News
Hawaii plans to increase hotel tax to help it cope with climate change
People are seen on the beach and in the water in front of the Kahala Hotel & Resort in Honolulu, Nov. 15, 2020.
Jennifer Sinco Kelleher/AP
hide caption
toggle caption
Jennifer Sinco Kelleher/AP
HONOLULU — In a first-of-its kind move, Hawaii lawmakers are ready to hike a tax imposed on travelers staying in hotels, vacation rentals and other short-term accommodations and earmark the new money for programs to cope with a warming planet.
State leaders say they’ll use the funds for projects like replenishing sand on eroding beaches, helping homeowners install hurricane clips on their roofs and removing invasive grasses like those that fueled the deadly wildfire that destroyed Lahaina two years ago.
A bill scheduled for House and Senate votes on Wednesday would add an additional 0.75% to the daily room rate tax starting Jan. 1. It’s all but certain to pass given Democrats hold supermajorities in both chambers and party leaders have agreed on the measure. Gov. Josh Green has said he would sign it into law.
Officials estimate the increase would generate $100 million in new revenue annually.
“We had a $13 billion tragedy in Maui and we lost 102 people. These kind of dollars will help us prevent that next disaster,” Green said in an interview.
Green said Hawaii was the first state in the nation to do something along these lines. Andrey Yushkov, a senior policy analyst at the Tax Foundation, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit organization, said he was unaware of any other state that has set aside lodging tax revenue for the purposes of environmental protection or climate change.
Adding to an already hefty taxThe increase will add to what is already a relatively large duty on short-term stays. The state’s existing 10.25% tax on daily room rates would climb to 11%. In addition, Hawaii’s counties each add their own 3% surcharge and the state and counties impose a combined 4.712% general excise tax on goods and services including hotel rooms. Together, that will make for a tax rate of nearly 19%.
The only large U.S. cities that have higher cumulative state and local lodging tax rates are Omaha, Nebraska, at 20.5%, and Cincinnati, at 19.3%, according to a 2024 report by HVS, a global hospitality consulting firm.
The governor has long said the 10 million visitors who come to Hawaii each year should help the state’s 1.4 million residents protect the environment.
Green believes travelers will be willing to pay the increased tax because doing so will enable Hawaii to “keep the beaches perfect” and preserve favorite spots like Maui’s road to Hana and the coastline along Oahu’s North Shore. After the Maui wildfire, Green said he heard from thousands of people across the country asking how they could help. This is a significant way they can, he said.
Hotel industry has mixed feelingsJerry Gibson, president of the Hawaii Hotel Alliance, which represents the state’s hotel operators, said the industry was pleased lawmakers didn’t adopt a higher increase that was initially proposed.
“I don’t think that there’s anybody in the tourism industry that says, ‘Well, let’s go out and tax more.’ No one wants to see that,” Gibson said. “But our state, at the same time, needs money.”
The silver lining, Gibson said, is that the money is supposed to beautify Hawaii’s environment. It will be worth it if that’s the case, he said.
Hawaii has long struggled to pay for the vast environmental and conservation needs of the islands, ranging from protecting coral reefs to weeding invasive plants to making sure tourists don’t harass wildlife, such as Hawaiian monk seals. The state must also maintain a large network of trails, many of which have heavier foot traffic as more travelers choose to hike on vacation.
Two years ago, lawmakers considered requiring tourists to pay for a yearlong license or pass to visit state parks and trails. Green wanted to have all visitors pay a $50 fee to enter the state, an idea lawmakers said would violate U.S. constitutional protections for free travel.
Boosting the lodging tax is their compromise solution, one made more urgent by the Maui wildfires.
A large funding gapAn advocacy group, Care for Aina Now, calculated a $561 million gap between Hawaii’s conservation funding needs and money spent each year.
Green acknowledged the revenue from the tax increase falls short of this, but said the state would issue bonds to leverage the money it raises. Most of the $100 million would go toward measures that can be handled in a one-to-two year time frame, while $10 to $15 million of it would pay for bonds supporting long-term infrastructure projects.
Kāwika Riley, a member of the governor’s Climate Advisory Team, pointed to the Hawaiian saying, “A stranger only for a day,” to explain the new tax. The adage means that a visitor should help with the work after the first day of being a guest.
“Nobody is saying that literally our visitors have to come here and start working for us. But what we are saying is that it’s important to be part of of the solution,” Riley said. “It’s important to be part of caring for the things you love.”
News
Man Charged With Posting Bomb Instructions Used in New Orleans Attack
Federal prosecutors have filed charges against a former Army serviceman they accused of distributing instructions on how to build explosives that were used by a man who conducted a deadly attack in New Orleans on New Year’s Day last year.
The former serviceman, Jordan A. Derrick, a 40-year-old from Missouri, was charged with one count of engaging in the business of manufacturing explosive materials without a license; one count of unlawful possession of an unregistered destructive device; and one count of distributing information relating to manufacturing explosives, according to a criminal complaint unsealed on Wednesday. The three charges together carry a maximum sentence of 40 years in federal prison.
Starting in September 2023, the authorities said, Mr. Derrick was using various social media sites to share videos of himself making explosive materials, including detonators. His videos provided step-by-step instructions, and he often engaged with viewers in comments, sometimes answering their questions about the chemistry behind the explosives.
The authorities said that Mr. Derrick’s videos were downloaded by Shamsud-Din Bahar Jabbar, 42, who was accused of ramming a pickup truck into a crowd on Bourbon Street in New Orleans on Jan. 1, 2025, in a terrorist attack that killed 14 people and injured dozens. Mr. Jabbar was killed in a shootout with the police. Before the attack, Mr. Jabbar had placed two explosives on Bourbon Street, the authorities said, but they did not detonate.
The authorities later recovered two laptops and a USB drive in a house that Mr. Jabbar had rented. The USB drive contained several videos created by Mr. Derrick that provided instructions on making explosives. The authorities said the explosives they recovered were consistent with the ones Mr. Derrick had posted about.
Mr. Derrick’s lawyers did not respond to requests for comment.
Mr. Derrick was a combat engineer in the Army, where he provided personnel and vehicle support, the authorities said. He also helped supervise safety personnel during demolitions and various operations. He was honorably discharged in February 2013.
The authorities did not say whether Mr. Derrick had any communication with Mr. Jabbar, or whether the men had known each other. In some of Mr. Derrick’s videos and comments, he indicated that he was aware that his videos could be misused.
“There are a plethora of uh, moral, you know, entanglements with topics, any topic of teaching explosives, right?” he asked in one video, according to the affidavit. “Of course, the wrong people could get it.”
The authorities also said that an explosion occurred at a private residence in Odessa, Mo., on May 4, and the occupant of the residence told investigators that he had manufactured explosives after watching online tutorials from Mr. Derrick.
Mr. Derrick’s YouTube account had more than 15,000 subscribers and 20 published videos, the affidavit said. He had also posted content on other platforms, including Odysee and Patreon. Some videos were accessible to the public for free, while others required a paid subscription to view.
“My responsibility to my countrymen is to make sure that I serve the function of the Second Amendment to strengthen it,” Mr. Derrick said in one of his videos, according to the affidavit. “This is how I serve my country for real.”
Outside of the income he received through content creation, Mr. Derrick did not have any known employment. He did receive a monthly disability check from Veterans Affairs, the affidavit stated.
News
The Girls: “This isn’t ringing alarms to y’all?” : Embedded
News
Chud the Builder, Known for Racist Confrontations, Charged With Attempted Murder
A streamer known for hurling racist slurs in public settings under the nickname “Chud the Builder” was charged with attempted murder after a shooting outside a Tennessee courthouse on Wednesday, the authorities said.
The streamer, Dalton Eatherly, 28, was involved in a confrontation with an unidentified man that escalated to gunfire outside the Montgomery County Court in Clarksville, about 50 miles northwest of Nashville, the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement. Both men sustained gunshot wounds and were in stable condition, the office said.
In addition to attempted murder, Mr. Eatherly was charged with employing a firearm during dangerous felony, aggravated assault and reckless endangerment with a deadly weapon, the sheriff’s office said.
Mr. Eatherly, who is white, has accumulated an online audience by livestreaming confrontations in which he uses racist language toward Black people in public.
Law enforcement did not provide any details about the second man involved in Wednesday’s shooting. Mr. Eatherly posted an audio recording online of paramedics treating his wounds in which he claims he shot the man in self-defense.
A video posted by the website Clarksville Now shows Mr. Eatherly on a stretcher with a microphone attached to his lapel.
Mr. Eatherly is being held at the Montgomery County Jail, pending arraignment, the sheriff’s office said.
According to court records, Mr. Eatherly was scheduled to appear for a court hearing on Wednesday morning in an unrelated case brought by Midland Credit Management, a collections agency.
A lawyer listed in court records from a separate harassment case in which Mr. Eatherly was a defendant in November did not respond to a request for comment.
On Sunday, three days before the shooting in Clarksville, Mr. Eatherly was arrested in Nashville. According to a police affidavit, Mr. Eatherly live streamed his meal at a restaurant, Bob’s Steak and Chop House, on Saturday even though the restaurant had asked him ahead of time not to do so.
When he was confronted, Mr. Eatherly “became disruptive and started making racial statements, yelling, screaming and otherwise creating a scene,” according to the affidavit.
He then refused to pay for his $370 meal. Mr. Eatherly was charged with theft of services, disorderly conduct and resisting arrest. He was released on $5,000 bond.
-
Cleveland, OH11 minutes ago
U.S. Navy warship to be commissioned in Ohio
-
Austin, TX17 minutes agoTexas Metro Areas Are Coming for Chicago
-
Alabama23 minutes agoGov. Ivey announces America 250 Alabama Celebration
-
Alaska29 minutes agoThis Alaska cruise port lets you experience the wild, untouched state
-
Arizona36 minutes agoDozens of repossessed Spirit Airlines jets now parked in Arizona desert
-
Arkansas41 minutes ago
Dave Van Horn press conference: Arkansas baseball coach, players recap Game 1 loss at Kentucky | Whole Hog Sports
-
California47 minutes agoJD Vance accuses California of letting Medicaid fraudsters cash in at taxpayer expense | Fox Business Video
-
Colorado53 minutes ago
Families, care providers navigate cuts to Colorado’s Community Connector program | Rocky Mountain PBS