Hawaiʻi Appleseed releases 2025–26 state budget primer and legislative recap
HONOLULU, Hawaiʻi — The state budget is a declaration of our society's values. It quantifies our commitment to education, healthcare, the environment, and social welfare, serving as the foundational document for how our government functions.
Each year, Hawai’i Appleseed analyzes the dense budget bills passed by the legislature and turns them into a short, digestible primer. This report explains to the public and media what the state plans to fund and by how much in the coming fiscal period.
“The annual primer is a flagship product for us,” said Will White, Hawai‘i Appleseed’s executive director. “It’s an essential public service because understanding the budget is critical for civic engagement, but can be challenging for the community to decipher.”
Spanning just 12 pages with clear charts and graphics, the primer is both an introduction for newcomers and a useful reference for advocates tracking government spending trends.
The budget is created each biennium during the legislative session, a complex process of balancing countless policy priorities within a finite spending framework. To help demystify this opaque process, Hawai’i Appleseed also releases an annual legislative report, “Policy in Perspective."
This brief report tells the story of the session, highlighting the wins, losses, and lessons learned in advancing the organization's key policy areas: food equity, transportation equity, affordable housing, and tax reform. Each section provides a rundown of essential legislation and its outcomes.
“We began writing Policy in Perspective in 2021 to chronicle our work and identify recurring barriers,” said White. “The legislative session is fast and dense, making it hard for the public to follow. But an informed public is the bedrock of democracy. Our hope is these reports help strengthen that bedrock.”
