New report suggests 7 ways to speed up Hawaii’s construction permit process

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – Hawaii has some of the longest wait times in the nation for building permits.
Local think tank Grassroot Institute aims to change that with a new report called “Seven Low Cost Ways to Speed Up Permitting in Hawaii,” which models best practices from the continent.
While the recommendations seem like common sense, researchers admit implementing them will be a challenge.
“The biggest obstacle is just the bureaucracy, and we’ve always done it this way. We’ve never done it the other way,” said Grassroot EVP Joe Kent, who added that the report underscores the high cost of permitting delays and burden on homeowners and business owners.
“Why do we require so many things to be permitted? And if we just reduced that, cut that down, then that could help clear out the backlog. You shouldn’t have to get a permit for simple home repairs or non structural things or things under a certain dollar amount, $5,000, $10,000, just put a cap on it and say you can get that permitted easily,” Kent said.
“Think about a business that can’t open, sometimes they have to run debt for years just to be able to stay afloat, and some people can’t even open the business ultimately.”
Kent says about half of the projects awaiting approval are solar-related and fast tracking those could clear the backlog and reduce delays.
He also suggests counties allow preapproved permits for common projects. Hawai’i and Kaua’i counties do this to some extent, and Honolulu and Maui could follow their lead.
Other recommendations — grandfathering in existing unpermitted structures with an inspection, similar to processes in California, or hiring a private company like what Maui County is doing with the Lahaina rebuilding effort.
The Grassroot Institute is hosting two events this week to talk about the report, one in Hilo on Wednesday and another on Friday in Honolulu. For ticket information, visit grassrootinstitute.org.
Read the full report here.

Copyright 2024 Hawaii News Now. All rights reserved.