The Hawaii Public Housing Authority received an additional $4.7 million in federal funds from the American Rescue Plan for Housing Choice Vouchers and Mainstream Vouchers for non-elderly persons with disabilities who would have lost their rental assistance due to insufficient funding. “No one should lose their home during a pandemic,” said Senator Brian Schatz (D-HI) in a press release announcing the funds.
Updated on December 13, 2021
Governor David Ige expanded the free landlord-tenant mediation program to help renters catch up on rent before being evicted. According to the Hawaii Tribune-Herald, the previous mediation sessions were only for tenants that were behind on four or more months of rent. Now, it includes tenants who are three months or more behind, and payments will continue month-by-month until they are caught up.
Updated on October 5, 2021
Hawaii Public Radio explains how the eviction mediation process works in Hawaii. Act 57 changed the state’s eviction procedures for non-payment of rent and encourages landlords and tenants first to enter mediation before evictions proceed to the courts. Since Hawaii’s moratorium ended, the Mediation Center of the Pacific saw an influx in mediation notices.
Updated on September 14, 2021
With Hawaii’s eviction moratorium ending in August, Maui officials will join landlord and tenant attorneys, mediation administrators, and rent and utility administrators for a roundtable on available federal, state, and county support for struggling renters.
Updated on July 26, 2021
The Honolulu Civil Beat reports Hawaii counties are trying to spread the word about millions of dollars in federal rent and utility assistance. There is a gap between the estimated number of people in need and the actual number of applicants.
Updated on July 15, 2021
Hawaii Governor David Ige on June 7extended the statewide eviction moratoriumfor two months, but he does not expect to extend it past August 6. “We are asking all of the advocates and stakeholders to help us implement the mediation programs and really help as many people as we can in that window,” said Governor Ige.
Updated on June 14, 2021
Hawaii’s eviction moratorium is set to expire on June 8, and Governor David Ige has not yet decided if he will extend the protections. Housing advocates say that lifting the eviction moratorium will overwhelm the courts. There are hundreds of millions of federal rent relief that has not been distributed yet.
Updated on June 4, 2021
Hawaii Governor David Ige on April 9 issued an emergency proclamation extending the statewide eviction moratorium until June 8, 2021.
Updated on April28, 2021
Despite federal and statewide eviction moratoriums, landlords in Hawaii are using loopholes to continue evicting tenants. Landlords are evading the moratorium by selling their properties or having relatives move into the property. Governor David Ige extended Hawaii’s moratorium through at least April 13.
Updated on March 01, 2021
The Department of Hawaiian Home Lands (DHHL) received a federal funding allocation of $2.4 million for rental assistance. The DHHL COVID-19 relief program began accepting applications on Monday, February 8.
Updated on February 17, 2021
Facing a looming eviction crisis, housing advocates in Hawaii are urging state officials not to cut funding for critical homelessness services.
Updated on January 25, 2021
Loopholes in Hawaii’s eviction moratorium have allowed landlords to evict tenants. The moratorium, which remains in effect through February 14, prohibits landlords from raising rents and evicting tenants for nonpayment of rent. Landlords, however, are allowed to move back into their units or sell their properties under the moratorium.
Updated on January 15, 2021
A survey from the University of Hawai’i Department of Urban and Regional Planning found there are currently18,000 householdsdelinquent on their rent, and that number does not include people who are current on their but have exhausted their savings. On October 2, the Kuau’i County Housing Agency announced the availability of rent and mortgage assistance, which is funded through the CARES Act.
Updated on October 19, 2020
An op-ed in theHonolulu Star Advertiserargues that renters need more assistance to remain stably housed. The $100 millionState Rent Relief and Housing Assistance Programhas received tens of thousands of applications for financial assistance.
Updated on October 5, 2020
Governor David Igeannouncedon September 8 the launch of the State of HawaiiRent Relief and Housing Assistance Program. The $100 million rent relief program is funded through the CARES Act.
Updated on September 22, 2020
TheHawaii House Committee on Human Services and Homelessnessrecently met to discuss strategies to increase awareness of resources available to people experiencing homelessness during the pandemic. One such resource is the Behavioral Health and Homelessness Statewide Unified Response Group website:https://health.hawaii.gov/bhhsurg/
Updated on September 15, 2020
Despite Hawaii’s eviction moratorium, some landlords are illegally harassing tenants and forcing them out of their homes. While the extended eviction moratorium provides relief for renters, attorneys say state officials need to increase enforcement of the ban.
Catherine Pirkle, a University of Hawaii at Manoa public health professor, told NBC News that overcrowded living situations in Hawaii can lead to clusters of positive coronavirus cases. Many Hawaii households contain multiple generations and crowding is common, especially for low-income households, making social distancing impossible.
Updated on September 2, 2020.
A letter to the editor in theStar Advertiserurges that no resident should be unsheltered in Hawaii.
Updated on August 19, 2020.
Despite Hawaii’s eviction moratorium, tenant advocates report that landlords have been usingillegal tactics to evict tenants. Advocates are also concerned that a new rule approved by the Hawaii Public Housing Authority to enact strict social distancing requirements will result in increased evictions across the state.
Updated on August 11, 2020.
Governor David Ige vetoed a spending planthat would have added $100 in state weekly unemployment benefits and a $100 million spending plan for housing and rental assistance, arguing that $50 million is enough to launch a rent relief program by the end of the year.
Updated on August 4, 2020.
An opinion piece in theCivil Beatdiscussed the urgent need for bold action to prevent a tidal wave of evictions and an increase in homelessness in Hawaii. Even with the state’s eviction moratorium, there are widespread reports of landlords illegally evicting tenants and imposing aggressive tactics to pressure the tenant to “voluntarily” leave.
Updated on July 28, 2020.
An analysis by the University of Hawaii Economic Research Organization and the Hawaii Budget and Policy Center estimates that between 40,000 and 45,000 of Hawaii renter households will be unemployed by the end of July. Approximately 21,500 of these renter households will be at risk of losing their housing, while 7,500 renter households will be at extreme risk.
Updated on July 7, 2020.
AStar-Advertisereditorial urges officials to use available federal resources from the CARES Act to address Hawaii’s homelessness needs: “It’s now the duty of state and local lawmakers and officials to deliver this funding where it’s urgently needed. At this point in time, keeping more families housed is central to any rational pandemic recovery strategy.”
Updated on June 22, 2020.
Hawaii’s rate of homelessnesswas among the worst in the country before the pandemic, and researchers project increases in homelessness due to loss of employment and wages and the inability to afford rent.
Updated on June 12, 2020.
One person experiencing homelessness in Hawaii has tested positive for the virus thus far. The health department said that even though the state will begin to reopen, it needs to remain vigilant and increase testing, particularly of people living in congregate settings such as homeless shelters.
An editorial in the Star Advertiser discusses why the state needs to focus on solutions that address long-standing affordable housing issues, not only short-term relief solutions. James Koshiba, co-founder of Hui Aloha, a homeless advocacy group, highlighted that Hawaii should broaden its focus from emergency relief to prevention and permanent solutions.
ThreeO’ahu service providersshared updates on efforts to help sheltered and unsheltered people experiencing homelessness during the COVID-19 shutdown.
Doctors in Hawaii have expressed concern that the state is not taking the necessary steps to prevent a potential COVID-19 outbreak in homeless shelters. On O'ahu, officialsscrapped plansto provide walk-in testing for 4,400 residents experiencing homelessness at Iwilei Center. Instead, the city and state are directing people experiencing homelessness with coronavirus-related concerns to its CARES hotline.
The rooms in the Kona Holiday Inn Express are now serving asisolation units for high-risk seniors, respectfully known as kupuna, who are experiencing homelessness, amid stay-at-home orders. 1,324 people on Hawaiʻi Island received homeless services last year. At least 7% of those were kupuna.
