Hawaii Quick Facts

The Aloha State

The following information is presented here courtesy of the Hawaii Dept. of Business, Economic Development and Tourism.

• Discovered by Polynesian settlers between the 3rd and 7th centuries A.D. and later by British Captain James Cook in 1778.
• Hawaii became the 50th state on August 21, 1959.
• Honolulu, the capital city, is on the Island of Oahu.

Hawaii's Eight Major Islands:

Hawaii is a string of 137 islands encompassing a land area of 6,423.4 square miles in the north central Pacific Ocean about 2,400 miles from the west coast of the continental United States. Stretching from northwest to southeast, the major islands are:

• Niihau
• Kauai
• Oahu
• Molokai
• Lanai
• Kahoolawe
• Maui
• Hawaii.

Hawaii's climate features mild temperatures, moderate humidity and cooling tradewinds.

State Flower: Yellow hibiscus (pua ma'o hau hele; Hibiscus brackenridgei)

State Bird: Hawaiian goose (nene; Brantasandvicensis)

State Tree: Candlenut (kukui; Aleuritesmoluccana)

State Song: Hawaii Pono'i

State Seal and Motto: Ua mau ke ea o ka ama i ka pono (The life of the land is perpetuated in righteousness)

Hawaii's People:

Population (1998): 1,193,001

Kauai County(1998): 56,603

Kauai Island (1990): 50,947

Niihau (1990): 230

City & County of Honolulu (1998): 872,478

Maui County (1998): 120,785

Maui Island (1995): 105,336

Molokai (1995): 6,838

Lanai (1995): 2,989

Hawaii County (1998): 143,135

De facto population (1998): 1,321,098 persons physically present, e.g., excludes residents temporarily absent

Population density (1998): 205.7 people per square mile (based on de facto population)

Number of households (1996): 388,509 with an average of 2.96 persons per household

The population is 50% male and 50% female.

Median age (1997): Males, 35.7- Females, 36.7 years.

Age breakdown (1997):

• Under 5 (7.5%)
• 5-19 (20.9)
• 20-44(37.3)
• 45-64 (21.2)
• 65+ (13.2)

Ethnicity (1998):

• Caucasian (22%)
• Hawaiian/part Hawaiian (21)
• Japanese (18)
• Filipino (13)
• Chinese (3)
• Black (1)
• Hispanic origin (1990) (7.3)

Marriages (1997): 19,901 (56% were nonresidents and 44.8 % were interracial

Divorces and annulments (1997): 4,877

Life expectancy (1990): Males, 78.8 years; Females, 82.0 years

Education (1996): 84% of the population are high school graduates; 24% have a bachelors or advanced degree.

Hawaii's Government

Governor: Linda Lingle

Lieutenant Governor: James R. (Duke) Aiona Jr.

Legislature: 51-member House and 25-member Senate which meets annually.

There are four counties with mayors and councils:

City and County of Honolulu (the Island of Oahu and the Northwest Hawaiian Islands excluding Midway)

Hawaii County (Hawaii Island)

Maui County (Islands of Maui, Molokai, Lanai and Kahoolawe)

Kauai County (Islands of Kauai and and Niihau)

Hawaii has only two levels of government; state and county. Counties perform most services usually assigned to cities and towns (fire protection, refuse collection, construction and maintenance of streets and other public works). There is only one school district which is administered by the State.

Congressional members: U.S. Senate: Daniel K. Inouye, Daniel K. Akaka U.S. Representative: Patsy T. Mink, Neil Abercrombie

Hawaii's Economy

Gross State Product (1998) $34.9 billion

Major export industries:

• Visitor expenditures (1997): $10.8 billion
• Federal defense spending (1998): $4.1 billion
• Sugar and pineapple (1997): $269.2 million

The State of Hawaii is committed to diversifying Hawaii's economy. Industries encouraged are science and technology, film and television production, sports, ocean research and development, health and education tourism, diversified agriculture and floral and specialty food products.

Tourism

Visitors staying overnight or longer (1998): 6,738,230

By country (1997):

• Mainland U.S., 3.7 million
• Japan, 2.1 million
• Other Asia, 305,000
• Canada, 327,000
• Europe, 262,000

Visitor expenditures (1997): $10.8 billion

Average daily visitor expenditure (1997):

• Mainland U.S., $157
• Japan, $279

Total hotel and condominium units (1998): 71,480

• Oahu 36,206
• Hawaii 9,655
• Maui 17,711
• Molokai 570
• Lanai 369
• Kauai 6,969

State hotel occupancy rate (1998): 72.0%

• Oahu (73.8)
• Hawaii (68.2)
• Maui (72.8)
• Molokai (43.1)
• Kauai (67 0)

Average daily room rate (1998): $140.63

• Oahu ($122.83)
• Hawaii ($157.64)
• Maui ($161.37)
• Molokai ($75.46)
• Kauai ($154 20).

A significant event in 1998 that impacts the visitor industry is the opening of the Hawaii Convention Center.

Federal Expenditures

• Total federal expenditures (1998): $8.4 billion
• Military personnel and dependents (1998): 101,311

The Hawaii-based U.S. Pacific Command (USPACOM) is geographically the largest of the U.S. unified service commands. It covers about 50% of the earth's surface from the U.S. West Coast to Africa's east coast and from the Arctic to the Antarctic.

Agriculture

Once Hawaii's primary source of income, agriculture remains a significant contributor.

Value of crop and livestock sales (1997): $485 7 million

Major crops (1997):

• Sugar, $85.5 million
• Pineapple, $91.7 million
• Flower and nursery products $68.2 million
• Macadamia nuts, $43.5 million
• Coffee, $28 2 million
• Milk, $29.5 million
• Cattle, $14.3 million
• Eggs, $12. 9 million

Aquaculture farms statewide (1996): 117 small or medium - sized operations, often diversified.

Overall value of aquaculture (1996): $15.7 million; value of shellfish production, $4.3 million.

Exports and Imports

Hawaii's Foreign -Trade Zone No. 9 is one of the most successful trade zone programs in the United States. In 1998, the Zone was used by 279 businesses handling $2.1 billion worth of merchandise and providing 6,370 jobs.

Retail Trade

Retail sales (1998): $15.7 billion

Hawaii's retail establishments include discount outlet malls, big box outlets and national and international chain stores.

Labor Force

Unemployment rate (1998): 6 2%

• Oahu (5.4)
• Hawaii (9.7)
• Maui (6.6)
• Molokai (15 0)
• Lanai (3.5)
• Kauai (9.8)

Civilian labor force (1998): 597,050

• Composition of labor force (1998) Male, 53%; Female, 47%
• Civilian employment (1998): 559,750
• Annual wages per private employee (1997): $26,978

In 1997, 8.7% of employed persons held multiple jobs. Hawaii's economy is service-oriented with hotels and other service providers accounting for more than one-fourth of the jobs. About three in ten civilian workers are professional or managerial. Government and retailing account for half the number of employees. Hawaii's workforce is skilled in Asian languages and business protocol.

Labor-Management Relations

• Minimum wage (1998): $5.25 per hour
• Principal unions: AFL-CIO, Teamsters, International
• Longshoremen's and Warehousemen's Union (ILWU).
• Largest memberships: Hawaii Government Employees Association, ILWU, and Teamsters.
• Labor union membership (1997): 170,399
• In 1998, 26.5% of those employed were union members.

Financial Institutions and Investments

• Banks (1998): 6 with 191 branches
• Savings and loan associations (1998): 3 with 97 branches
• Publicly traded Hawaii companies: 26

All major U.S. securities firms are represented.

Business Firms

• Domestic corporations and partnerships on record (1998): 38,231
• Non-Hawaii corporations: 7,731
• Non-Hawaii partnerships 8,177
• New domestic corporations formed: 2,983

Business starts (1998): 593

Business failures (1997): 630

Employers by industry (1997):

• Service (36%)
• Retail (23)
• Manufacturing (3)

Most of Hawaii's businesses are small. 53% have fewer than five employees and 95% have fewer than 50 employees.

The Hawaii Small Business Regulatory Flexibility Act was passed in 1998 to ease the process of creating and operating a business.