Opinion
Talking story about values.
The staff reporters at Aloha State Daily have a clear mission on the news side of the house: to tell you what happened, not what to think or how to feel about what happened. Here in the opinion section, we want to talk story about values — what we think Hawai‘i should do, or should not do, and why. This is where we welcome informed debate and where people can argue for their perspective.
Community Voices: Constitutional expenditure controls
Over the past 50 years, the Hawai‘i state Legislature has steadily whittled away at constitutional controls over its spending.
Tom YamachikaAugust 04, 2025
Community Voices: New cottage food rules can unleash innovation in Hawai‘i
The state Department of Health is about to release new rules to make it easier for cottage food entrepreneurs to sell their products.
Keliʻi Akina & Ph.D.August 01, 2025
Community Voices: Career Connections launches Hawai‘i high school students into the trades
Interns make $15 an hour while learning essential skills to become carpenters.
Andrew PereiraJuly 28, 2025
Community Voices: Pay for no work
In Hawai‘i's broken civil service system, hundreds of state workers are getting paid to do nothing while investigations into their job performance linger.
Tom YamachikaJuly 28, 2025
Community Voices: Hawai‘i climate policy going overboard on cruise ships
The new climate roadmap from the state Department of Transportation calls for reducing cruise ship visitors to Hawai‘i by 2030 and possibly eliminating them completely by 2040.
Keliʻi Akina & Ph.D.July 21, 2025
Community Voices: Nonprofit Blankety Blank bill
In a rush to help nonprofits that are losing federal funding, the Hawai‘i state Legislature pulled together Senate Bill 933, now Act 310 of 2025, putting $50 million in the hands of a four-person committee that will meet in secret. And the Legislature could not have known what it was voting for — this was yet another Blankety Blank bill devoid of financial details.
Tom YamachikaJuly 21, 2025
Community Voices: Permitting progress prevails
Starting in 2026, new laws signed by Gov. Josh Green go into place to expedite home construction throughout the Islands.
Keliʻi Akina & Ph.D.July 16, 2025
Community Voices: SNAP cliffs are coming
The federal government will have fully funded the cost of food for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program through 2027. But now that the federal One Big Beautiful Bill Act is law, that is going to change — potentially putting Hawaiʻi at least $36 million in the hole.
Tom YamachikaJuly 15, 2025
Community Voices: Built through brotherhood and meaningful moments
A personal essay by Makawao Eagle Scout Noah Kalehuawehe, who recently received the 2025 John Henry Felix Leadership Through Service Award.
Noah KalehuaweheJuly 12, 2025
Community Voices: Why I think the governor and Legislature deserve praise
The Hawaiʻi State Legislature has concluded the 2025 regular session, still more work to be done
Keliʻi Akina & Ph.D.July 11, 2025
Community Voices: Ending 'the turf war' around building schools
Until HB422 gets passed into law, the Hawai'i Department of Education has been urging lawmakers to spend general fund money on building new local schools.
Tom YamachikaJuly 07, 2025
Community Voices: Twenty years of nickels
You buy your bottled beverage. You pay your five cent deposit. What happens next is a mess, and has been for decades.
Tom YamachikaJune 30, 2025
Community Voices: ʻRespect and teamworkʻ drives these Hawaiʻi auto technicians
Find out why these three Servco Pacific Inc. employees got into the automotive industry and what keeps them servicing some of Hawaiʻi’s most popular car brands.
Mike Agcanas & Garrett Leong and Jarrett SilvaJune 27, 2025
Community Voices: That Dam Special Fund
With the help of the Hawai‘i state legislature, the state Department of Land and Natural Resources turned an appropriation into a seemingly permanent special fund. It may be for a good cause, but it's not how special funds are supposed to work under the state constitution.
Tom YamachikaJune 23, 2025
Community Voices: A blue wave is helping rock the boat on Jones Act reform
Bipartisan support is growing in Washington and among different states to update the Jones Act and reduce the cost of shipping.
Keliʻi Akina & Ph.D.June 20, 2025
Community Voices: How local nonprofits can practically support each other's mission
Have you ever thought about hiring a nonprofit for professional services? Maybe it's time to, especially if you're a nonprofit reliant on donations. Here's one way we're turning business expenses into "a built-in impact multiplier."
Ed NishiokaJune 19, 2025
Community Voices: Intent to Veto
Among the 19 bills on Gov. Josh Green's veto list are two concerning taxation. Did you know that Hawai‘i still offers certain tax credits for sugar cane — and that in 2025, there are still people interested in them? A bill to eliminate such credits is among the possible vetos.
Tom YamachikaJune 16, 2025
Community Voices: ‘Diversified ag’ rhetoric often doesn’t match reality
Hawai‘i's farmers often feel like their crops have to fight their way through a thick blanket of regulations, but there's some good news on that front from Maui County.
Keliʻi Akina & Ph.D.June 11, 2025
Community Voices: The Unseen Stopper Committees
The recently concluded Legislative session highlighted an undemocratic trend at the Legislature — finance committees gaining power over legislation of all kinds, whether there's a financial impact or not.
Tom YamachikaJune 09, 2025
Community Voices: Bills from the 2025 legislative session that will most impact Native Hawaiians
The Office of Hawaiian Affairs aims to improve the well-being of Native Hawaiians through advocacy, research, funding and more. Here is a breakdown of the measures that would advance its mission, if approved by Gov. Josh Green.
Michèle McCoyJune 03, 2025
Community Voices: Light at the End
While previous laws put a 15-year statute of limitations on uncollected tax debt, the state Department of Taxation had been finding legal workarounds to chase the money past that point. Act 68, recently signed into law by Gov. Josh Green, requires the state Department of Taxation to release tax debt that it hasn't been able to collect.
Tom YamachikaJune 02, 2025
Community Voices: No, we don’t have low property taxes
Property tax bills are based on assessed values, and Hawai‘i has extremely high property values. So when you calculate the actual money owed, we’re closer to the middle of the pack. In addition, Hawai‘i is the only state that does not use property taxes to fund public education, so of course you would expect its county property tax rates to be relatively low.
Keliʻi Akina & Ph.D.May 30, 2025
Community Voices: Legislators ignore rules for special funds
The state Office of the Auditor analyzed 86 proposed special and revolving funds proposed by the Legislature in this past session. Not a single one of them met the legal criteria for establishing such funds.
Tom YamachikaMay 26, 2025
Community Voices: Cleaning up Hawai‘i’s permitting mess
A new report from the University of Hawai‘i Economic Research Organization shows that Hawai‘i permit delays in 2024 were at some of the worst levels ever. But I’m glad to report policy changes at the state and county levels that could make a real dent in these delays.
Keliʻi Akina & Ph.D.May 22, 2025