Hawaiʻi County

Hawaiʻi County Mayor Kimo Alameda discusses inspections of Hilo's historic banyan trees after human remains were found under one tree that fell over last weekend; State Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Karl Rhoads talks about an upcoming informational briefing on the rule of law with U.S. Rep. Ed Case

The nine-member Hawaiʻi County Police Commission needed five votes to allow Moszkowicz to take back a letter of resignation he sent in early June. The commission split 4–4 on Thursday, meaning his resignation stands.

Bill 51 proposes fining those who are caught feeding stray and feral animals on County of Hawaiʻi land — $50 for first-time violators and up to $500 for repeat offenses.

Hawaiʻi Police Department Chief Ben Moszkowicz has issued an apology following his bid to become the interim chief of the Honolulu Police Department. Earlier this month, Moszkowicz resigned from his post after Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi endorsed him for Oʻahu's interim chief position.

A new lifeguard tower has been installed at Kohanaiki Beach Park thanks to community advocacy. Resident Rachel Able advocated for the tower after her daughter sustained injuries while surfing and died in November 2022.

Bill 47 is a partial revival of a set of measures that failed last year that would have overhauled zoning and operational laws on “transient vacation rentals” in the County of Hawaiʻi.

Hawaiʻi Island lawmakers passed a $950 million budget for the county, but denied a last-minute amendment to spend $2 million on food security programs. The administration says no plan was attached to that funding, leading the council to vote against the amendment five to three.

As Congress weighs a $300 billion cut to SNAP funding, local officials are trying to figure out how they might be able to secure funding for the program in their own communities.

County law currently only allows chickens to be raised on agricultural land, but Bill 52 would let residents have “household henneries” for non-commercial egg production.

The Hawaiʻi County Council advanced a resolution on Tuesday that called on the county Department of Water Supply to create an online system that shows the amount of available water islandwide.