December 22, 2025 News Read > Hawaii Free Press

Hawaii Daily News Read

Monday, December 22, 2025

December 22, 2025 News Read
By Andrew Walden @ 1:53 PM :: 131 Views

Senate WAM Announces Budget Hearing Schedule

Hawaii Congressional Delegation How They Voted December 19, 2025

75% of local workers now considering leaving the state

SA: … The top financial pressures that financial literacy and wealth management firms say are facing Millennials — housing costs, student debt, consumer debt, and a lack of retirement savings — are even more pronounced in Hawaii, where each strain is magnified by the state’s extreme cost of living. A December 2024 University of Hawaii Economic Research Organization (UHERO) report found that Millennials, or Gen Yers, in the state tend to pay more for housing than other generations while earning less on average than Gen X….

With three-quarters of local workers now considering leaving the state due to cost-of-living pressures, Hawaii risks losing the very generation it depends on to sustain its economy, care for its elders, and raise the next….

Gen Yers make up a large share of the nation’s gig workforce, and in Hawaii many of those jobs are tied to tourism-driven service work that rises and falls in ways that don’t keep pace with the state’s high cost of living…

According to the UHERO report, Millennials spend more on housing compared with other generations in Hawaii. Yet on average, they earned less from labor — $64,360 in 2022 — compared with the preceding generation, Gen X, which had the highest average income at $72,344 among generations.

“None of my friends that are my age are even remotely in the realm of buying property in Hawaii,” Strickland said….

A recent survey by the local nonprofit Holomua Collective found that a rising number of working families have considered leaving the state due to what the organization described as a deepening cost-of-living crisis in Hawaii.

The survey of 3,200 workers statewide found that 75% of respondents said they will, or are unsure if they will, move to a less-expensive state in the coming years due to financial pressures, up from 70% who had the same answer in 2024 in the first year Holomua conducted such a survey.

Holomua’s new survey also found that the reported financial pressure to leave only begins to decrease for households with annual income of $150,000 or more, up from $100,000 in 2024….

read … Hawaii’s Millennials juggle unaffordable housing, other economic obstacles | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

Three candidates Vie for Plum KSBE Trustee Gig

CB: … The three candidates appeared in a public forum Thursday night at Kamehameha’s Kapālama campus to take questions from an audience and event moderator Neil Hannahs, a former land assets director for the school. A recording of the event is available here. Next comes a public comment period, through 4 p.m. on Dec. 31. People can weigh-in on the candidates online or by email or mail to the Inkinen executive search firm.

The decision about who becomes the next trustee will be made by First Circuit Judge Jeannette Castagnetti early next year….

read … Kamehameha Schools Trustee Finalists Are Walking Into A Challenging Future - Honolulu Civil Beat

Hawaiʻi Charter Schools Promised A New Model. Did They Succeed?

CB: … Hawaiʻi’s charter schools pledged to improve public education through more innovation and family engagement. Three decades later, they’ve gained momentum but still lag in some traditional measures of success….

read … Hawaiʻi Charter Schools Promised A New Model. Did They Succeed? - Honolulu Civil Beat

Kaua‘i Voters Could Decide Six Charter Amendments

CB: … A yearly process that gives Kaua‘i residents the chance to redefine the responsibilities of their local government is underway, with a citizens commission reviewing a half-dozen proposals to alter the county charter.

Altogether, a preliminary set of six reforms would prohibit or limit the development of gated communities, add oversight to the County Council budget and increase qualifications for the county’s chief accountant.

The seven-member Kaua‘i Charter Review Commission is soliciting more ideas through February to improve the legal document that defines the county government’s structure, powers and functions. After considering public feedback over the next several weeks, commission members will vote by June on proposals and translate the winning reforms into a digestible collection of charter amendment questions for the November ballot….

read … Kaua‘i Voters Could Decide Whether Gated Communities Should Be Banned - Honolulu Civil Beat

US Customs Social Media vetting proposal threatens Hawaii’s tourism economy

SA: … U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) published a notice Dec. 10 proposing new vetting rules for travelers from 42 visa waiver countries, including Japan, South Korea, Australia and most of Europe. If it moves forward as proposed, applicants for the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) starting on Feb. 8 would have to list all social media accounts used in the past five years.

The changes, part of broader vetting measures under the Trump administration, also would require travelers to disclose email addresses used over the past decade and detailed family information. Public comment is open for 60 days.

The U.S. Travel Association warned the requirement could have a “chilling effect” on inbound travel.Travelers from a Visa Waiver Program (VWP) country who are traveling to the U.S. for business or pleasure trips under 90 days must get an approved ESTA before they travel, as airlines will deny boarding without it. An approved ESTA is generally valid for two years or until the traveler’s passport expires….

(Another article about what Trump MIGHT do.)

read … U.S. vetting proposal threatens Hawaii’s tourism economy

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