The Maui County Council has a final reading of Bill 131 on its agenda today. If passed, the bill exempts short-term rental units (STRs) from all property tax if rented to households displaced by the Aug. 8 Maui wildfires for a term of at least 12 months.

That’s a significant investment on the county’s part in enticing STR owners to convert their properties, with an estimated average of $10,000 in taxes per unit waived. But few STR owners have stepped up so far, as transient units take in more money. And the need is great: Around 2,700 households and more than 6,500 people are still being housed in hotels, mostly on Maui and some on Oahu.