On March 21, 2025, the Maui County Council passed Bill 105 CD1 on second and final reading, a county code amendment that alters the treatment of nonconforming structures and uses following the wildfire disaster.

The measure amends sections of the Maui County Code dealing with nonconformities to provide additional time in certain circumstances to resume or rebuild uses that had been interrupted. Council debate focused on whether transient vacation rentals (short-term rentals) should be allowed to resume after a discontinuation of 12 consecutive months and on whether disaster-impacted property owners should receive special treatment.

Vice Chair Yukine Sugimura proposed an amendment to insert a clause protecting owners who had received written confirmation from the planning department before Dec. 30, 2015, allowing them additional time to resume nonconforming uses. That amendment was seconded but later withdrawn by the mover after extended discussion and receipt of advice from county counsel and outside legal counsel on the law's operation. County legal counsel explained that under existing law, a nonconforming use discontinued for 12 consecutive months ordinarily loses the right to resume; the bill provides an extended period for certain disaster-impacted properties, with an explicit carve-out in prior committee action that transient vacation rental uses would not be given the extended period except for an exception for owner-occupied units.

Opponents of the bill during the floor debate said the measure would prioritize short-term rental interests and visitor accommodations over housing for residents still displaced by the wildfires. Council member Paulton said the proposal was "a slap in the face to the hundreds of people that testified in support of phasing out nonconforming transient vacation rentals in support of residents housing." Council member Rollins Fernandez said he would vote no, stressing the need to prioritize housing for residents of West Maui and other affected communities.

Supporters argued the measure would help property owners and institutions, such as some churches and long-established uses, to rebuild and return to service. After debate and a request to suspend supplemental rules to consider additional paperwork, the amendment proposed by Vice Chair Sugimura was withdrawn and the council proceeded to a final vote. The clerk read the motion to pass Bill 105 CD1 on second and final reading, and the measure passed by voice vote; the meeting record shows the motion carried.

The change is notable for its policy implications in wildfire-affected areas: it alters the timeline and conditions under which disrupted nonconforming uses may be resumed, and the debate highlighted the competing goals of housing for residents and property owner rights in post-disaster recovery.