Advocates urge larger minimum wage hike
The Senate Committee on Labor will hold a public hearing today regarding a bill that would increase minimum wage rates throughout the state.
Hawaiʻi ranks last in participation rate for school breakfast programs
Hawaiʻi's high poverty rate means ensuring more students have access to healthy meals is imperative.
Hawaiʻi in last place for school breakfast
Fewer than 40 low-income children in Hawaiʻi ate school breakfast for every 100 that received free or reduced-price school lunch last year.
Raise the minimum wage to at least $15 an hour
In a state that has one of the highest costs of living and lowest unemployment rates, it’s time for lawmakers to put things back in balance for workers.
Half of Hawaiʻi barely gets by
Two or three jobs are not enough to provide financial stability for many local families. How can we create CHANGE?
Hawaiʻi Interagency Council on Homelessness legislative priorities: $218M
The coalition of state, county, faith-based and social services organizations is setting its priorities for the upcoming legislative session.
State’s poor face nation’s second-largest tax burden
The least wealthy income earners in Hawaiʻi pay the second most in taxes of any state in the union, according to an analysis of tax systems across the country.
Planning commission rejects short-term rental regulations
The Hawaiʻi Appleseed Center for Law & Economic Justice supports the effort to regulate short-term rentals, but opposes this measure.
Update on state's homelessness plans
A $766 million investment over a decade could house the 1,700 chronically homeless individuals across Hawaiʻi and save the state $2 billion in healthcare costs.
What new census data says—and doesn’t say—about Hawaiʻi
Incomes are slightly higher but housing costs are still among the worst in the nation.
Hawaiʻi sues for info on Airbnb owners who aren't paying taxes
The state is taking action to crack down on vacation rental owners who aren't paying taxes.
69 public schools offer free summer meals. But most kids don't claim them
Low participation in summer meal programs robs the state of more than a million dollars a month in federal reimbursements for the meals.
New Kakaʻako affordable housing rules set
The rules include a 10-year wait period for buyback, while affordable housing advocates had wanted at least 30 years.
The crusade to keep Hawaiʻi kids fed this summer
While the Department of Education provides meals on summer school campuses, other efforts are afoot to deliver food to non-school venues.
Here’s how much Hawaiʻi CEOs make compared to their employees
The gap between CEO pay and the median salaries of their employees for Hawaiʻi’s publicly-traded companies is narrower than nationwide.
National hotel group wants Hawaiʻi to tax, regulate short-term rental sites like hotels
No matter the outcome, this is a topic that affects thousands. The Hawaiʻi Appleseed report found that one out of every 24 housing units in the state is now a vacation rental.
Oʻahu residents are likely to see their rent go up
The increase is triggered by the U.S. Department of Housing, which raised the limits for affordable housing. It does mean more people will qualify for it. But it comes at a higher price.
Agreement on affordable housing
Oʻahu developers will no longer be able to buy their way out of providing affordable housing, because of a bill passed by the Honolulu City Council.
Waikiki condo seeks to ban short-term rentals
A battle is brewing at Waikiki Lanais over whether the condo board can ban short-term vacation rentals; the practice has been going on there for decades.
Report claims Hawaiʻi vacation rental units have increased 35 percent in past two years
Hawaiʻi’s inventory of vacation rental units increased 35 percent to 23,000 from 2015 to 2017, according to a report by the Hawaiʻi Appleseed Center for Law & Economic Justice.