2026 STATE OF THE STATE ADDRESS RECAP

Governor Josh Green delivered the final State of the State Address of his first term on January 26, doubling down on the bold priorities he has continued to pursue since he took office. The address highlighted three years of progress — from tax cuts and housing production, to healthcare expansion and Maui recovery — and laid out a forward-looking agenda to ensure every family in Hawai‘i can afford to live, work and thrive in the islands they call home.

LOWERING THE COST OF LIVING

• Expanded tax relief for working families, including doubling the Earned Income Tax Credit and Food Tax Credit to save families $88 million per year in taxes.
• Delivered the largest income tax cut in state history, while preserving the state’s long-term fiscal health.
• Historic income tax cuts were preserved for 2026 while increasing the state’s fiscal reserves to offset federal cuts.
• Proposed a strategic pause for future cuts to restore $1.8B for essential services to be preserved for food security and child care needs.
• Increased support for food security through expanded SNAP matching funds and regional food hub investments.
• Launched Sun Bucks, in partnership with the USDA, to provide summer food benefits to eligible children statewide to ensure keiki don’t go hungry at school.
• Strengthened child care support to help families keep more of what they earn.
• Expanded regional kitchens and food hubs to strengthen food security, improving emergency preparedness.

BUILDING HOUSING AT A HISTORIC SCALE

• Delivered the most significant housing regulatory and zoning reforms in over 40 years.
• Record housing production with thousands of affordable homes completed and many more underway.
• Entitled 5,500 affordable units and more than 6,500 affordable units since entering office.
• Over 62,000 housing units in the statewide pipeline, including 46,000 affordable units.
• More than 20,000 units planned on state lands; expanding workforce housing statewide.
• Historic homestead leasing on Hawaiian Home Lands with over 2,500 leases granted in 2025 — the most awarded in a single year in DHHL’s 100-year history.
• Continued transformation of public housing and leasehold programs to expand long-term affordability.

ADDRESSING HOMELESSNESS WITH A HEALTHCARE APPROACH

• Twenty-five kauhale tiny home villages have been opened to date, with 30 villages expected by the end of 2026.
• Nearly 1,000 new beds in supportive housing communities.
• Healthcare costs for formerly homeless individuals have dropped significantly following permanent housing placement.
• Continued $50M/year investment in housing first solutions (kauhale), outreach and civil legal services.
• Integration of mental health care and addiction treatment into homeless strategy for improved outcomes in breaking the cycle.
• Goal to cut chronic homelessness in half this year.

GROWING THE ECONOMY AND CREATING LOCAL JOBS

• Hawai‘i maintains one of the nation’s lowest unemployment rates.
• Strong increases in GDP, personal income and visitor spending, with GDP forecast to be 5% higher in 2025 than in 2019.
• Personal income is forecast to be 11% higher and visitor spending is now the highest ever recorded.
• Expansion of film and TV tax credits to boost local hiring and keep creative industries in Hawai‘i alive.
• Diversified growth with investments in career pathways like healthcare, conservation, construction and education.
• Workforce pipelines strengthened with public-private partnerships in healthcare, energy and education sectors.

PROTECTING HAWAI‘I’S ENVIRONMENT

• Safe removal of 104M gallons of fuel and permanent closure of Red Hill ahead of schedule.
• Reestablished the State Fire Marshal and upgraded emergency alert systems.
• Deployment of wildfire and extreme weather sensors statewide.
• Implementation of the nation’s first Green Fee to generate $100M+ annually for climate resilience and environmental protection.
• Formed an environmental advisory council to help guide a comprehensive strategy for resilience and climate mitigation.
• Nearly 500 community-driven proposals submitted to guide environmental investments.

STRENGTHENING HEALTHCARE STATEWIDE

• Launched HELP — a state-funded initiative providing educational loan repayment for more than 900 providers licensed or certified to practice in Hawai‘i.
• Directed more resources to Medicaid rate increases, improving care for almost 400,000 of the most vulnerable people in our state.
• Budget includes $16.5 million to cover the cost of preserving enhanced ACA tax credits for Hawai‘i families.
• Nearly $190M secured in federal funding for our Rural Health Transformation Program to modernize rural access to care, grow our economy and create thousands of good jobs across our state.
• Five-year, nearly $1B effort underway to stabilize and grow healthcare capacity across the islands.

MAUI RECOVERY

• Governor personally engaged federal leadership to secure a FEMA housing extension through February 2027.
• Thousands of temporary housing units delivered for wildfire survivors.
• More than 1,200 interim homes built; rental support provided for displaced residents.
• Over $2B in federal disaster funding secured.
• Another 1,200 interim housing units and 2,200+ permanent homes planned, including hundreds of affordable units.
• Continued support for those in transitional housing into 2027 to give them more time to rebuild their lives.
• Continued wildfire mitigation, infrastructure upgrades and community rebuilding efforts.