City officials announced today that the portal for Honolulu’s Rental and Utility Relief Program will be temporarily paused after receiving 5,000 new applications.

The city program helps households that have been hit hardest financially by the COVID-19 pandemic to pay their rent, utility, or both.

The pause is in place in order to allow the city’s community partners to process applications and distribute funds to landlords and utility companies.

The next reopening date will be announced after the City and County of Honolulu and its partners evaluate this round of applications. Those who have started their applications, however, should continue to submit their materials using the personalized account they created.

Officials said the program has, to date, helped approximately 7,000 Oahu households with $58 million since opening in April. The city expects to spend a total of $180 million for the program.

The temporarily paused portal at oneoahu.org/renthelp is accepting sign-ups for notification of when it reopens. To find more support services offered by the city, its government partners, and nonprofits, visit oneoahu.org/resources.