Families who lost a loved one, or people who suffered serious injury, in the August wildfires on Maui now have until June 15 to submit a registration form for the One ‘Ohana Fund, Gov. Josh Green announced Friday. The deadline for registered claimants to submit completed claim forms is July 15.
The extension will give Maui wildfire survivors more time to decide whether they want to seek compensation through the fund.
Announced in November, the $175 million One ‘Ohana Fund was designed to allow those eligible to participate in settlements and avoid lengthy and uncertain litigation for claims of wildfire-induced losses. The fund aims to provide money to affected families and individuals quickly.
Payments to surviving family members who lost loved ones will be $1.5 million, while settlements for people who suffered severe injuries will vary.
The deadline for applications was last extended to May 31 at the beginning of May.
“From the time we introduced the fund in November, our intention was to provide families with a timely option that would potentially allow healing and recovery more quickly,” Green said in a news release. “The response from the survivor community last time we extended the deadline was encouraging, and I want to respect the requests of other survivors and their counsel to have additional time to determine what is right for their families.”
The fund encompasses contributions from Hawaiian Electric ($75 million), the state of Hawaii ($65 million), Kamehameha Schools ($17.5 million), Maui County ($10 million), Charter/Spectrum ($2.5 million), Hawaiian Telcom ($2.5 million) and West Maui Land Co. ($2.5 million).
“Survivors and their attorneys have been asking for additional time to complete their submissions of claims to the fund,” retired Judge Ronald Ibarra, who serves as the fund’s administrator, said in the release. “We all believe that this compassionate extension is aligned with the mission of the fund, to give survivors the option of seeking compensation without the risks that accompany litigation.”
The fund began accepting applications March 1, and since then it has received 48 registrations from families who have lost loved ones and 17 registrations from injured survivors, according to the release. The fund is already processing these claims, and the extension will not delay this process for claims already submitted.
Ibarra said the program expects to begin making payments to those approved within the next 60 to 90 days.
Honolulu-based attorney Richard M. Sakoda, who represents an applicant family and has been communicating with other survivors’ families, requested the first deadline extension in April and said he supports the most recent extension as well.
“I wholeheartedly support this extension and appreciate the compassion behind the decision,” Sakoda said in the release. “We have seen that claims to the fund have increased, as families have learned more about the uncertainties of litigation.”
Phase I of the One ‘Ohana Fund focuses on providing compensation to families who lost loved ones and to people severely injured in the fires. Phase II will involve the settlement of commercial and residential property claims.
The Maui wildfires killed at least 101 people and destroyed or damaged almost 3,000 structures.
Applications and more information for the fund can be found at www.mauicompensationfund.com.
