Schatz secures $530M in new earmarks for Hawai‘i nonprofits, local projects

US Senator Brian Schatz, chairman of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, secured $530 million in new congressional directed spending, also known as earmarks, in this year’s government funding bill.

At $530 million, Schatz’s earmark total this year more than doubles last fiscal year’s amount.

“We are bringing home more than a half a billion dollars in new earmark funding,” said Senator Schatz. “These earmarks will give local nonprofits and projects more resources to serve communities across Hawai‘i.”

As a senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Schatz worked with congressional leaders to ensure Hawai‘i received its fair share of federal earmark funding.

Earmarks secured by Sen. Schatz include the following:

• ‘Aha Pūnana Leo – $1,126,000: Funding will support the Pūnana Leo statewide Hawaiian medium early childhood language education system. (Schatz and Hirono joint request)
• County of Kaua‘i Housing Agency – $7,772,000: Funding will support the construction of 145 affordable homes in Kaua‘i’s Lima Ola Community. Senator Schatz and Senator Hirono secured a joint $8.49 million earmark in 2022 for the Lima Ola Community.
• City and County of Honolulu – $11,987,000: Funding will support the construction of three communally governed affordable housing projects in Honolulu, Waimānalo, and Wahiawa. Each project will provide temporary housing and services to 80-100 people.
• The Food Basket (Hawai‘i Island) – $1,600,000: Funding will be used to develop an agriculture innovation park and food systems campus in Hilo to provide safe, nutritious, fair, and affordable food to residents in the region. 
• Waimānalo Health Center – $2,000,000: Funding will be used for the construction of a new expansion facility providing oral health, vision, and nutritional services to the community of Waimānalo and throughout Koʻolaupoko. (Schatz, Hirono, and Kahele joint request) 
• County of Maui – $11,000,000: Funding will support the construction of a community center focused on Native Hawaiian culture in Wailuku, Maui, which will also be able to serve as a shelter and recovery space in the event of a disaster.
• Kūmano I Ke Ala o Makaweli (Kaua‘i) – $796,000: Funding will be used to support the expansion of K-12 educational programs and food production in the West Kaua‘i region. (Schatz and Hirono joint request)
• Hoʻāhu Energy Cooperative Moloka‘i – $3,000,000: Funding will be used for community-owned solar and battery storage to displace diesel generation. (Schatz and Hirono joint request)
• County of Maui (Lānaʻi) – $542,000: Funding will support repairs to the Mānele Small Boat Harbor breakwater on Lānaʻi to help protect the harbor from large waves.
• Hāmākua-Kohala Health Center – $5,000,000: Funding will support the construction of a new Federally Qualified Health Center in Honokaʻa to expand access to primary care, pediatric care, behavioral health, pharmacy, and telehealth services in the Honokaʻa community. (Schatz and Kahele joint request)
• Hawai‘i Children’s Action Network – $323,000: Funding will establish a pilot program to link low-income families with infants and toddlers to support services, including home visiting, federal nutrition assistance programs, and child care subsidies.
• Big Brothers Big Sisters Hawai‘i – $800,000: Funding will help restart school-based mentoring programs that were offered before the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Office of Hawaiian Education – $890,000: Funding will be used to help transform distance learning in the Kaiapuni (Hawaiian Language Immersion Programs) school network.
• Kalamapi‘i PLAY School (Hawai‘i Island) – $197,000: Funding will be used to serve preschool-age students in Hilo though an innovative service delivery model that combines therapy with preschool play to focus on recovery from trauma and collective learning. (Schatz and Hirono joint request)
• Hawaiian Hope – $95,000: Funding will be used to help distribute computers to low-income families on the Wai‘anae Coast.
• ‘Auamo Collaborative – $200,000: Funding will be used to address the connectivity gaps that exist in underserved remote and rural areas throughout Hawai‘i.
• Hawai‘i Institute of Pacific Agriculture (Hawai‘i Island) – $435,000: Funding will be used to create a certified commercial kitchen at the Kohala Food Hub to expand vocational training and increase capacity for local food production, processing, and distribution.
• Lanakila Pacific – $1,000,000: Funding will support renovation of a vacant building to establish a food hub providing processing and distribution facilities for local farmers.
• Hawai‘i Department of Agriculture (Oahu, Hawai‘i Island) – $850,000: Funding will be used to combat invasive pests at nursery production sites to maintain market access for Hawai‘i’s horticultural products. (Schatz and Hirono joint request)
• Mālama Kaua‘i – $492,000: Funding will be used to construct the Moloa‘a ‘AINA Center food hub, which will enable expanded local food distribution and farmer support services. (Schatz and Hirono joint request)
• Hāna Health (Maui) – $1,500,000: Funding will be used to expand the Hāna Fresh farm to grow more organic produce for patients and the local community.
• USDA Pacific Basin Agricultural Research Center (Hawai‘i Island) – $1,215,000: Funding will be used for upgrades to the federal Pacific Basin Agricultural Research Center facility in Hilo to support research and innovation on tropical fruit, vegetable, and ornamental crops. (Schatz and Hirono joint request)
• University of Hawai‘i Sea Grant College Program – $500,000: Funding will be used to facilitate public planning and engagement to identify green and nature-based infrastructure approaches for resilience in the Waikīkī watershed.
• Maunalua Fishpond Heritage Center – $400,000: Funding will support habitat restoration critical to restore the functionality of two traditional Hawaiian fishponds and springs on O‘ahu.
• Hawai‘i Department of Land and Natural Resources – $600,000: Funding will restore ten acres of wetlands along the West Loch of the degraded Pearl Harbor ecosystem to improve coastal water quality, provide habitat, and other ecosystem services.
• Hawai‘i Department of Land and Natural Resources (Hawai‘i Island) – $900,000: Funding will support the transplantation of corals from vulnerable locations to areas in West Hawai‘i Island where coral reefs have been compromised by coral bleaching and other stressors.
• County of Kaua‘i – $1,200,000: Funding will support efforts to restore a coastal wetland for flood mitigation, wildlife habitat, and water quality and other ecosystem services for neighboring communities on Kaua‘i.
• County of Maui – $180,000: Funding will improve radio capacity to provide better service from first responders in West Maui.
• The Nature Conservancy Hawai‘i and Palmyra (Maui, Hawai‘i Island, Kaua‘i) – $1,000,000: Funding will support the capacity of local communities in Maui Nui, and on O‘ahu and Hawai‘i Island to co-manage their coastal resources with federal and state partners. (Schatz, Hirono, and Kahele joint request)
• Hawai‘i Department of Land and Natural Resources – $1,000,000: Funding will increase the capacity of the State of Hawai‘i, Department of Land and Natural Resources, Division of Conservation and Resource Enforcement, with additional staffing, enforcement vessels, and training.
• University of Hawai‘i System – $2,250,000: Funding will support the development of predictive sea level rise models, economic and policy models for decision making, outreach and community engagement, and resilient landscape and community designs. (Schatz and Hirono joint request)
• YWCA Kaua‘i – $110,000: Funding will support the installation of solar and battery storage to improve energy resilience.
• Honolulu Fire Department (HFD) – $2,001,915: Funding will replace fiber glass doors at HFD fire stations. (Schatz and Case joint request)
• City and County of Honolulu – $679,000: Funding will support a pilot project to test two types of green storm water infrastructure—tree boxes and biofiltration. (Schatz and Hirono joint request)
• County of Hawai‘i, Department of Water Supply – $2,080,000: Funding will be used to drill a well that will tap into a deeper aquifer to bring high-quality water to the North Kona region. (Schatz and Hirono joint request)
• County of Hawai‘i, Department of Water Supply – $80,000: Funding will replace six large, underperforming water meters which currently lose money for the County, and understate water needs for planning purposes. (Schatz and Hirono joint request)
• County of Kaua‘i – $1,200,000: Funding will help assess the status and identify repair needs for a four mile stretch of sewage lines, ensuring this infrastructure will support homes transitioning away from cesspools. (Schatz, Hirono, and Kahele joint request)
• County of Maui – $600,000: Funding will support the expansion and use of recycled water produced by the Kīhei Wastewater Reclamation Facility.
• San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance (Hawai‘i Island) – $800,000: Funding will be used to upgrade facilities at the Keauhou Bird Conservation Center and protect endangered Hawaiian forest birds. (Schatz and Hirono joint request)
• YWCA O‘ahu – $500,000: Funding will support historic preservation of the YWCA’s Laniākea building.
• Hawai‘i Department of Land and Natural Resources, Division of Forestry and Wildlife and The Nature Conservancy (Maui, Kaua‘i) – $1,500,000: Funding will support efforts to control avian malaria and protect endangered native forest birds. (Schatz and Hirono joint request)
• Hawai‘i Department of Land and Natural Resources, Division of Forestry and Wildlife (Maui) – $1,000,000: Funding will help conserve forested watersheds in East Maui through the installation of conservation fencing, planting of native trees, and removal of invasive species.
• Hawai‘i Department of Land and Natural Resources, Division of Forestry and Wildlife – $1,000,000: Funding will be used for native species conservation projects on Maui. (Schatz and Hirono joint request)
• County of Hawai‘i – $13,000,000: Funds will support the renovation of the old Hilo Memorial Hospital. Renovations will help bring the property into county compliance to allow HOPE Services and Big Island Substance Abuse Council to continue providing critical services there. (Schatz and Hirono joint request)
• City and County of Honolulu – $10,000,000: Funding will expand the Crisis Outreach Response and Engagement (C.O.R.E) program, which Senator Schatz helped establish in 2022 with a $3,500,000 earmark. The program diverts 911 calls regarding non-violent unhoused people to a trained crisis outreach staff that can focus on providing resources, assistance, and shelter.
• Hawai‘i Department of Transportation – $10,000,000: Funds will be invested in electric buses, charging infrastructure, and new bus depots across the state. This funding will go towards Hawai‘i’s Zero Emission Bus Program to help the state accomplish its goal to achieve a zero emission economy by 2045. Senator Schatz announced an additional $55 million in federal funding for Hawai‘i’s Zero Emission Bus Program from the recent infrastructure law in August of 2022.
• City and County of Honolulu, Department of Transportation Services – $8,275,000: Funding will help the City and County of Honolulu’s Department of Transportation Services expand the HOLO transit smart card system.
• County of Kaua‘i Housing Agency – $5,000,000: Funding will add an additional half a million gallons of domestic water storage capacity and transmission to facilitate the development of affordable housing in Hanapēpē, ‘Ele‘ele, and Port Allen. (Schatz and Hirono joint request)
• City and County of Honolulu, Department of Transportation Services – $4,800,000: Funding will support the planning and preliminary design of a 30-mile bicycle and pedestrian path connecting Nānākuli and Mānoa. (Schatz and Case joint request)
• City and County of Honolulu – $3,538,000: Funding will support stable, affordable housing for persons with mental health challenges. (Schatz and Hirono joint request)
• County of Maui, Department of Transportation – $3,200,000: Funding will allow Maui County to purchase ADA compliant buses and upgrade tracking technology to allow riders to track the buses via the Maui Bus app.
• Gregory House Programs – $1,200,000: Funding will help the organization renovate Community Residential Programs, a transitional housing program that houses people living with HIV/AIDS who are transitioning out of homelessness.
• Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement – $1,053,000: Funding will expand operations of Pop-Up Mākeke, an online marketplace for Hawai‘i small businesses.
• Hawai‘i Foodbank (Kaua‘i, O‘ahu) – $1,003,000: Funding will help the Hawai‘i Foodbank purchase refrigeration equipment and vehicles for its O‘ahu and Kaua‘i warehouses, increasing its capacity to feed people in need.
• Boys & Girls Club of the Big Island – $1,000,000: Funding will support the construction of a community center in the Kea‘au-Puna district. The secured funds will help construct accessibility ramps and parking, a kitchen, generators, and an outdoor gathering space.
• The Nature Conservancy Hawai‘i and Palmyra (Maui) – $1,000,000: Funding will support the planning and community outreach phases for the Olowalu road realignment project in West Maui.
• YWCA O‘ahu – $915,000: Funding will support improvements to the Atherton Hall and Kitchen for use as a training kitchen and food business incubator.
• Kapolei Chamber of Commerce – $500,000: Funding will support the creation of the West O‘ahu Innovation and Entrepreneur Center, a small business and entrepreneur incubator in Kapolei.
• University of Hawaiʻi Cancer Center – $6,500,000: Funding will enable the construction of the new Early Phase Clinical Trial Research Center—the first and only facility of its kind in Hawaiʻi. The Center will provide individuals with cancer access to Phase I clinical trials, which is currently only available to patients and their families by flights to the contiguous states. (Schatz, Hirono, and Case joint request)
• University of Hawaiʻi – $1,000,000: Funding will support planning and infrastructure for the University of Hawai‘i’s Office of Indigenous Innovation to establish an Indigenous Data Science Hub with a living laboratory that could incubate up to 10 community-based innovation pilots in support of global resilience. (Schatz, Hirono, and Case joint request)
• YWCA of Hawai‘i Island – $1,102,000: Funding will be used to provide early intervention support for the highest risk families by healing trauma caused by adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) among new parents, as well as offering support services to enable families to provide an ACE-free childhood to their children. (Schatz and Hirono joint request)
• The Legal Clinic – $120,000: Funding will be used to provide training for law students and other attorneys on the immigration consequences of criminal convictions, and will conclude with a public education seminar on the intersection of criminal and immigration law. (Schatz and Hirono joint request)
• Hawai‘i Department of Public Safety – $900,000: Funding will be used to provide educational support for existing prison education programs at Hālawa, Kūlani, and Waiawa Correctional Facilities, partnering with Chaminade University, Hawai‘i Community College, and Windward Community College.
• Hawai‘i Department of the Attorney General – $200,000: Funding will be used to recruit 17 Sexual Assault Nurses/Forensic Examiners (SANE/SAFE), pilot a Hawai‘i State SANE/SAFE training program, and improve the coordination of medical services to victims.
• Tripler Army Medical Center – $38,000,000: Funding will be used to provide a potable water system for Tripler Army Medical Center in accordance with DoD standards for water supply and storage. (Schatz, Hirono, and Case joint request)
• Pearl Harbor Aviation Museum – $500,000: Funding will support historic preservation of Hangar 79.
• Pearl Harbor Aviation Museum – $400,000: Funding will support historic preservation of Hangar 37.
• Fort Shafter – $33,000,000: Funding will be used to construct two potable water wells and one 1-million gallon capacity above ground water storage tank, replace water lines, and modernize controls to improve water quality at Fort Shafter. (Schatz, Hirono, and Case joint request)
• Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam – $103,350,000: Funding will be used to construct three High Explosives Magazine boxes for long ordnance storage and expand perimeter security to the extent of the West Loch Annex property via a new perimeter fence, security patrol road, and entry control facilities at Joint Base Pearl Harbor Hickam. (Schatz and Hirono joint request)
• Marine Corps Base Hawai‘i – $87,900,000: Funding will be used for housing for Marines stationed at Marine Corps Base, Hawai‘i that meets current living standards and replaces 50-year old quarters. (Schatz, Hirono, and Kahele joint request)
• Schofield Barracks – $111,000,000: Funding will be used to construct facilities for four companies and a troop aid station consolidating the 2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team in the South Range District of Schofield Barracks. (Schatz and Hirono joint request)
• Schofield Barracks – $9,000,000: Funding will be used to replace a substandard facility and construct administrative, training, and dormitory space and cover for firetrucks and emergency support vehicles.