Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi’s administration is evaluating the authority provided to the counties under a new state law that allows counties to phase out short-term rentals as well as regulate their “time, place and manner.”

But its current focus is stepping up enforcement of Ordinance 22-7, which the city Department of Planning and Permitting introduced in 2021, and remains a high priority.

Scott Humber, spokesperson for Blangiardi, told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser that the city has created a short-term-rental branch made up of three full-time investigators who “focus solely on STR enforcement against illegal STRs that are not within the designated resort areas that were mapped and determined under Ord. 22-7.”

He added that DPP is in the beginning of a six-month implementation of an STR platform — Granicus — that provides STR registration functionality as well as online enforcement. The city also has added tools that residents can use to comply with the city’s STR policies and aid in enforcement.

Humber said that as of Oct. 1 there were 1,148 registered STRs, not including the 800 short-term rentals that operate under nonconforming use certificates.

“Due to STR registration expirations (annual registration renewals are required), the 1,148 number has since dipped but is expected to go up. Based on the resort areas, we believe there are STR units that are operating and are not registered that should be registered,” he said. “We will begin to enforce upon those who are operating but not registered after establishing administrative rules and full implementation of the new STR platform software.”

Humber said “community awareness of legal and illegal STR operations assists DPP in its enforcement,” so the city has set up an STR information page. To visit, go to bit.ly/4eA04kq.

He said DPP also recently created a map, bit.ly/3VRCKHI, where the public can check to see whether a property is legally registered as an STR or has STR violations and pending fines.

Humber said the public can report suspected illegal STR activity at bit.ly/4exJfqv. He added that DPP is working with a collections agency to enforce against outstanding STR fines.

Humber said the passage of Ordinance 22-7 has allowed DPP to regulate STRs “to ensure they are located in the appropriate resort areas rather than residential neighborhoods, and operate legally under conditions that minimize negative impacts.”

“Local residents appreciate that STRs are no longer generally allowed in residential neighborhoods, and can therefore better tolerate and extend their aloha to rather than feeling overridden by tourists, which creates a more supportive community for tourism on Oahu,” he said.

Still, catching violators remains challenging.

Humber said, “The DPP is faced with illegal STR operators that find new ways to evade enforcement through electronic means, for instance, changing advertisements when DPP investigators are not at work or blocking DPP investigators from online advertisements. The new STR platform will help to combat this type of behavior.

“Also, some repeat STR offenders instruct their customers to not talk to or provide false information to investigators,” he said. “Some STR offenders see STR violations as a cost of doing business and will continue to violate the law.”

From Jan. 1 to May 7, Humber said, the city received 378 requests to investigate illegal short-term rentals. He said the city issued 187 notices of violation and referred 101 of the 187 for fines.

Humber said DPP has had an influx of appeals of STR violations and fines to the Building Board of Appeals, which are backlogged to 2026.

He added that “in every case that has been heard, the city has prevailed and upheld these violations.”