for beverages with 9.9% ABV or lower — which includes many, although not all, beers — would be $1 per gallon, a nearly 50% increase for draft beers.

Other tiers would follow suit. Drinks between 10% and 15% ABV would be taxed at $1.75 per gallon, drinks between 16% and 40% at $6 per gallon and any higher ABV beverages at $6.50 per gallon.

The bill notes that the last time the liquor tax was increased was in 1998, and, thanks to general inflation and cost increases in the intervening decades, the state has lost out on millions in potential tax revenues.

, people bought more than 25 million gallons of non-draft beer in the state between July 2020 and June 2021, collectively spending nearly $260 million. At the current tax rate, that would generate about $23 million in tax revenues; assuming all those gallons were less than 10% ABV, the seven-cent tax hike would generate an additional $2 million in revenue.

With the 46-cent tax increase for draft beers under 10% ABV, the increase is more dramatic. People in Hawai‘i bought nearly 1.6 gallons of non-draft beer between July 2020 and June 2021, spending just over $19 million. Again assuming all those gallons were below 10% ABV, the tax revenues from those sales would nearly double from a little over $860,000 to $1.6 million.

 by the University of Hawai‘i estimated that a hypothetical flat 10-cent liquor tax increase across all categories of alcoholic beverages could increase the state’s annual tax revenues by more than $57 million.

However, that paper also estimated that a 10-cent tax increase would also decrease alcohol consumption in the state by 6.9%. It states that Maryland, which increased its own alcohol sales tax from 6% to 9% in 2011 saw a nearly 4% decrease in alcohol sales within 18 months, as well as reductions in the rates of underage drinking, sexually transmitted diseases, and other behaviors.

On the other hand, several people warned the committee on Tuesday that the tax hike would be devastating to their businesses.

Steve Haumschild, co-founder of Kailua-based Lanikai Brewing, told the committee that the bill could be “an industry killer” for smaller brewers.

“We already pay some of the highest tax rates in the nation already,” Haumschild said. “And I understand that this is an old taxation, but this is stuff that could easily close down and prevent new businesses from opening here.”

Garrett Marrero, CEO of Maui Brewing, said the ABV-based tax hike would be a wild shift away from any other tax structure in the nation, and speculated that local brewers would have to have their products’ ABV tested by a third party, likely based on the Mainland, at additional cost.

Marrero also referenced another paper: a 2017 cost comparability study for the Brewers of Europe trade association, which found that the cost-per-liter to manufacture beer is greater than that for other liquors. With draft beer receiving a nearly doubled tax under the bill, profit margins for local brewers would shrink further, while larger-scale out-of-state producers would be able to more readily absorb the cost.

Marrero and Haumschild both recommended that any liquor tax law include an exemption for small producers. Haumschild suggested that a brewer that manufactures no more than 60,000 barrels a year not be included in the tax increase.

Marrero also recommended the passage of 

, a measure that would create a “small craft producer pub licensee” tax class that would enjoy lower tax rates than the current liquor taxes — a $1.98 tax per gallon on distilled spirits, far below the current $5.98 per gallon, for example.  That tax class would only apply for producers manufacturing liquor below specified quantities.

SB 2912 has been referred to Senate committees, but no hearing has been scheduled on the measure.

The committee on Tuesday, meanwhile, voted unanimously in favor of HB 1991, albeit with some minor amendments. While one of those amendments would include a 60,000-barrel small producer tax class, it would also hike taxes for high-ABV liquors even further — $13 per gallon for liquor above 40% ABV.

With one committee’s favorable recommendation, HB 1991 is still referred to the House Finance Committee, which has yet to schedule any hearings on the matter.

Aloha State Daily reached out to Rep. Scot Matayoshi, co-introducer of the bill and chair of the Commerce and Consumer Protection Committee, for further comment.

Aloha Beer Co Red Zeppelin glass 011326

<title>Liquor tax hike advances, despite brewers' concerns</title>

Proposal to tax booze by ABV raises rates, eyebrows.

Liquor tax hike advances, despite brewers' concerns

Daniel Farr 02

Daniel Farr

Hawaiʻi County is launching a review of more than $33 million in homelessness grants after questions were raised about fairness, equity and whether the funding is reducing visible street homelessness.

The County Council’s Governmental Operations and External Affairs Committee unanimously advanced a resolution last week requesting a performance audit of the Office of Housing and Community Development’s Homelessness and Housing Fund. The resolution, which targets the five-year program created in 2022, now moves to the full council for consideration. 

Council Chair Holeka Inaba told Aloha State Daily the audit, expected this fall, will examine how grants are awarded, whether funds are spent according to approved budgets and whether programs are achieving their intended goals. He said the review will also address concerns that some nonprofits received multiple awards with overlapping costs, including insurance and utilities, which may function as general overhead despite the county’s 10% administrative cap.

Housing Administrator Kehaulani Costa told ASD the Office of Housing and Community Development supports the audit and plans to work closely with the County Auditor’s Office throughout the process.

“We view this as an opportunity to better understand the scope of the county’s homelessness-related investments and to ensure transparency, accountability and continuous improvement,” she told ASD.

Inaba said the council wants to better understand whether the funding is making a visible difference in the community.

“For community and for us on the council, it’s what you’re seeing when you’re out there on the streets. Your numbers can say whatever it wants, it can say we have 200 more homeless in town or 200 less, but what are we seeing on the streets?” Inaba told ASD.

Inaba also raised concerns about the current grant process, saying organizations can, in some cases, receive funding simply by proposing to help people experiencing homelessness, even if the services do not fully align with community needs.

The council is exploring a new approach that would set specific service requirements, such as operating a 24/7, year-round shelter with a set number of beds and a resource center, and direct funding to organizations that meet those requirements.

Inaba said the audit will help ensure public funds are used equitably and effectively and could influence whether the county continues funding programs beyond the current 2027 deadline.

“I don’t anticipate us seeing a bill that would stop it anytime sooner because there’s already a hard stop,” he told ASD.

Even if the audit shows progress and the program is extended past 2027, Inaba said a deadline should remain in place so future councils continue to closely monitor the funding.

Councilwoman Jenn Kagiwada told ASD the review will help determine the most effective way to address homelessness at the county level. Kagiwada is the council’s only member with a social services background.

Councilman Dennis Onishi told ASD he has concerns about the program’s structure and reporting, saying the council currently has limited information about nonprofit performance and whether funding is effectively supporting families experiencing homelessness.

Onishi said the legislation authorizing the fund does not clearly define how grants should be awarded or evaluated.

“I feel the council should suspend the funding and reconstruct the legislation to fit the purpose of what the council would like to see happen,” Onishi told ASD.

He added that some funding could also be redirected to support first responders and security, as suggested during the original vote.

Lawmakers also raised concerns about visible homelessness in parks, vandalism and safety risks for children. Inaba said enforcement by the Department of Parks and Recreation, with support from police, is critical to addressing those issues.

The most recent funding round, approved in December, awarded 

 to 12 projects, with an additional $5.1 million supporting urgent initiatives such as safe overnight sleeping programs, emergency shelters and permanent housing with supportive services. Twenty-three applications requested more than $18 million, far exceeding available funds.

Since 2022, the Homelessness and Housing Fund has awarded more than 

 to nonprofits across Hawaiʻi Island. Top recipients include Hope Services Hawaiʻi Inc., which received nearly $10 million for long-term housing and support programs across the island; Bridge House Inc., which received $430,000 for recovery and family housing in Kona; the Big Island Substance Abuse Council, which received roughly $800,000 for detox, stabilization and family programs; and Neighborhood Place of Puna, which received $400,000 for youth and family street outreach.

Programs funded include street outreach, transitional living, permanent supportive housing and behavioral health services.

The Homelessness and Housing Fund, authorized through 2027, receives at least $9 million annually from residential property tax revenues. The audit is expected to provide lawmakers and the public with a clearer picture of whether the county’s homelessness funding is being spent effectively and producing visible results.

Daily Smile: Wednesday, March 18, 2026

ASD Staff

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Daily Smile: Wednesday, March 18, 2026

Authors

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