Mayor Richard Bissen Jr. signs the fiscal year 2024 budget on Thursday afternoon in his office on the ninth floor of the Kalana O Maui building. Maui County / Mia A‘i photo

The Maui News

Mayor Richard Bissen Jr. signed Maui County’s $1.07 billion fiscal year 2024 budget into law on Thursday, the final step for a plan that includes a decrease in tax rates for some homeowners and millions in funding for housing and county projects.

Bissen signed the budget two days after the Maui County Council unanimously passed its final version of the budget after months of reviewing the mayor’s proposal. The final version was slightly lower than Bissen’s initial $1.08 billion proposal.

The new fiscal year begins July 1 and runs through June 30, 2024.

“I’m grateful to my team for the hard work that went into the Fiscal Year 2024 budget and for the Council’s many months of review and deliberation,” Bissen said in a news release on Thursday. “Under the leadership of Budget Chair Yuki Lei Sugimura and the long hours Council members dedicated to the process, we’re giving our islands a responsible budget. By working together as leaders in our county, we are able to reach this important day that will deliver crucial services and benefits to our islands.

The budget includes about $184 million for capital projects and infrastructure in Maui County, including War Memorial Gym building improvements, the Lahaina Civic Center rehabilitation, police radio upgrades, expansion of the Kula Agricultural Park and countywide road resurfacing, according to the county.

The budget also calls for more money for the Affordable Housing Fund by putting in 8 percent of certified real property tax revenue, which is estimated at $43 million and higher than the 3 percent mandated funding.

It also includes an additional $28.9 million for the emergency or “rainy day” fund.

Property taxes will also be lowered slightly for some homeowners under the new budget. Residents in the owner-occupied tax classification with properties valued up to $1 million will see their rates go down from $2 to $1.90 per $1,000 of net taxable assessed valuation. Those with owner-occupied properties valued from $1,000,001 to $3 million will see their rates go from $2.10 down to $2.

However, those with owner-occupied properties valued at more than $3 million will see their rates increase from $.271 to $2.75.

Property tax rates in other categories did not change as the council kept rates in line with what Bissen had proposed in March.

Water rates, however, are set to increase — single-family households could see their water bills go up by $6 a month — which the county’s water director said would help generate about $10 million in additional revenue to help pay for rising costs and projects. Hotels and resorts will also be charged a new rate of $8.12 per 1,000 gallons of water use starting Jan. 1.

The budget also includes $20 million in post-employment obligations that the county said would reduce its liability and enhance its status with credit rating agencies for future bond ratings.