Two House committees Thursday passed a bill that would impose more user fees to nonresidents who visit specified state parks and trails.
The House Tourism and Water and Land Committee passed the latest version of Senate Bill 439, which would allow the state Board of Land and Natural Resources to select certain state parks that would require a user fee, be adjusted over time for inflation and contribute to the state parks special fund.
Currently, there are 10 state parks with parking and entry fees, four of which have advance reservation systems for regulated access and collecting fees, according to written testimony by Dawn Chang, state Department of Land and Natural Resources chair.
Chang said another five park units are being evaluated for parking and entry fees and reservation-based access.
At Thursday’s hearing, Tourism Committee Chair Rep. Adrian Tam (D-Waikiki) said the bill would be passed with amendments, including one that would allow the state DLNR to consider seasonal pricing to its trails and parks.
“I know that they’re trying to do that now, but hopefully that language would provide them cover,” Tam said.
Chang wrote in her testimony that DLNR’s Division of State Parks is consulting with the Hawaii Tourism Authority to obtain data to implement the seasonal pricing comparable to the airline and hotel industry.
The “green fees” are in the interest of the organization Kua‘aina Ulu ‘Auamo, which advocates for biocultural, meaning natural and cultural, heritage in Hawaii. KUA advocate Olan Leimomi Fisher and Executive Director Kevin Chang wrote in supportive testimony that the bill aligns with the state Constitution, which “requires the protection and enforcement of Native Hawaiian rights, including the traditional and customary practices that are intrinsically dependent on our threatened natural resources,” according to their statement.
“The funds collected through this bill could help offset some of the environmental and community well-being degradation caused by our historically overly-extractive tourism industry by infusing the state’s (DLNR) with much-needed funds dedicated to the protection, management, and restoration of Hawaii’s natural resources,” Fisher and Kevin Chang wrote.
However, the bill fails to explicitly exempt Native Hawaiians, according to Native Hawaiian resident Cat Orlans, who said in written testimony that the bill would require entry fees for her family members who live on the mainland.
Native Hawaiians, she wrote, “possess inherent rights under both state and federal law to access lands for traditional, cultural and religious practices.”
“Imposing fees, regardless of their residency status, could undermine these protected rights,” Orlans wrote. “This exemption is critical to honor the rights and protections afforded to Native Hawaiians under the state Constitution.”
The push to charge tourists with “green fees” is nothing new, as previous legislative sessions saw a flurry of bills aimed at charging visitor fees. During the 2022 campaign trail, some candidates for governor highlighted the initiative as a way to curb tourism in the post-COVID-19 economy.
According to supportive written testimony from organization Coalition Earth, Hawaii’s current per-tourist investment in its natural environment is approximately $9 per tourist, compared with Palau’s $92, New Zealand’s $188 and the Galapagos Islands’ $373.
“New Zealand, the Maldives, Cancun, and Venice, and numerous other countries have green fee programs for visitors, which vary from $1 per night to a $100 entrance fee for the purpose of environmental conservation,” the organization wrote. “We need to catch up.”
