By Charles “Chip” Fletcher for Honolulu Star-Advertiser

The climate crisis is no longer a distant concern — it’s here, now, reshaping daily life across Hawaii. In 2024, the islands endured record-breaking heat, persistent drought, stronger storms and rising seas. These events are not anomalies; they are part of a pattern that signals an escalating emergency. Without bold and immediate investment in climate resilience, Hawaii’s economy, environment, public health and cultural heritage face mounting threats.

By Emma Caires for Hawaiʻi Public Radio

Environmental groups are urging lawmakers to pass a measure that would increase taxes on tourists and fund climate initiatives.

Two bills still alive this legislative session, SB1396 and HB504, consider raising the 10.25% transient accommodations tax by 1 percentage point.

HB504 would also charge cruise ships $20 per passenger when they dock in Hawaiʻi. Cruise ships do not currently pay any transient accommodations tax.

The Care for Āina Now Coalition hopes this increase will help offset the reported $1.4 billion needed to fight climate change over the next five years.

By Climate Advisory Team

On April 16, the Climate Advisory Team (CAT) hosted a webinar about legislative progress on key climate and disaster resilience bills. The CAT members were joined by Will Kane, Senior Advisor to Governor Josh Green, M.D., who shared information about the legislative process and important bills that advance disaster resilience. 

By Caitlin Thompson for Honolulu Civil Beat

In the year following the devastating fires on Maui, the island’s residents became increasingly worried about the impacts of climate change.

More than three-quarters of Maui residents said they were concerned about global warming in 2024, according to a national climate survey conducted annually by Yale University — a six percentage point increase from 2022.

Despite the heightened concern, data shows a disconnect statewide between awareness of climate change and people’s perception that it will touch their lives directly. 

By Climate Advisory Team

The Climate Advisory Team (CAT) invites you to a webinar about legislative progress on key climate and disaster resilience bills on Wednesday, April 16 at 10:00 a.m. CAT members, joined by Will Kane, Senior Advisor to Governor Josh Green, will provide an update on legislation that addresses the Climate Advisory Team’s policy recommendations. 

During this webinar, the CAT will also share information from the actuarial analysis commissioned by the CAT and how individuals and organizations can participate in the remainder of the legislative session. Following the presentation, attendees can ask questions during a Q&A session with the team. Pre-registration is now open, and a recording of the webinar will be available on the CAT website following the event.

By Climate Advisory Team

Hawaiʻi’s most socially vulnerable communities live in areas where the risks of wildfires and floods are among the highest in the state, according to data analysis commissioned by the Hawaiʻi Climate Advisory Team. The analysis was conducted by Guy Carpenter, a global risk and reinsurance firm, and measures how susceptible communities are to the adverse impacts of natural disasters based on their socioeconomic status, household characteristics and other key indicators, using FEMA’s National Risk Index. 

Socially vulnerable communities face higher rates of poverty and high housing cost burdens, have more households with elderly people, children or people living with disabilities, and are from racial or ethnic minority groups, among other factors. These communities live closest to the edge on a daily basis and are most at risk of being pushed out of Hawaiʻi.

The findings reveal that several vulnerable communities live in areas that face significant disaster risks, specifically risks of wildfires and floods:

By Dan Nakaso for Honolulu Star-Advertiser

Tourists would collectively pay millions of dollars more each year to stay in Hawaii hotels and on cruise ships to help the state address climate change and reduce the risk of future wildfires under a bill approved Tuesday by the full House.

The latest version of Senate Bill 1396 offers no specific recommendation for how much Hawaii’s transient accommodations tax would raise, an issue that likely will be resolved in a joint House- Senate conference committee in the final days of the legislative session before its scheduled adjournment May 2.

But each 1% increase in the room tax for hotel nights has been projected to generate another $80 million annually, with another $24 million coming from passenger stays aboard cruise ships.

By Honolulu Star-Advertiser Editorial Board

Gov. Josh Green has asked the state Legislature to approve three methods to fund state action to address environmental stressors that include overtourism, global warming and rising seas.

» The first, via Senate Bill 1395, has been deferred (deep-sixed) by the House Water and Land Committee. It would "sweep," or divert, all interest earned from the state's rainy day fund - about $60 million annually — to the general fund, and as amended, required the governor to request funding for specific projects to address climate change impacts each year. This solid proposal provides a direct and accessible source of funding for urgent needs, and should not be allowed to disappear from this year's legislative slate. It's now the responsibility of legislative leadership to include this provision in a living bill concerning environmental funding, and to ensure it becomes law.

By Climate Advisory Team

Mahalo nui to those who have attended hearings and submitted testimony in support of Climate Advisory Team priority bills this legislative session. Your time, effort and investment in supporting these bills are greatly appreciated, and we encourage you to continue using your voice. Five CAT priority bills are still alive this legislative session and need your support:

By The Sunshine Blog for Honolulu Civil Beat

Getting the green light: Could this be the session that Hawaiʻi lawmakers enact some sort of visitor-impact fee to help pay for the costs of climate change on our precious ʻāina? On Thursday, two House committees approved bills to do exactly that. But session is far from over, and “green fees” died the past two sessions.

Senate Bill 1396, which is one of the green fee bills proposed by Gov. Josh Green’s Climate Advisory Team, would assess the transient accommodations tax on cruise ship cabins. It would be based on the total time the cruise ship is docked at any port in the state.

By Daryl Huff for Hawaiʻi News Now

The governor’s proposal to increase tourist taxes to pay for fire prevention and environmental projects is moving along at the Legislature.

But the worry about federal funding cuts could lead to the money being used for other things.

At this stage, lawmakers seem ready to raise the transient accommodations tax. The question is how will they spend the extra money.

By Ashley Mizuo for Hawaiʻi Public Radio

Major initiatives that would have created a dedicated funding stream for climate resiliency are in jeopardy at the state Legislature.

Two House committees deferred Gov. Josh Green’s bill that would have used interest from the state’s $1.5 billion reserve fund for climate resiliency.

HPR’s Ashley Mizuo reports that uncertainty regarding federal funding is pushing lawmakers to make tough decisions.

By Climate Advisory Team

The Climate Advisory Team (CAT) has released an updated version of its policy paper on climate disaster resilience, recovery and funding. The following revisions were made:

By Ashley Mizuo for Hawaiʻi Public Radio

About $1.4 billion — that’s how much the state will need to address climate resiliency over the next five years, according to the governor’s Climate Action Team.

Three measures still alive at the Legislature would collect funds for climate resilience – two of which would again increase the tax levied on hotels.

“Climate disasters will happen in Hawaiʻi, will continue to happen, and they are increasingly going to cost us dearly,” said Denise Antolini, an environmental lawyer and member of the Gov. Josh Green’s Climate Action Team.

Antolini emphasized that it’s a crucial time to create and put money into the Climate Mitigation and Resiliency Special Fund.

By Chris Benjamin, Denise Antolini, Kāwika Riley, Gwen Yamamoto Lau

Hawaiʻi is at the forefront of the climate crisis. Rising sea levels and temperatures, stronger hurricanes and rainstorms, and more frequent wildfires threaten our people, homes, economy, and way of life.

Tragedies like the Lahaina wildfires make it clear that disasters are not hypothetical situations, and we must act now if we want a resilient Hawaiʻi for current and future generations.

The State Legislature is considering several bills designed to reduce disaster impacts, address systemic vulnerabilities, and protect our environment and communities.

The Hawaiʻi Climate Advisory Team, convened by Gov. Josh Green to research and develop community-informed policy solutions to increase disaster resilience, urges legislators to pass these bills this legislative session:

By Honolulu Star-Advertiser Editorial Board

Hawaii, the time has come to get serious about funding state efforts for “climate mitigation and resiliency,” as the governor’s office terms it. The Legislature and governor’s office must cooperate to get a Climate Mitigation and Resiliency Special Fund up and running, and to fund it with all three of the proposals that are currently circulating: a hefty collection of interest earned on the state’s rainy day fund; an increase in the the state’s transient accommodations tax; and an admission charge for visitors at popular state attractions.

The state House has given a very preliminary approval to bills advancing two of these efforts, passing them through the House Energy and Environmental Protection Committee on the way to a make-or-break slot on the House Finance agenda.

By Dan Nakaso for the Honolulu Star-Advertiser

Gov. Josh Green’s bills to fund Hawaii’s climate change response by increasing the state’s hotel room tax and dedicating all of the interest from the $1.5 billion rainy day fund were unanimously passed out of a House committee Tuesday, but with concerns that they need “a lot of work.”

“There’s a lot of work to be done on this and the subsequent bill,” said state Rep. Nicole Lowen, who chairs the House Energy and Environmental Protection Committee, which passed House Bills 1076 and 1077 Tuesday.

By Savannah Harriman-Pote for Hawaiʻi Public Radio

The fires raging across Southern California are predicted to cause $250 billion in losses and could become the most expensive fires in U.S. history.

The devastating blazes in Los Angeles County come just months after Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton hit the southeast states. Each storm is estimated to have caused $50 billion in damages, much of which will not be covered by insurance.

Meanwhile, Hawaiʻi is still contending with the aftermath of the 2023 Maui wildfires. Gov. Josh Green said last August that the recovery effort will likely “exceed $12 billion.”

The Climate Advisory Team, convened by Green last year, is urging the state to prepare for this new reality in which climate-fueled disasters are more destructive and more frequent.

By UH News

Strategies to enhance Hawaiʻi’s resilience to climate-related disasters are the focus of a new comprehensive policy paper presented by members of the state’s Climate Advisory Team (CAT), who all have ties to the University of Hawaiʻi. The paper, which was released on January 7, emphasizes immediate actions and long-term policies to help prepare the state for future challenges.

According to a statewide survey of more than 600 Hawaiʻi residents conducted by CAT in October 2024, 71% of respondents believe that what happened in Lahaina, Maui could happen in their community, but only 39% think their community is prepared to withstand a natural disaster.

One of the paper’s top recommendations is to establish a permanent resilience office to provide the necessary leadership and coordination of a strategic, integrated approach to improve Hawaiʻi’s resilience and preparedness for climate-related disasters.

By Honolulu Star-Advertiser Editorial Board

The 2025 Hawaii Legislature’s opening day is Wednesday, but consider the session already begun, as Gov. Josh Green has a big-ticket package of requests for funding and legislation in the queue. Among them: another go at reserving a dedicated fund to pay for disaster response, infrastructure needs and environmental repair, pressing needs that have been grievously shunted aside in the past.

The difference this year is that climate change and related environmental disasters are “in your face” — intensifying and increasingly damaging, in Hawaii and worldwide, and will remain so. Disasters once thought inconceivable — such as the roaring fires that disastrously swept across portions of Los Angeles just days ago, and the drought- and storm-propelled fire that destroyed Lahaina in 2023 — make it impossible to ignore the intensifying threats.

This year, the Legislature must act, for the good of these islands — and because the cost of inaction could be immeasurable. Delaying action will not only cost more over time, it would also be an irresponsible abandonment of Hawaii’s people and environment to the risk of potential damage that can never be recovered.