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Hawaiʻi faces significant economic and security risks from sea level rise, wildfires, and drought, which threaten both civilian infrastructure and critical US military hubs like Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam. While federal agencies provide essential monitoring and recovery support, proposed FY 2026 budget cuts would eliminate key programs such as the Hawaiʻi Sea Grant and the Pacific Islands Climate Adaptation Science Center, potentially reducing disaster relief and hindering climate adaptation efforts.

The report examines the technical and institutional challenges of maintaining grid reliability in the United States as fossil fuel plants retire and demand grows from data centers and electrification. It argues that reliability does not require traditional baseload power but can be achieved through a combination of wind, solar, battery storage, and demand-side flexibility. The authors highlight that while 80-90% clean electricity is achievable with current technology, reaching 100% may require 'clean firm' resources like enhanced geothermal or advanced nuclear. Key recommendations include reforming interconnection queues, expanding interregional transmission, and implementing performance-based incentives for utilities to prioritize demand-side solutions.

The report details how Hawaii is experiencing accelerating climate crises, specifically through extreme drought, intense tropical storms, sea level rise, and increasing temperatures. It provides comprehensive lists of potential costs for mitigation and adaptation, ranging from water management and wildfire suppression to floodproofing infrastructure and public health interventions.

Community groups Moms On a Mission Hui and Pō‘ai Wai Ola allege that HDOA and ADC have failed to implement Title VI compliance programs, leading to discriminatory adverse effects on Native Hawaiian populations. The complaint highlights the lack of pesticide registration limits, the absence of mandatory buffer zones, and a failure to enforce federal and state pesticide laws. It specifically points to the high concentration of genetically engineered seed crops in West Kaua‘i and Moloka‘i, where Native Hawaiian populations are proportionally higher than the state average. Additionally, the complaint cites ADC's operation of an unpermitted drainage ditch system on the Mānā Plain that discharges pollutants into waters used by Native Hawaiians. The complainants request that the EPA and USDA conduct compliance reviews and require the agencies to develop implementation plans to mitigate these discriminatory impacts.

The Green Energy Money $aver (GEM$) program, launched in April 2019 by the Hawaii Green Infrastructure Authority (HGIA), provides on-bill financing for clean energy upgrades to approximately 95 percent of Hawaii's population via Hawaiian Electric Companies (HECO) customers. The program targets low-to-medium income (LMI) households—specifically those earning less than 140 percent of the area median income—to democratize access to solar PV and energy efficiency measures. By tying repayment to the utility meter rather than the individual, GEM$ allows for repayment terms up to 20 years and enables the transfer of obligations between tenants or owners, overcoming the rental split incentive. In its first nine months, the program funded $6.6 million in solar PV projects, with 78 percent benefiting LMI customers, resulting in 1.6 megawatts of installed capacity and 12,000 metric tons of projected avoided greenhouse gases. The program is funded by the Green Energy Market Securitization (GEMS) program and is the first of its kind operated by a green bank.