The City Council’s Zoning & Housing Committee is hearing Res. 17-52, which would help the County rein in the growing number of illegal vacation rental operations. The hearing is on Thursday, April 6 at 9:00a at the Honolulu Hale Committee Meeting Room.

Currently, there are an estimated 33,000 homes being used as vacation rentals in the state. On Oahu, there are an estimated 6,789 vacation rentals—the majority of which are illegal. Each month, there have been an average of 399 new vacation rentals listed.

Res. 17-52 would accomplish several important goals, including:

• Making it very clear that operating or advertising an illegal vacation rental is illegal so the City can effectively enforce existing laws.
• Allowing neighbors living within 1,000 feet of an alleged illegal vacation rental to get the city to investigate it or to address the problem themselves in district court.
• Setting aside funds for enforcement of vacation rental regulations.
• Requiring “hosting platforms” like Airbnb to be transparent with their data so the city can determine which of their listings are illegal or not.

Submit testimony in SUPPORT of Res. 17-52 before 9:00a on Thursday, April 6. Tell City Council to protect our affordable housing!

You can testify in person, or just submit written testimony. Here are two ways you can submit testimony:

• Visit the City Council website:
  • Fill out your name, phone number, and email
  • Meeting date is 4/6/17
  • Council/PH Committee is “Council”
  • Agenda item is Resolution 17-52
  • Your position on the matter: Support
  • You can register in person at the hearing, or not
  • Write your testimony in the box, or attach it as a .doc, .docx, or .pdf
• Email your testimony using the form below, with the Zoning & Housing Committee members CCed:

This action has expired and the email form is no longer available.

Wednesday, March 8, 2017

4:30p – 6:30p

• 4:30p – Meet at Magic Island
• 5:00p – Begin march to Trump Hotel Waikiki
• 5:45p – Rally & Program at Trump Hotel Waikiki (223 Saratoga Rd, Honolulu, HI 96815)

Organized by the AiKea Movement, UNITE HERE Local 5, Women’s March Hawai’i, and the Hawaii State Teachers Association (HSTA).

Historically, International Women’s Day has focused on the working conditions of women. Women and people of color experience workplace injury, sexual harassment, unequal pay, and other forms of injustice at higher rates.

Wear red and bring signs (see below for more information on signs.) For more information, view the Facebook event, or email [email protected].

#ShePersisted

For the action, we are making signs to honor women workers with the slogan “She Persisted,” made (in)famous after Senator Mitch McConnell silenced Senator Elizabeth Warren in the middle of her speech.

We welcome you to make your own signs, honoring the strong and persistent women in your life. If you would like us to help you make a sign, send a photo of a woman you would like to honor to [email protected].

About International Women’s Day

The first International Woman’s Day (IWD) was observed in 1911. Weeks later, the tragic Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire in New York City took the lives of 146 working women, most of them immigrants.

This disastrous event drew significant attention to working conditions and labor legislation in the U.S. that became a focus of subsequent International Women’s Day events. The International Ladies’ Garment Workers’ Union (ILGU) successfully fought for better wages, benefits, and working conditions.

Women workers today

ILGU later became the Union of Needletrades, Industrial and Textile Employees (UNITE) in 1995. Then in 2004, it merged with Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees Union (HERE) in 2004 to create a new union known as UNITE HERE. In Hawai’i, UNITE HERE Local 5 represents over 10,000 workers in the hospitality, healthcare, and food service industries.

Women workers have made a lot of progress since the start of IWD, but more work needs to be done to create safe and equitable working conditions for women.

Click here for a printable half-page flyer (PDF).

Two Senate Committees will be hearing 3 bills dealing with illegal vacation rentals in Hawai’i. The hearing is on Friday, February 3 at 1:25p at the State Capitol, Conference Room 414.

Did you know there are an estimated 33,000 homes being used as vacation rentals in the state? And that in 2 years, that number is projected to jump to 40,000?

You may remember that last year, we successfully defeated HB1850, a bill supported by Airbnb that would have allowed illegal vacation rentals to continue to negatively impact our housing, our economy, and our neighborhoods.

Airbnb is now supporting SB1087, a bill that is nearly identical to HB150. We urge you to submit testimony OPPOSING SB1087.  

The other 2 bills, SB1281 and SB1202, are a step in the right direction, but need some fixing. Submit testimony in SUPPORT of SB1281 and SB1202 with comments.

Please submit testimony by TOMORROW (Thursday, February 2) before 1:25p. If you can testify in person at the hearing, please do!

Learn more about the negative impact of illegal vacation rentals.

You can directly submit testimony by filling out this form on our website:

This action has expired and the email form is no longer available.

 

Friday, January 20, 2017

10:00a – 7:00p

Multiple locations in Honolulu

Friday January, 20th – Inaguration Day – will be A Day of Resistance.

We invite you to join us in inaugurating resistance on inauguration day. It is time to defend ourselves, our loved ones, and the world that sustains us. Our lives + futures depend on it.

Take off work for the day, and ask your coworkers to do the same.

This will be a time for Oahu to prove our solidarity against the policies and promises made during the Trump campaign.

Most importantly it will be a time for us to collectively stragetize on a productive path forward.

Schedule for January 20th:

12 to 2:30pm / Teach-in at UH Manoa

2:30 to 3:00pm (start time contingent on location) / March begins

route 1 starts at UH Manoa Campus Center (gather at Diamond Head steps)
route 2 starts at Ala Moana Park : Atkinson/Ala Moana (gather at entrance to Ala Moana)
route 3 starts at intersection of Kalakaua/Kapahulu (gather at Honolulu Zoo)
route 4 starts at intersection of King/Kalakaua (gather at park at Kaheka/King)

4:00pm / Converge at Waikiki Gateway Park

5:00pm / March to Trump Tower, then along Kalakaua Avenue toward Waikiki Shell

7:00pm / Free Concert at Waikiki Shell

Facebook event.

Hawaii J20 website.