The smallest county in the U.S. may not exist much longer. The remote peninsula of Kalaupapa on Molokaʻi's north shore faces big changes. Kalawao County will soon be dissolving — and Maui County is weighing whether it will take on its jurisdiction.
“Mayor [Richard Bissen] has expressed an interest in learning more about it, and has a high value on the dignity and heritage of the place, as well as the input from communities, beneficiaries and descendants,” said Mahina Martin, Maui County director of public affairs, at a recent meeting with councilmembers, Kalaupapa stakeholders and Molokaʻi residents.
A delicate timeline
After thousands of Hansen’s disease patients were exiled to Kalaupapa between 1866 and 1969, many have chosen to remain and call it home.
In a delicate and emotional balance, the transition timeline now rests on the lifespans of the several remaining patient residents, who are in their 80s.
Hawaiʻi Department of Health Deputy Director of Health Resources Debbie Kim Morikawa said it makes planning more challenging.
“The reason why it's a little fuzzy is because there really was no timeline beyond the last patient passing, because Department of Health has jurisdiction so long as there's a Kalaupapa patient that is still living," she said. "However... the passing could occur at any time, and we should have some type of plan.”
Kalawao County was created in 1905, placing Kalaupapa under the DOH as a sort of honorary county government. Once patient residents are no longer there, the department will leave.
But where does that leave Kalawao County?
“The role of the county as held by the Department of Health has not equated to the role of counties operating across the state,” said Mikiʻala Pescaia, a Molokaʻi resident, former National Park Service employee in Kalaupapa, and descendant of former patients.
Despite the county title, there’s no mayor, no police department — and no typical infrastructure.
“They don't collect taxes. There are no DMVs," Pescaia said. "We don't have municipal services provided by Kalawao County. A lot of those services have been absorbed by the Park Service.”
The Kalaupapa National Historical Park was established in 1980 to help preserve the history, culture and environment. Most Kalaupapa residents are employees of either the state Health Department or the National Park Service — and Pescaia said things function differently.
“There's no landfill. Park Service pays to air freight that trash out. There is no waste treatment. They pump that out and send it out on a barge that costs roughly almost $300,000 to charter one empty barge to come in and bring all the supplies going out,” she said.
Nancy Holman, superintendent of Kalaupapa National Historical Park, pointed out that Maui County wouldn’t just be stepping into an existing role.
“There are many county functions that were exempted upon the creation of the county,” she said. “So if you're just going back in and asking different entities to tell you how much things have cost, those functions don't exist currently and never have functioned.”
Legislative motivation
A bill moving through the Legislature this session would name Maui County as the entity to take over Kalawao County. Maui County currently covers residents on Maui, Lānaʻi and the rest of Molokaʻi.
Morikawa said the DOH introduced Senate Bill 1432 last year to help prepare for the transition and foster discussions, and it's back on the table this year.
“The bill was developed through years of research collaboration with the Kalaupapa community, consultation with involved governmental agencies and engagement with members of the public interested in Kalaupapa’s future,” she explained.
But during the recent meeting, Molokaʻi Councilmember Keani Rawlins-Fernandez said a lot of questions still need to be answered. How much would it cost the county? What responsibilities would be involved?
“We have political pressure at the Legislature, pushing a decision to be made regarding Kalawao County,” Rawlins-Fernandez said. “Last session, I begged the committees to pause, and I opposed that bill, because there are a lot of these questions that need to be answered regarding the cost to the county in this transition, since the bill specifies Maui County taking over responsibilities of governance.”
And while information is lacking, the county administration is willing to consider it.
“Mayor Bissen is open to taking on this kuleana. The council, as I understand it, is open to taking on this kuleana,” Rawlins-Fernandez said. “We just need the details of how that will look and what it would cost the county.”
Complex interests
Kalawao County consists of about 12 square miles of land, and ownership is also complex.
The Department of Hawaiian Home Lands owns about 1,200 acres of that. The state Department of Land and Natural Resources also owns over 9,000 acres within Kalawao. All of that land is managed by the National Park Service.
The history of Kalaupapa began long before Hansen’s disease patients were exiled there, and Department of Hawaiian Home Lands beneficiaries say they want more input — and more access to ancestral lands. Some residents also urged consideration of a Molokaʻi County, a discussion that’s surfaced for years.
Molokaʻi Hawaiian Homestead beneficiary Sybil Lopez said she opposes a transition to Maui County.
“We've been advocating for our beneficiaries to be heard, to be visible... I do not want this bill,” she said. “Because Kalawao County is already as a placeholder as a county, I totally agree with [other testifiers] to create Molokaʻi County, and so working through the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands as a beneficiary, we would like to see Kalawao County be our own.”
Lori Buchanan, a Molokaʻi resident who’s been involved in Kalaupapa planning for decades and is also a DHHL beneficiary, said there’s been a lack of oversight and communication about the process.
“I feel like I’ve been in a bubble jumping up and down saying, ‘I want to be involved in what happens to Kalaupapa,’” she said.
Buchanan also supported the formation of a Molokaʻi County for more local autonomy and island-specific governance. But she recognized that would take time.
“If we cannot have home rule tomorrow, the closest to me would be for Maui County to provide oversight [for Kalaupapa],” Buchanan testified. “Now, nobody says that in the future, we cannot have our own county.”
Moving forward, community members and county officials will continue discussions and seek to learn more about what the transition decision could mean.
Find more HPR stories about the Kalaupapa community:
- Hawaiʻi celebrates the life and legacy of Kalaupapa community leader Gloria Marks (December 2025)
- National Park superintendent of Kalaupapa shares what to expect as tours reopen (September 2025)
- Electrical upgrades might seem like a simple job — anywhere other than Kalaupapa (July 2023)
- Kalaupapa plans for a possible future without patients for the first time (February 2022)
- Remembering Makia Malo, celebrated storyteller and one of the last remaining residents of Kalaupapa (October 2021)
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