Hawaiʻi lawmakers heard stark warnings Monday about the risks posed by federal funding cuts and policy rollbacks to the state’s clean energy and climate initiatives.

During a joint informational briefing, the Hawaiʻi State Senate Committee on Judiciary, chaired by Sen. Karl Rhoads, and the Senate Committee on Agriculture, chaired by Sen. Mike Gabbard, received testimony from Hawaiʻi Climate Change Mitigation Adaption Commission Coordinator Leah Laramee and retired Hawaiʻi Supreme Court Associate Justice Michael D. Wilson.

The briefing centered on how recent federal policy actions, including the passage of the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” in July, have jeopardized around $651 million of outstanding clean energy projects across the state. Laramee cautioned that these cuts threaten Hawaiʻi residents’ “right to health, safety and affordability,” linking climate action directly to quality of life.

Laramee also listed multiple environmental- and conservation-focused programs that are facing repeal of unobligated balances by the federal goverment, including the $27 billion Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund program, most USDA agricultural conservation programs, ecosystem restoration programs, national parks, among others.

She noted that the State Attorney General has had to bring or join numerous climate-related legal challenges — 41 since the beginning of the year — to protect the state’s clean energy, climate and environmental laws and policies.

Former Hawaiʻi Supreme Court Associate Justice Michael D. Wilson gave a presentation to the lawmakers, titled, “The Rule of Law, Civilization’s Greatest Tool to Achieve Justice, Is Under Attack in Hawaiʻi.”

In it, he discussed the growing wave of climate-related litigation (2,180 lawsuits around the world relating to climate as of December 2022), and applauded the State of Hawaiʻi for being the “bleeding front line of climate change, and the foremost champion among all states of climate rights for the future generations of our country.”

He noted that Hawaiʻi’s right to bring such litigation has been threatened by the federal government’s attempts to block such litigation, while the Hawaiʻi Judiciary’s role in addressing climate change has been steadfast: “We rejected the idea that the courts don’t have a duty to protect future generations, our population, from this existential threat.”

Other measures taken by the State, including the state constitutional right of every person to a “clean and healthful environment” (Article XI, Section 9) and the adoption of the goals of the Paris climate agreement, provide support when the State needs to respond to inappropriate federal action, he said.

Wilson also discussed the potential economic impacts and legal ramifications of climate change in Hawaiʻi. He noted that the loss of Waikīkī Beach could result in an annual loss of $2 billion in visitor expenditures by mid-century, as an example.

Both presenters offered recommendations to strengthen Hawaiʻi’s preparedness for emerging climate threats and federal actions. Suggestions included bolstering the State’s energy programs, supporting the Department of the Attorney General in climate-related litigation efforts and developing comprehensive plans to address not only the effects but also the root causes of climate change.

Laramee emphasized the importance of embedding climate considerations in all areas of policy and budgeting. “The key thing is to put a climate lens on everything,” she said. “The more money that we can invest in adaptation, mitigation, resilience programs, the more money we’re going to save in the long term.”

Sen. Rhoads called the briefing “a sobering reminder that climate change is not a distant or abstract issue,” and said it’s the Legislature’s responsibility to act proactively and challenge “federal actions that are likely unlawful or infringe on matters controlled by the State.”  

Sen. Gabbard added, “The loss of federal funding for clean energy projects threatens years of progress toward a more sustainable future. Now is the time to double down on renewable energy, local food security and climate adaptation to safeguard our islands.”

A video recording of the briefing is available on YouTube.

The briefing is part of a series of informational briefings on the rule of law in relation to the recent actions of the Trump Administration and how its decisions are impacting Hawaiʻi. Information about past and upcoming briefings can be accessed on the Senate Judiciary Committee webpage.

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - The state elections commission has voted to ask the legislature to ban mail-in and early voting and return to traditional in-person voting on Election Day.

The bipartisan commission, which is half Democrat and half Republican, voted 5-3 over several contentious meetings to recommend voting only on Election Day in person with ID required on paper ballots that would be hand counted in precincts.

Under the proposal, only military families and people with special needs would be allowed to vote absentee.

Republican concerns over verification

Republican commissioners said they have found discrepancies in mail-in voting and claim the movement of absentee ballots and envelopes from homes to post offices to counties for verification and to the state for counting has not been securely controlled or tracked.

“No one who is outside the system can verify the results,” said Lindsey Kamm.

Dylan Andrion said the commission is “going back to what works.”

There was also concern that the emphasis on mail-in balloting made it more difficult for people to vote in person at limited sites.

Commissioner Kahiolani Papalimu, from the Big Island, said, “being an incredibly rural island, I’d much prefer voting in our precincts, which is accessible to everyone in their area.”

Democrats dispute claims

Democrat commissioners and elections officials said the Republican claims are false and that there is no evidence of fraud or miscounting.

“It’s just ludicrous. There’s no basis for connecting this supposed unverifiable statement, which is false, to the need to go back to in person voting,” said Jeffrey Osterkamp.

Clare McAdam noted that in the 2024 election, 92.5% of voters voted by mail.

“It’s 92.5% of the state wants to vote by mail, and I think that’s very important that we bear in mind all the time when we consider this,” McAdam said.

Senate Judiciary chair Karl Rhoads, who would have jurisdiction over changing election law, said he believes the chances the legislature will approve the changes are zero.

“I don’t even know the last time that Hawaii had one-day voting,” Rhoads said.

Rhoads said he believes Republican commissioners are trying to undermine election confidence following President Trump’s lead.

“I think they’re doing what they think he’s asking him to do. I think it’s from the top. The irony, of course, is that Trump himself uses mail-in voting,” Rhoads said.

In addition to seeking to ban mail-in voting, Republican commissioners have repeatedly tried and failed to fire elections administrator Scott Nago and may try again Wednesday.

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - For State Sen. Glenn Wakai, the 125th anniversary of Okinawans immigrating to Hawaii has a special and personal significance.

For most of his life, Wakai knew that he was adopted but kept it a secret. He was one of the few orphans from Okinawa more than 50 years ago to leave when a loving family from Hawaii offered him a new life.

“Back in 1967, there were only about 50 Japanese that would go to foreign lands to there’s not like 5000 right so there was only 50 kids that left Japan for a life in a foreign country,” he said.

The senator was adopted by Ruth and Calvin Wakai. Together, they provided the young Uchinanchu boy opportunities that he would never have had had he not been adopted.

“You think about 125 years of immigration between Okinawa and Hawaii. I think I embody the American dream, an orphan from Japan picked up by a loving family, and is able to chase their dreams,” Glenn said.

Sadly, Ruth passed in 2013, followed by Calvin a few months later. Prior to Calvin’s passing, he presented Glenn with his childhood passport that bore his birth name. After a time of mourning, Wakai’s wife, Miki, asked him if he would like her to help him find his biological mother. He obviously said yes.

“His born name is Mitsuru Shimabukuro. Shimabukuro was the last name, so I started calling all the Shimabukuros in Tokyo,” Miki said.

During one of her calls, Miki said a nice lady suggested she contact the adoption agencies in Japan to see if they had any information. So, she did, and sure enough, one of them did have Glenn’s childhood records. The Wakais hired a lawyer, and a few months later, they received some good news.

“I mean, there are 8 billion people on this planet, and Miki needed to help me find one person, and she did,” the senator said.

“When we found her, we were so happy,” said Miki.

That led to reuniting with Glenn’s biological mom, Yoko Boughton. Sen. Wakai realized that there was a chance that she may not have wanted to meet for various reasons, but was elated when she did.

“He had all of the lucky stars lined up, I have to say this is not always the case when you look for birth mom in a foreign country, I think,” Miki said.

“I feel like I got a second mom, and keep in mind, she had me up for adoption because she was age 15,” Glenn said.

Since their reunion, the Wakais now try to make it back to Okinawa every year to spend time with Glenn’s biological family. This has also prompted the Hawaii lawmaker and his mom to help reform Japan’s policies when it comes to dealing with Japanese orphans.

“My mother and I joined that crusade, met with the Diet members, the congressional-level ministers here in Japan, and we changed the law,” he said.

When Glenn was adopted, only 12% of all orphans were in foster care. While there is still a long way to go, he said the law now requires that by 2030, 35% of all orphans need to be in foster care rather than a warehouse orphanage.

“Every child has value, and I want as best as I can from an outside perspective to pressure Japan to really invest in their children,” Wakai said.

After all, the senator is living proof of how an orphan can thrive if given a chance. He said he is forever grateful to his God-given parents, Ruth and Calvin, for adopting him and also grateful for the 125 years of Okinawa and Hawaii relations.

“Here I am, a product of the benefits of that close collaboration between our islands, and I really am grateful for the opportunity Hawaii has given me that I wouldn’t have gotten here in Okinawa,” he said.