Hawaii bill to ban commercial reef fishing stalls
The Hawaii Senate Committee on Commerce and Consumer Protection voted 2-2, leaving the recommendation to ban commercial aquarium fishing on Oahu unadopted.
by Jeremy Yurow, Court House News, April 2, 2026
HONOLULU (CN) — A Hawaii bill to ban commercial reef fishing stalled in the state Senate on Thursday after several lawmakers opposed it, saying its protections would apply only to Oahu.
In the Senate Committee on Commerce and Consumer Protection, Senators Laura Keohokalole and Donovan Fukunaga voted in favor. Senators Angus McKelvey and Brenton Awa voted against. Senator Mike Lamosao was excused.
Awa, a Republican from Oahu, explained his vote. “I’m very concerned about this being limited to Oahu,” Awa, a Republican from Oahu, said, explaining his vote. “Considering the impact of this bill will come back to the Big Island, I am going to respectfully vote no.”
For decades, commercial collectors have harvested juvenile reef fish, particularly yellow tang and kole, from Hawaii’s nearshore waters and shipped them to wholesalers on the mainland and abroad. The practice has raised concerns over ecological impacts and cultural implications.
Commercial aquarium fishing was halted by a state Supreme Court ruling in 2017, which required environmental review before permits could be issued. In 2023, the high court ruled that an environmental impact statement commissioned by the Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council was legally sufficient for the Department of Land and Natural Resources’ Division of Aquatic Resources to revisit the permitting process.
House Bill 2101, originally introduced as an outright statewide ban on commercial aquarium fish collection, has been amended several times as it moved through the Legislature.
The House initially narrowed the measure to counties with populations between 200,000 and 300,000, covering only Hawaii County. On March 24, Senate committees revised the bill to apply to counties with populations greater than 500,000, which fits only the city and county of Honolulu.
Because Honolulu already effectively halted commercial aquarium collection after a 2021 court ruling, the current version of the bill does not directly affect active fishing areas.
The measure would prohibit the commercial harvest of reef fish for the aquarium trade in qualifying counties. It would also block the state from issuing new permits until regulators complete rulemaking tied to the Holomua marine initiative.
The Holomua initiative is a coastal management effort by the Department of Land and Natural Resources. It is designed to produce rules to manage nearshore resources for long-term sustainability.
Supporters argue reef fish like yellow tang and kole are essential to coral reef health and should not be removed for the ornamental pet trade.
A coalition of conservation and cultural organizations, the ʻAʻole AQ Hui, cited state data showing yellow tang populations have not rebounded as expected since the 2017 closure. They questioned whether collection could be sustainable under a scaled-back monitoring regime.
Opponents, mostly commercial fishers from Hawaii Island, said they invested years and significant money completing state-mandated environmental review work in good faith.
“We were told by the state that if we participated in good faith and completed the required environmental and cultural impact studies, we would be allowed to resume our operations,” Big Island fisher Eric Koch wrote in testimony. “We trusted that process.”
A 2025 poll commissioned by the advocacy group For the Fishes found that 84% of residents on Oahu and Hawaii Island support ending commercial aquarium collection.
Because the committee’s recommendation was not adopted, HB 2101 remains under consideration with unresolved questions about its scope and future.
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HB2101: Text, Status