Hawaii state and county officials seeking $1B from Legislature for Maui recovery

HONOLULU (AP) — Hawaii state and county officials are requesting about $1 billion from the Legislature to help cover Maui wildfire recovery expenses in the near term. The Honolulu Star-Advertiser reports that the state had budgeted $199 million for such expenses but now expects it may need $561 million under a “worst-case” scenario. The budget discussions come more than six months after the Aug. 8 wildfire killed 101 people, destroyed the historic town of Lahaina and rendered thousands of people homeless. One major reason for the jump in expenses is the greater-than-expected costs for fire survivors deemed ineligible for federal assistance by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.