Tax to fund affordable housing advances in state legislature
Senate Bill 362, Draft 2, which raises the conveyance tax on property sales over $2 million, has survived committee (a feat that only one in 10 bills achieve) and is set for a final floor vote in the Senate this week.
Move ahead with care on tax relief
Legislators must ensure that the relief package makes the most of state resources, finding the right balance of lower taxes and the services that Hawaiʻi’s people need most.
While a tax hike to fund homeless services may not pass, housing advocates have a plan
When it comes to Hawaiʻi's conveyance tax rates, advocates say the state is low compared to other high-cost areas in the U.S.
Finland delegation brings new homeless housing ideas to Hawaiʻi
Nonprofits who have come to the conference say they've learned a lot. It's public funding that pays for housing the homeless in Finland. Housing is considered a fundamental right there.
‘People are really struggling:’ Hawaiʻi food banks scramble to meet increased demand
Rising food costs and the end of pandemic-era assistance programs are driving a spike in demand for food assistance.
It’s gotten both worse and better for struggling working families
The good news is that 17 Hawaiʻi nonprofits are helping working families become more financially stable, find affordable housing, and get involved in policy.
As prices soar, top Democratic candidates for governor support relief from tax on groceries
Hawaiʻi Appleseed said a tax revenue boost must be paired with the tax cut to ensure key services aren’t cut. The organization suggested raising the capital gains tax or increasing tax on the wealthiest earners.
‘Housing first’ model better than shelters
To solve houselessness, we need to look beyond the stop-gap shelter model toward a “housing first” model that guarantees housing to people as a human right.
Tap more child nutrition, school-lunch subsidies for isle keiki
The “Feed Our Keiki” report finds that the federal school meal reimbursement rates for Hawaiʻi currently should be 62% higher than other states, but it has been stuck at only 17% higher since 1979.
Why rent relief in Hawaiʻi became a national model
The government program helped over 13,000 households. One reason it succeeded may have been that people who had experienced housing instability had a seat at the decision-making table.
Hawaiʻi missed out on $200M in federal funding for school meal programs, report says
The Hawaiʻi Appleseed study found that federal programs meant to reimburse organizations that feed Hawaii’s children have not taken into account more than 40 years of increases in local food costs.
Hawaiʻi’s federal child nutrition funding is outdated and insufficient, report finds
Federal reimbursement rates for child nutrition programs in Hawaiʻi do not currently reflect the high cost of living, a new report found.
A pandemic program that fed schoolchildren last summer is now in jeopardy
The USDA is in the middle of examining its reimbursement rates for school meals in Hawaiʻi, but its findings aren’t expected to be released for a few more years.
Report: Federal funding flaw shortchanges Hawaiʻi’s school nutrition programs
The Hawaiʻi State Department of Education is paying tens of millions of dollars to feed Hawaiʻi school children due to a flaw in the funding method used by the federal government, according to a report.
Hawaiʻi’s keiki nutrition programs facing financial crisis
The state is missing out on tens of millions of federal dollars each year to provide meals for needy children.
Report: Hawaiʻi missed out on $200 million in federal funding to feed children since 2000
This discrepancy stems from a federal analysis that hasn’t been updated since 1979, according to the report.
As housing prices on Oʻahu hit record highs, families grapple with rising rents
“We as a community just need to make a decision that anybody that’s working 40 hours a week needs to be able to afford housing.”
Inflation is forcing some Hawaiʻi families to change the way they shop for groceries
Economists agree this rising trend won’t go away anytime soon—that’s concerning for food banks and nonprofit organizations that help low-income and working class families.
Hawaiʻi kids could lose access to free meals at school with end of federal funding
Public school students have been eligible for free breakfast and lunch during the pandemic through a program that is set to expire in June.
Wage measures still alive
A bill in the state House of Representatives that would increase the minimum wage cleared a committee hurdle Tuesday.