Cruise ships may prevail in fight to avoid paying for tourist impact, Legislature protects income tax cuts, resists ICE crackdown in bills sent to governor at sine die, more news from all the Hawaiian Islands

Effort To Get Cruise Ships On Board With Green Fee Is Sputtering. Some legislators worry the state will lose its case to uphold cruise ship payments and with it millions in environmental funding. That leaves the state in an all-or-nothing court battle to secure the approximately $26 million in annual cruise ship payments included in the  original green fee law. Civil Beat.

HTA’s tourism management plan targets several islands with shuttle proposal. The Hawaiʻi Tourism Authority is rolling out a new statewide tourism management strategy aimed at addressing one of residents’ biggest complaints — traffic and overcrowding at tourism hot spots. KHON2.

Tax cuts preserved, immigration enforcement limited as Legislature sends final bills to Green. Hawaii taxpayers — except for the highest income earners — will continue to benefit from historic tax breaks after legislators wrapped up their 60-day session by increasing the state’s $1.6 billion “rainy day fund” by $50 million and adding new limits on county and state law enforcement cooperation with federal immigration enforcement efforts. Star-Advertiser. Civil Beat. KITV4. 

With Immigrant Protection Bills, Hawaiʻi Joins States Resisting ICE Crackdown. While fears of retaliation blocked similar bills last year, reaction to national events and realities of local enforcement eased passage of immigrant legislation in 2026. Civil Beat.

Hawaii shelters inadequate against hurricanes. With a potential El Nino cycle increasing hurricane threats to the Hawaiian Islands, state and county officials warn that most existing shelters are insufficient to protect residents beyond a Category 1 storm. Star-Advertiser.

University of Hawaii grads face uncertain job market. With University of Hawaii graduations continuing through Saturday, students preparing for life after college are weighing a job market shaped by competition, cost of living, artificial intelligence and the growing expectation that a degree alone may not be enough. Star-Advertiser.

From trucking to technocrat: How did former Maui official Keith Regan land in state’s second-highest post? Keith Regan has held several high-level leadership positions, first in Arakawa’s administration during his three terms as Maui County mayor and later in state government on Oʻahu. Maui Now.

Oahu

Council, mayor clash over proposed $41M emergency account. A dispute is emerging between the Honolulu City Council and Mayor Rick Blangiardi’s administration over a proposed provisional account intended to help fund future city emergencies following two Kona-low storms that caused more than $100 million in damage to city operations and properties. Star-Advertiser.

Detained Immigrants Could Wait 19 Months For Their Day In Honolulu Court. Asylum hearings are being curtailed, and more removal orders issued as DHS looks to reduce backlog of cases. Civil Beat.

‘Renovation Aloha’ Hosts Fined For Illegal Airbnbs In Latest Misstep. The home flippers behind the hit HGTV show “Renovation Aloha” now owe $40,000 to the city of Honolulu for operating two illegal short-term rentals through the rental site Airbnb. Civil Beat.

Kona-low recovery: ‘People are still struggling out there’.  For days after flood­waters tore through Otake Camp on Oahu’s North Shore, 77‑year‑old Grace Visaya slept in her car. Star-Advertiser.

Care home operator pleads no contest to endangerment of patient’s welfare. Ederlina U. Manzano, 64, an Oahu care home operator has pleaded no contest to criminal endangering the welfare of an incompetent person, in this case an 87-year-old woman who was under her care. Star-Advertiser.

Crews work to repair 20-inch water main break in Waimanalo. The Board of Water Supply reported a water main break on Hihimanu Street between Makulama Street and Ahiki Street. BWS officials are asking some Waimanalo residents to continue conserving water as crews work to repair a 20-inch main after discovering a second leak. Hawaii News Now.

Hawaii Island

‘It’s gonna be very devastating’: Five Hawaii Island early childhood education sites to close. The Mountain View Ka Pa‘alana Preschool -- part of a network of early childhood education programs across the state run by the nonprofit Partners in Development Foundation — is slated to close at the end of this school year, along with 16 of its other Ka Pa‘alana, Tutu and Me and other early childhood education programs, due to lack of federal funding. Tribune-Herald.

County approval sought for festival that has irritated neighbors. The Hawaii County Windward Planning Commission on Thursday will decide the fate of the “Falls on Fire” Festival — a controversial “Burning Man”-inspired gathering in Papaikou hosted by Pennsylvania video game executive Andrew Tepper. Tribune-Herald.

Hilo tsunami clock memorial to be moved? The Hilo tsunami clock — a landmark along Kamehameha Avenue at the edge of the Grand Naniloa Golf Course — might find itself with new digs as part of the Waiakea Peninsula revitalization. Tribune-Herald.

Maui

Maui Council shakeup: Chair Lee won’t seek re-election to Wailuku-Waiheʻe-Waikapū seat. Maui County Council Chair Alice Lee will not seek re-election this year. Instead, the veteran council member will support the candidacy of Marvin Moniz, a longtime state Department of Transportation airports manager, to succeed her in the Wailuku-Waiheʻe-Waikapū residency seat. Maui Now.

84 affordable senior homes proposed for historic Wailuku Mission grounds. A plan to build 84 affordable rental homes for low-income seniors on one of central Wailuku’s most historically significant properties is now open for public comment through June 8. Maui Now.

Kula resident Brad Sultzer and his wife Donna are dealing with close to $100,000 in storm damage. The Kona Low storm turned a stream into a raging river that ripped through their Polipoli Road property, along with neighboring homes and the road itself. Hawaii Public Radio

Mental health needs remain key to wildfire recovery. Survivors of the Maui wildfires still face profound emotional and psychological challenges nearly three years after the deadliest U.S. wildfire in more than a century killed more than 100 people, destroyed more than 2,200 structures and displaced an estimated 10,000 residents. Star-Advertiser.

Homeowners could get up to $100K with Molokaʻi deed restriction pilot program. A Maui County pilot program on Moloka’i is offering homeowners up to $100,000 in exchange for deed restrictions on their property. The sale of the home would be restricted for 25 years under the program. Hawaii Public Radio.

Kauai

Kaua‘i County’s DMV and Real Property offices to close for training. The Division of Motor Vehicles and the Real Property Assessment and Collections Section will be closed on Wednesday, May 13, to accommodate staff training. Kauai Now.

Luke drops reelection bid, Native Hawaiian health, homelands programs under attack, chief justice nominee Devens' campaign fundraising ties questioned, more news from all the Hawaiian Islands

Hawaii Lt. Gov. Sylvia Luke quits reelection campaign amid controversy. Lt. Gov. Sylvia Luke announced Sunday that she will not seek a second term in the Aug. 8 Democratic Party primary after being under a cloud of suspicion for months that she is the subject of a state Attorney General investigation into allegations of a powerful lawmaker accepting an illegal campaign donation. Star-Advertiser. Civil Beat.  Hawaii Public Radio.  Big Island Now.  Hawaii News Now. KHON2.  KITV4. 

Justice’s Past Political Activity Is Raising Fresh Questions For Some Senators. The nomination of Vladimir Devens to be Hawaiʻi’s next Supreme Court chief justice is scheduled for a hearing this week amid new concerns over his past leadership of a political action committee that spent hundreds of thousands of dollars to elect Gov. Josh Green. Civil Beat.

Hawaiʻi PUC Chair Appointment Advances In Senate. Governor Green’s appointment of Jon S. Itomura to serve as Chair of the Hawaiʻi Public Utilities Commission has passed committee. Big Island Video News.

Ag department criticized over policy to import goods with 'light' pest infestations. Lawmakers are questioning whether the state Department of Agriculture and Biosecurity should still lead Hawaiʻi’s efforts to manage invasive species. Hawaii Public Radio.

Bills on ICE rules, tax relief advance as Hawaii legislative session nears end. State legislators continue to move bills toward the end of session that would further tighten election and campaign laws, impose new rules for film tax credits, limit local law enforcement involvement with federal agents and roll back some promised Hawaii income tax breaks scheduled through 2031. Star-Advertiser.

Bill to ban disposable e-cigs gains ground. Senate Bill 2175 introduced by state Sen. Tim Richards (D-Kohala), would prohibit the sale or distribution of disposable electronic smoking devices in Hawaii, starting Jan. 1, due to the environmental problems they cause. Star-Advertiser.

Federal lawsuit challenges Native Hawaiian health scholarship program. A mainland advocacy group, led by former University of Pennsylvania’s medical school dean and retired kidney doctor Dr. Stanley Goldfarb, has filed a federal lawsuit challenging a decades-old scholarship program aimed at addressing health disparities among Native Hawaiians, marking the latest legal battle over programs that consider ancestry in eligibility. Star-Advertiser.

Trump proposes cut to Hawaiian Home Lands funding. Indigenous status of Native Hawaiians downplayed in bid to cut federal funds. In his proposed budget for the federal fiscal year beginning Oct. 1, Trump suggests that Native Hawaiians shouldn’t receive funding under the 1996 Native American Housing Assistance and Self Determination Act, or NAHASDA, because Hawaiians are a racial group and not a tribal nation. Star-Advertiser. Hawaii News Now. 

Cesspools increase contamination risks for areas hit hard by Kona lows. The Department of Health has identified 43,000 of 88,000 cesspools as posing a risk to water resources, with a total of 53 million gallons of raw sewage released each day.  Star-Advertiser.

Oahu

Locked Up Too Long? Legal Tactic Challenges Hawaiʻi ICE Detentions. Big jump in “habeas corpus” petitions in Honolulu mirrors nationwide trend, a reflection of climbing ICE activity under the Trump administration. Civil Beat.

Archery range project proposed for Kaimuki park put on hold. A privately proposed $850,000 Japanese archery range and training facility at the city-owned Mau‘umae Nature Park in Kaimuki has been put on hold as city officials revisit the controversial plan following strong community feedback. Star-Advertiser.

Tangled utility lines complicate Aloha Stadium project. Developers have started demolishing parts of Aloha Stadium to make way for a new $650 million development. But now they must tackle the challenge of relocating utilities.  Hawaii Public Radio.

Waialua residents urged to boil water after E. coli discovered in source wells. The Hawaii Department of Health is warning customers of the Waialua Sugar Pump 2 water system to boil water before drinking or using it after E. coli bacteria was confirmed in the system. Star-Advertiser.

Confusing Donation Drops Run By For-Profits Targeted By Hawaiʻi Lawmakers. Drop off some old clothing, furniture or appliances at the big GreenDrop trailer at Mānoa Marketplace, and you might think you’re donating to the American Red Cross. In truth, the donation mainly supports Savers Value Village Inc., a for-profit international retailer that posted $1.7 billion in net sales in 2025. Civil Beat.

Hawaii Island

Hawaii County STVRs measure advances. A Hawaii County Council committee voted unanimously April 7 to forward a controversial vacation rental bill to the county’s planning director and two planning commissions. Tribune-Herald.

‘Renovation Aloha’ Sued For Filming Native Hawaiian Bones. HGTV is releasing a re-edited version of the episode “Bones On The Big Island” after a Hawaiʻi judge ordered the original taken down. Civil Beat.

‘We’re trying to build a resilient, sustainable food system’: The Food Basket makes progress on new Hilo campus. The Food Basket is preparing to break ground on an $86 million Agricultural Innovation Park and Food Systems Campus — called Hoolako — on a 24.5-acre plot of old sugarcane land off of Ponahawai Street. Tribune-Herald.

Visitor from Kansas charged with attempted murder after snorkel tour incident. Police arrested and charged 21-year-old Avery Nissen of Overland Park, Kansas, with attempted murder following a stabbing incident Thursday aboard a boat off the Kona coast. Tribune-Herald.

Maui

Maui AIDS Foundation At Risk Of Losing Money In Trump Budget. The president’s budget denounced the nonprofit as radical while proposing the funding cuts. Civil Beat.

Hāna farmers face years of recovery for crops lost in Kona storm. In the days after the storm, farmers woke up to another kind of nightmare — dozens of trees and plants uprooted and destroyed, undercutting their livelihood and leaving them with a long-term recovery. Maui Now.

Molokaʻi invasive species crew is 'all hands on deck' in CRB emergency response. Molokaʻi’s Lori Buchanan has been working to protect the island from invasive species for over three decades, and last week, one of her worst fears came true. The first two Coconut rhinoceros beetles were detected on Molokaʻi. Hawaii Public Radio.

Kauai

Pilot cites ‘vibration’ before fatal Kauai crash. The pilot of a tour helicopter that crashed off of Kauai’s Na Pali Coast killing three people on March 26 told federal investigators the aircraft experienced “high frequency vibration” and spun around twice before going down. Star-Advertiser. Kauai Now. 

Legislative leaders push to dilute pay-to-play bill, spearfishing touted as a way of life, auto sales dip amid economic fears, more news from all the Hawaiian Islands

‘It’s a way of living’: UH study connects spearfishing to wellness, culture, community. A new study by researchers at University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa highlights how a practice deeply rooted in Hawaiian tradition promotes food security, physical activity, cultural identity and community well-being. Big Island Now.

Legislative Leaders Want Pay-To-Play Bill Significantly Watered Down. Leaders in the House and Senate want to weaken a key reform measure that had sought to ban campaign contributions from people who win substantial government contracts. Changes being pushed by the House speaker and Senate president would apply the contribution ban only to companies doing business with specific branches of government, essentially continuing the status quo for most elected officials and their campaign donors. Civil Beat.

State tax measures put renewable energy incentives in the crosshairs. State lawmakers have introduced measures this session to roll back the renewable energy credit, along with other income tax credits. Hawaii Public Radio.

Online sports betting bill is still in play at the state Legislature. Although House lawmakers passed a resolution to study legalizing gambling in Hawaiʻi, another measure that legalizes sports betting is still being considered. Hawaii Public Radio.

State youth mental health services could be updated amid funding cuts. SB 1442 would require the state’s Adolescent Mental Health Division to establish family guidance centers in different counties and offer a network of preventative, early identification, screening, diagnostic, treatment and rehabilitative services. Star-Advertiser.

Bill defining torture, making it a Class A felony, moves to final legislative votes. State House and Senate conferees quickly approved Senate Bill 281, which defines torture and would upgrade it to a Class A felony, with a maximum 20-year prison term. It’s something supporters believe will save more lives, especially those of children. Hawaii News Now.

'The darker side of paradise': Bills aimed to help sex trafficking victims. Two bills moving through the legislature this year will bring more protection and rights to victims of sex trafficking. KITV4.

State domestic abuse measure passes. A state bill intended to reinforce legal protections for domestic violence survivors has cleared its final legislative hurdle. Tribune-Herald.

State budget includes $1M for food banks amid federal cuts. The budget passed by the state Legislature this week would send $1 million to Hawaiʻi food banks over the next two years. Hawaii Public Radio.

Hawaii auto sales continued to fall this year and badly trailed the rest of the country — with an uncertain future ahead because of President Donald Trump’s economic policies, the Hawaii Automobile Dealers Association reported Wednesday. Hawaii dealers saw a drop of 1.3%, based on new vehicle registrations for the first three months of 2025. Star-Advertiser.

Hawaiian Airlines helps buffer Alaska’s $166M loss. Alaska Air Group posted weaker-than-expected first-quarter earnings Wednesday due to negative impacts of macroeconomic factors on air travel demand. Star-Advertiser.

German teens imprisoned and kicked out of Hawaii prompts fears among foreign nationals. After German teens trying to visit Hawaii were imprisoned and kicked out of the state, foreign nationals living in the islands are worried about their future. KITV4. Hawaii News Now.

Oahu

With Paramedics Spread Thin, Honolulu Dusts Off A Possible Solution. For years, understaffing and complaints of burnout at the city’s ambulance service have prompted discussion about merging it with the fire department. Civil Beat.

How Honolulu first responders keep 911 running when disaster strikes. In the face of a devastating natural disaster, the elements can potentially impact our ability to communicate. One of the most important communication methods during an emergency is the 911 dispatch system. Hawaii News Now.

‘Renovation Aloha’ Home Flippers Hit With Flurry Of Building Violations. Tristyn and Kamohai Kalama continue to renovate Oʻahu homes without proper permits even as their show seeks taxpayer subsidies. Civil Beat.

Ex-death row inmate convicted of 4 counts of sex trafficking. A 38-year-old pimp who dodged death row in Delaware was convicted in federal court in Honolulu Tuesday of sex trafficking three adult women and one minor girl. Star-Advertiser. KHON2.

Hawaii Island

Kona jury awards $2.5M in damages in sex abuse case. A Kona Circuit Court jury last week found in a civil trial that a Waimea businessman sexually abused a 12-year-old boy decades ago. The jury awarded the plaintiff $2.535 million in damages. Tribune-Herald.

Puna man faces nearly 20 charges after small arsenal discovered in Hawaiian Beaches residence. Hawai‘i County Office of the Prosecuting Attorney says Solomon Lord was arrested and charged April 16 following the execution of a search warrant on a Lalakea Street home in Hawaiian Beaches. Big Island Now. Hawaii News Now.

Maui

FEMA cracks down on Lahaina residents not paying rent. At the start of the week, nearly 200 out of around 1,000 households on FEMA’s temporary housing program had not paid rent. Now, it’s down 100 — or one in 10. KHON2.

9 projects with over 800 housing units could get funding from Maui County for construction, rising costs. Maui County wants to spend its $43.5 million Affordable Housing Fund on nine projects with 843 units of mostly rental housing in the next fiscal year, including a rental project in Kīhei with social spaces for seniors, a Nāpili apartment complex for fire-displaced families and a major housing development in Kahului with a civic center and commercial space.  Maui Now.

Bill sets aside $807.5 million for Maui wildfire claims. Hawaii legislative leaders have agreed to fully fund the state’s share of Maui wildfire damage claims slated to be paid out over four years. Star-Advertiser.

Lāna‘i Loses The Island’s Only State Mental Health Counselor — Again. Key mental health worker on Lānaʻi resigns, eroding in-person patient care and exposing the fragility of a system that depends so heavily on one worker. Civil Beat.

Kauai

New agricultural park aims to innovate, accelerate Kauaʻi farming businesses. The first phase of the proposed 87-acre agricultural park includes 20 acres of sub-licensed farm plots, four acres of agroforestry, as well as an acre of shared facilities for farmers including a washing and packing area, greenhouses, walk-in cold storage, and a meeting and business space. The land is leased from My Kapa’a, LLC – owned in part by Bette Midler. Kauai Now.

6,000 gallons of wastewater spills from Wailua Coco Palms sewer pump station. About 6,000 gallons of wastewater spilled from the Wailua Coco Palms sewer pump station April 23, contaminating some nearby properties. Kauai Now.