Report on Hawaii 2025 Legislative Session Bills

Because I blog about issues of interest to current and prospective owners of Big Island (Hawaiʻi Island) property, I end up following a lot of bills at the Hawaiʻi State Legislature. Some of those are related specifically to housing. Others relate to broader categories like agriculture (I sell a lot of ag-zoned parcels and horse properties and homes on acreage), conservation and land use, tourism, education, health care – essentially all those areas that relate to quality of life for Hawaiʻi residents.

Here is a recap of a few bills among dozens I followed that actually passed during the Hawaiʻi State legislature in the 2025 session.

Hawaiʻi State Capitol Building – you can testify in person, or you can follow bills online and submit testimony that way

2025 Legislative Session – Bills Related to Housing

A great deal of focus in the Hawaiʻi State Legislature as well as the Governorʻs office continues to be on two broad categories of housing solutions: (1) how to address affordability for the longtime Hawaiʻi residents and workforce; and (2) how to accelerate the rebuilding of homes in Lahaina after the tragic August 2023 wildfire. Those two categories have areas of overlap, as well as distinct needs and solutions.

Some new laws, programs and improvements that have broader relevance include:

• Individual Wastewater Systems. Remember my post about converting my cesspool to a septic system, as all of us on cesspool are required to do by 2050? HB879 provides for a position in State Wastewater Branch dedicated to this need. HB736 funds a three-year pilot program to test promising alternative technologies, as many properties have site-specific issues with conversion, such as not enough room for a leach field. Most important in my mind: HB735 clarifies that an individual wastewater system can serve up to five (5) bedrooms, whether that is for one home, multiple homes, or a home and ADU on one parcel.
• Skyrocketing Homeowners Insurance. As other severely impacted states have done, Hawaiʻi is stepping in to assist where the private insurance market is failing. SB1044 expands the powers of the Hawaiʻi Property Insurance Association and authorizes use of the Hawaiʻi Hurricane Relief Fund to help individual homeowners. It also establishes a new program to assist condominium associations facing difficulties in obtaining insurance and/or correcting maintenance conditions that stand in the way of obtaining insurance.
• Landlord-Tenant Code. In general, Hawaiʻi landlord-tenant code leans towards tenant protection. SB825 requires landlords to give tenants 10 calendar days rather than 5 business days if they are terminating due to default, and changes requirements for mediation. I highly recommend hiring a professional long term rental management company to manage your Hawaiʻi rentals – especially if you are not resident here.

2025 Legislative Session – Bills Related to Agriculture

Even a traditional Hawaiian crop like taro has a supply-demand imbalance requiring almost half of what is consumed to be imported

With much of the land on the Big Island being zoned for agriculture, many prospective residents imagine themselves as farmers or at least gentleman farmers – whether that means buying a coffee or macadamia nut farm, or just enjoying extensive fruit orchards on their property. Many of the bills related to agriculture this session had to do with issues of most interest to farmers and ranchers marketing their products at scale – and with incentivizing local production as the cost of imported food is expected to continue to climb.

Bills that should be of interest to all of us who produce or simply enjoy eating healthy food, whether imported or locally grown:

• Biosecurity. Concerns over preventing avian influenza (bird flu) from spreading to egg and poultry producers in Hawaiʻi prompted legislators to take action. This is, of course, but the latest concern over unintentional “imports” – ranging from coconut rhinoceros beetle to two-lined spittlebug (devastating to our cattle industry). HB427 adds the term “Biosecurity” to both the Board and Department of Agriculture. It formally declares a biosecurity emergency, enabling the Department and Governor to take action.
• Agricultural Crime. Making a profit is difficult enough for small farmers and ranchers. Trespassing and theft of market-ready product can easily destroy thin profit margins. Last year, a young Oʻahu rancher confronted unauthorized hunters on his lands, one of whom shot and killed him. SB1249 will also be known as “Dukeʻs Law” in memory of Cranston “Duke” Pia. It strengthens the law around agricultural theft and trespassing, and creates an Agricultural Enforcement Pilot Program to enhance investigation of agricultural crime and enforcement of legal protections.

2025 Legislative Session – Other Bills of Possible Interest to Big Island Residents

This is what a “road in limbo” might look like at its best – County and State are in dispute over who owns and should maintain it

A handful of other bills awaiting signature by the Governor also caught my eye this session.

• Wildfire Protection. The same day that Lahaina burned, we had serious fires here on the leeward coast of Hawaiʻi Island, requiring Kohala Ranch residents to evacuate and threatening homes within Mauna Kea Resort. It was encouraging to see over $14 million and 22 new positions for fire protection included in HB300, the General Appropriations Act of 2025 (otherwise known as the Budget Bill).
• Roads in Limbo. It may not be obvious from the text of HB860 or SB321 exactly what prompted these bills – but both of them were introduced by Big Island legislators at the request of their communities. HB860 refers specifically to roads where Hawaiʻi County and the State of Hawaiʻi are in dispute about who owns, or is responsible for repair and maintenance of, a given roadway. It basically says that if one or the other goes ahead and makes repairs, that action does not in itself convey ownership – and it limits liability associated with the road to the repair itself. This one was of interest to me because I have sold so much property out around Kapanaia in Kohala and have made dozens of calls to try to answer the question of who owns the Old Government Road – or just to get someone out to repair potholes a grown steer could disappear into.  SB321 allows for adjacent property owners or a community association to take title to a road, bridge or trail that was never conveyed by the original subdivider (who in many cases no longer exists). This one will clear up a lot of title reports in Puna and other rural areas.

For more details on any of these bills, you can type in the bill number on the Hawaiʻi State Legislature Website.