Critics hoped the pandemic would be the catalyst for significant changes to address longterm problems facing Hawaiʻi. But the budget shortfall dominated the 2021 session.

The pandemic wouldn’t have hurt nearly as much if Hawaiʻi residents were making wages that paid enough to cover their basic needs.

And Hawaiʻi’s lawmakers should pass legislation that supports workers’ well-being.

The cost of living in Hawaiʻi continues to rise, most notably due to the lack of affordable housing. How do we find a feasible solution?

The measure is intended to provide low-income people easier access to healthier food choices and to help local farmers and ranchers.

Senators moved to raise income taxes on high earners, and the House passed capital gains and inheritance tax increases.

Most SNAP applications are now processed online and members can now use their EBT cards to make online purchases for pick-up at select Walmart locations.

A bill would require landlords to enter mediation upon a tenant’s request, but some advocates say the measure doesn’t do enough to protect renters at risk of eviction.

Bold moves are needed to tackle Hawaiʻi’s entrenched affordable housing problem.

Advocates argue that raising the minimum wage will not only help workers make ends meet, but also stimulate the local economy.

In recent years there’s been increasing support from the state’s leading lawmakers and Democratic Party to pay workers a living wage, but the gap between that figure and what lawmakers have been willing to pass remains wide.

Hawaiʻi’s high cost of living, makes a minimum wage increase vital for low-income workers, including many who have been on the pandemic’s front lines.

The biggest drawback identified in the analysis is that using public land for leasehold housing is controversial.

Three factors—household income, family size and interest rates—are mainly used to compile annual housing affordability tables.

Hawaiʻi Appleseed has monitored the ranking for years, and has been working with the DOE to improve those numbers.

When funds are reinvested back into the most impacted communities, these taxes help prevent future harm, and give people from those communities a better shot at succeeding and thriving.

A bill to raise Hawaiʻi’s minimum wage to $12 passed unanimously out of its first committee Monday, with more than 180 individuals and groups testifying in favor, most saying it should be much higher.

The state eviction moratorium doesn’t protect every renter. And being kicked out when you’re unemployed makes finding housing much harder.

Some island landlords have rejected about $8 million in direct payments to cover the rents they’re owed because they do not have general excise tax licenses and are not paying taxes on their rental income.

But advocates say housing is a real concern in a state where there’s an affordable housing crisis.