The Maui County Councils Budget, Finance & Economic Development Committee on Sunday approved several targeted reductions and supplemental transfers intended to narrow its proposed FY26 budget above the mayors submission.

Committee members approved a package of cuts and adjustments that includes a $5 million reduction to post-employment obligations (OPEB), a $1 million decrease tied to firefighter temporary hazard pay, and 10% across‑the‑board reductions to selected countywide capital improvement program (CIP) appropriations for public works and facilities. The committee also approved shortening funding for certain expansion positions (department hires) from eight months to four months to reduce near‑term appropriations.

The committee began the recessed session by reviewing the budget imbalance, which staff said originated from the committees current proposal exceeding the mayors March 25 submission by roughly $92.6 million across funds before actions were taken. Staff later reported the committee had reduced the gap substantially through motions adopted during the meeting; after the days actions staff reported an outstanding general‑fund imbalance in the low tens of millions (staff later refined that figure to roughly $22.2 million). Committee chair Yuki Lei Sugimura opened the session noting the meeting was a recess to finish deliberations.

Why it matters: The adjustments move the committee closer to a balanced FY26 budget without undoing all program additions members previously requested. The motions affect both operating obligations (for example, OPEB and hazard pay) and capital projects, so they can alter near‑term service delivery or the schedule of infrastructure work if departments come back for budget amendments.

Key votes and actions
- OPEB / firefighter hazard pay: Councilmember Tamara Paulton moved to reduce OPEB (post‑employment obligations) by $5,000,000 and to decrease temporary firefighter hazard pay funding by $1,000,000. Chair Sugimura seconded; the motion passed on roll call (7 ayes, 1 no, 1 excused/recused). The committee clarified the vote left an estimate of $6–8 million still available for hazard pay overall, but reduced the immediate appropriation.

- Member Paulton package: Councilmember Paulton presented a supplemental package of cuts (initially summarized as a $31.1 million worksheet but later reconciled by staff as a $23.2 million net decrease from the exhibit the morning of the recess). The committee voted to adopt the package as amended; the main adoption passed on roll call (8 ayes, 1 no).

- CIP percentage cuts: The committee considered two approaches to reduce CIP spending: (1) percentage cuts to keep projects intact but shrink funding amounts, and (2) replacing line-item amounts with a lump “pot” for departments to draw from. Bond counsel and the budget director advised against removing per‑project amounts from the ordinance at this time. The committee approved 10% reductions on selected public‑works and facilities countywide CIP lines (motions carried by roll call margins reported as 6–3 and 7–2 respectively for different sets of items). Directors told the committee they could absorb a 10% reduction and would return for budget amendments if individual projects needed additional funds.

- Expansion positions: The committee approved a motion to fund some expansion positions for four months rather than eight, producing approximately $970,021 in near‑term savings (civilian fringe not yet included in that figure); members voted in favor by voice (recorded as 9 ayes).

- Emergency fund: The committee reduced the administrations proposed emergency reserve by $5,000,000 (motion carried by voice vote; later recorded as 9 ayes) after members negotiated and agreed on a smaller reduction than initially proposed.

Process notes and next steps
Committee staff and the budget director exchanged calculations throughout the session; staff asked for time to reconcile minor spreadsheet differences and fringe benefit impacts. Members agreed to reconvene the following day for corrections and to finalize the committee report prior to the council deadlines. Chair Sugimura asked staff to post exhibit updates and provide a one‑page summary of net changes for members.

Attribution: Quotes and attributions in this article are drawn from Committee Chair Yuki Lei Sugimura, Councilmember Tamara Paulton and Budget Director Leslie Milner as identified in the meeting transcript.

Ending: The committee recessed and planned to reconvene the next day to finalize the package and complete required publish/post deadlines.