West

Hawai‘i

As a small island state with non-energy intensive industries and a mild climate, Hawai‘i ranks almost last for both total and per capita energy consumption among all states. The state was the first to legally commit to a zero-emissions economy by 2045 and has decreased emissions by 19% from 2005-2022. Both in-state electricity generation and consumption are dominated by petroleum, with about a quarter of generation coming from renewables, a majority of which is solar. Hawai‘i has the highest average electricity price of any state because of high fuel import costs and its isolated island grids.

GHG Reduction Targets

All targets relative to 2005 levels

2030

50%

2045

Carbon negative

Governor

Josh Green (Democrat)

House Party

Democratic Supermajority

Senate Party

Democratic Supermajority

Legislative session

1/15/25 - 5/2/25

US Climate Alliance Status

Member

Key Offices & Links

26

Policies Enacted or In Progress

across 6 policy areas

See all

41

Policy Opportunities

across 6 policy areas

See all

West

11 states

This map shows the occurrence of climate policies passed at the state-level. Higher numbers represent more climate policies enacted.

Compare with other states

Progress by Policy Area

Enacted Enacted policies have been passed or established in a state by a governing body via legislation, executive orders, rules, regulations, and/or other program creation, and remain in effect.
In-progress In progress policies have been established in a state, but final regulations, rules, or plans are pending final approval. This also includes legislation and executive orders that require regulations to be put into effect.
Partially Enacted Partially enacted policies have been enacted in the state, but are missing one or more policy components. Dashboard policies cannot be considered partially enacted unless policy components are available.
Not Enacted Not enacted policies have not been passed or established in the state or are no longer in effect.

Glossary of Terms

The colored bars indicate the status for each policy on the Dashboard, viewed across seven policy areas.

Status	Policy	Policy Area	Policy Category	Year Enacted
Enacted	Residential Energy Codes Empty column The statewide energy code for residential construction is 2018 IECC with amendments. Establishing Policies Hawai‘i State Energy Code (2021)	Buildings and Efficiency	Building Codes	2021
Enacted	Commercial Energy Codes Empty column The statewide energy code for commercial building construction is 2018 IECC and ASHRAE 90.1-2016. Establishing Policies Hawai‘i State Energy Code (2021)	Buildings and Efficiency	Building Codes	2021
Not Enacted	Stretch Building Energy Codes Empty column Stretch building energy codes are an optional, more stringent building code established by the state that local jurisdictions can adopt to require that newly constructed buildings are more efficient than the baseline state codes.	Buildings and Efficiency	Building Codes
Enacted	Appliance Standards Empty column The Hawai‘i Appliance Efficiency Standards apply to 10 products. Establishing Policies Act 141 (2019) SB 691 (2023) HB 192 (2023) Hawai‘i Appliance Efficiency Standards (2023)	Buildings and Efficiency	Building Standards	2023
In-Progress	Building Performance Standards Empty column Hawai‘i will receive $18.1M to develop and adopt a building performance standard through the federal Inflation Reduction Act's Support for Building Energy Codes and Innovative Codes. Establishing Policies Inflation Reduction Act Support for Building Energy Codes and Innovative Codes – Round 1 (2024)	Buildings and Efficiency	Building Standards
Not Enacted	Clean Heat Standards Empty column Clean heat standards establish a performance standard requiring heat providers to deliver a gradually-increasing percentage of low-emission heating services to customers.	Buildings and Efficiency	Building Standards
Enacted	Energy Efficiency Resource Standards (EERS) Empty column Electric utilities are required to achieve a 6,000 gigawatt-hour reduction in electricity use by 2045. The Public Utilities Commission is required to establish additional interim targets for electricity use reduction by 2035 and 2040. Establishing Policies HRS §269-96 (2009) HB 1051 (2025) Hawaii Energy Efficiency Portfolio Standard	Buildings and Efficiency	Building Efficiency	2025
Enacted	Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) Empty column Hawai‘i has enacted commercial PACE-enabling legislation and has an active program. Establishing Policies HB 2088 (2022) Hawaiʻi C-PACER Program	Buildings and Efficiency	Building Efficiency	2022
Partially Enacted	Weatherization Funding Empty column The State Policy Opportunity Tracker (SPOT) breaks clean energy policies down into “components”, which are binary questions to evaluate policy quality. Higher quality policies have more of their SPOT components fulfilled. Establishing Policies SPOT - Weatherization Funding in Hawai‘i Policy Components not-enacted enacted not-enacted not-enacted 1/4	Buildings and Efficiency	Building Efficiency
Not Enacted	All-Electric Buildings Empty column All-electric buildings policies require new buildings to be constructed with all-electric heating, cooling, and cooking systems to transition away from fossil-fuel use in buildings.	Buildings and Efficiency	Building Electrification
Not Enacted	Thermal Energy Networks Empty column Thermal energy networks are neighborhood-scale energy projects that allow multiple buildings to be connected through a shared network of underground pipes to distribute heating and cooling, often using renewable energy sources like geothermal or waste heat. State policymakers can create an enabling regulatory structure, and may also commission pilots, allow cost recovery, or create mandates to help transition from natural gas.	Buildings and Efficiency	Building Electrification

Hawai‘i

Key Offices & Links

26

41

West

Progress by Policy Area

Climate Governance and Equity

Cross-Sector

Electricity

Buildings and Efficiency

Transportation

Industry, Materials, and Waste Management

Natural and Working Lands

Climate Policies in Hawai‘i