Hawaii wants the public to help shape Green Fee projects that could receive roughly $200 million over the next two fiscal years, and public input closes this Sunday night. Visitors help pay for it through their hotel and vacation rental bills, and the new portal lets them support projects, comment on what’s needed, and suggest other places that deserve attention. We searched the state’s new ideas portal for places visitors know well and found Hapuna Beach and Kailua Pier among the proposals labeled “Not Recommended.”
Visitors can now weigh in on Green Fee spending.
Visitors began paying the 0.75 percentage-point increase in Hawaii’s accommodations tax in January 2026. On a $400 taxable nightly room charge, that’s another $21 for a week, on top of other lodging taxes and fees. Public input isn’t new to the Green Fee. The first cycle accepted project ideas, while the updated Green Fee ideas portal now lets people register their support for individual projects, including proposals that weren’t recommended last time.
The official participation rules invite individuals, organizations, businesses, and other stakeholders to submit ideas and feedback without requiring Hawaii residency. Registration doesn’t require proof of residence, and anyone can browse project descriptions without an account. To upvote a proposal, participants create a free account, open the project, and register their support. Each account can support multiple proposals, with one upvote per project; the site also accepts comments and new suggestions.
The deadline for feedback to be considered in the upcoming funding recommendations is Sunday, November 1, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. Hawaii time. The website will remain open afterward, although later submissions will be considered for future Green Fee cycles.
An upvote obviously isn’t a funding decision. The council considers public feedback alongside agency requests and other proposals, makes recommendations to the governor, and the Legislature ultimately decides exactly where the money goes. The Legislature has already authorized about $129 million for 91 Green Fee projects, but those appropriations shouldn’t be confused with completed projects. The next roughly $200 million remains prospective, and isn’t yet a second appropriation signed into law.
Hapuna Beach was promised a permanent fix in 2024.
When we in August 2023 wrote about Hapuna Beach having no water despite visitor entry fees, the situation seemed ridiculous. One of our favorite Big Island beaches lacked dependable water for its restrooms and showers, while nonresidents still paid $10 to park plus $5 per person to enter. The state was promising a permanent replacement by April 2024, and we wondered whether even that deadline would hold.
We’ve been back to Hapuna recently, and it remains one of the beaches we most enjoy and recommend on the Big Island. Its enormous stretch of white sand, clear water when conditions cooperate, and straightforward access compared with nearby resort beaches make it an especially appealing place to spend much of a day on the Kohala Coast. For a family of four paying full admission, parking and entry alone cost $30, so working restrooms and showers are part of what they pay for and expect to find.
BOH readers reported that water service had returned. That was welcome news, but a temporary repair and a permanent solution are two different things.
Now there’s a Hapuna water-repair proposal on the Green Fee portal describing years of broken or temporarily repaired waterlines. The submission says work on a new well and waterline stalled, leaving facilities less than fully functional, and the project is marked “Not Recommended.” The label reflects an earlier Green Fee review, not a rejection for this upcoming funding round or a determination of the park’s current condition.
We dug deeper into state records and found $3.675 million in contract entries for the Hapuna waterline project. An August 2023 amendment changed the original temporary waterline specifications to a new line intended for long-term service. After more than 300 reported pipe breaks, state officials said in January 2025 that temporary water service had been restored while work toward a permanent system continues.
More recent visitor reports are encouraging, with bathrooms and showers reported working again. The state’s current Hapuna Beach listing also describes restrooms and showers, but we found no state completion report establishing whether that permanent waterline replacement was ever finished. The Green Fee submission still describes the project as stalled, without explaining just what work remains.
Kailua Pier’s restrooms are back, but questions remain.
A second Green Fee proposal concerns the public restrooms at Kailua Pier, a familiar stop for cruise passengers, paddlers, and people visiting downtown Kailua-Kona. We were there recently, and it is a busy waterfront where cruise tenders bring visitors ashore, swimmers enter Kailua Bay, and people head into downtown Kona. At such a heavily used location, dependable restrooms and showers are a basic expectation, especially for anyone coming out of the ocean or arriving by boat.
That submission describes years of restroom closures and maintenance problems and is also marked “Not Recommended.” Sewage discharges at the pier prompted state health advisories in 2024, temporarily affecting the water where people swim and enjoy ocean activities every day. Later, the restrooms and showers reopened in 2025, although the condition of the underlying plumbing remains unclear.
The state’s boating division has since outlined plans for restroom, shower and sewer repairs using funding outside the Green Fee. We couldn’t establish whether that contract was issued or the underlying work completed, leaving visitors looking at a proposal without knowing how much of the problem has already been addressed.
We’re particularly interested in hearing from readers who have been to Hapuna Beach or Kailua Pier recently. Were the restrooms, showers, and water facilities working properly when you visited, and about when were you there? We’d also like to hear about other Hawaii beaches, parks, trails, and public facilities that need attention, including which island, what you personally saw, and what you want to see next.
You can review and support projects on the state’s Green Fee portal before Sunday’s deadline, then please come back and tell us in the comments which projects you supported or questioned. If you’ve encountered a problem that isn’t represented, the portal also accepts new ideas. It comes down to what you would most like Hawaii to fix with this next round of funding.
We’ll continue following the repair records and the next round of Green Fee decisions. You can join our free Beat of Hawaii newsletter to follow that reporting and other developments affecting Hawaii travel.
By Rob and Jeff, Beat of Hawaii.
Some of Hawaii’s most meaningful parts are the ones visitors walk right past without knowing they are there. We’ve spent nearly 20 years finding them firsthand for BOH as full-time Hawaii residents reporting on travel, culture, and island life, and telling you what they mean for your trip. Join us →
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