NEW<\/span>You can now listen to Fox News articles!\n <\/p>\n<\/div>\n Hawaii Gov. Josh Greene is shaking up the way Americans are visiting the Aloha State by doubling down on the regulation of vacation rentals<\/a>.<\/p>\n In his State of the State address on Monday, Greene, a Democrat, announced that 10,000 rentals would be removed from the market.<\/p>\n “We also have to return more homes to local families \u2014 including short-term rentals that have taken too many units off the market,” said Greene.<\/p>\n HIGH TOURIST TAX IN HAWAII DESIGNED TO RAISE FUNDS FOR CLIMATE CHANGE CHALLENGED BY LAWSUIT<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n “In the coming years,” he added, “we will support the counties as they bring more short-term rentals back into the housing market \u2014 so that more homes go to local families, not absentee investors.”<\/p>\n In May 2024, the governor signed legislation allowing counties to regulate short-term rentals<\/a> with the goal of providing more affordable housing.<\/p>\n Most recently, the Maui County Council passed a bill on Dec. 15 to phase out thousands of “transient vacation rentals” in apartment districts for the longer term, following the recovery from the devastating wildfires<\/a> in 2023.<\/p>\n CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR OUR LIFESTYLE NEWSLETTER<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n There were nearly 9 million visitors to the state in the first 11 months of 2025, according to preliminary statistics from Hawaii\u2019s Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism (DBEDT).<\/p>\n Tourism numbers were slightly down by .2% compared to the same time period in 2024.<\/p>\n Hawaii\u2019s “Green Fee” bill was set to raise tourist taxes substantially to help fund “climate change” mitigation this year, but a judge halted the provision.\u00a0<\/span> (iStock)<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Visitor spending in the month of November rose 15.9%, with the Aloha State raking in $1.77 billion,\u00a0according to DBEDT.<\/p>\n Hawaii\u2019s “Green Fee” bill<\/a> was set to raise tourist taxes quite substantially to help fund “climate change” mitigation this year \u2014 but a judge has halted the provision.\u00a0<\/p>\n CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n The Cruise Lines International Association<\/a> (CLIA), along with a cruise ship supplier, filed a\u00a0lawsuit in early September<\/a>\u00a0challenging state tax and county finance officials in the\u00a0Aloha State, as Fox News Digital previously reported.<\/p>\n On Dec. 31, the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals issued an injunction pending appeal.\u00a0<\/p>\n The incident happened in Hawaii’s Waiapua\u2018a Bay.<\/span> (iStock)<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n It temporarily blocks enforcement of the cruise-ship tax while the\u00a0appeals proceed<\/a>, The Associated Press (AP) reported.<\/p>\n The Transient Accommodations Tax (TAT) was going to raise fees on tourists who\u00a0stay at Hawaii hotels<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 while imposing a new 11% tax on cruises, according to the text of the bill.<\/p>\n![\"hawaii](\"https:\/\/a57.foxnews.com\/static.foxnews.com\/foxnews.com\/content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/1200\/675\/hawaii-tourist.jpg?ve=1&tl=1\")
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