In 2015, the state Legislature and then-Gov. David Ige vaulted Hawaii to the forefront of states’ efforts to combat global warming, mandating 100% renewable energy in Hawaii by 2045. In 2019, the state put its Energy Office out front toward this policy, creating a Cabinet-level director, reporting to the governor, and making the office independent of the Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism (DBEDT). In 2022, the Energy Office was further charged with developing a “pathway to decarbonization” by phasing out use of fossil fuels.

This year, though, senators made a bid to kneecap the Energy Office with Senate Bill 3282, reinstating it as a division of DBEDT. The bill, a clear bid to grab power from the Governor’s Office, deletes “approval of the governor” as a prerequisite for setting energy agency goals. Instead, the bill attempted to have Energy Office reports be made directly to the Legislature, and took away appointment power for the agency’s chief from the governor.

It’s a blatant effort to take control of Hawaii’s energy policy, put the energy agency on a leash and diminish, if not end outright, the state’s current focus on aggressively developing renewable energy sources and eliminating carbon pollution. That’s a wrong-headed idea, and bad legislation, wasting valuable legislative bandwidth with so many other important issues to tackle.

To the House’s credit, SB 3282 hasn’t been scheduled for a hearing after crossover. However, considering the threat the bill poses to the continuance and momentum of Hawaii’s energy policy, it deserves criticism.

Alarmingly, SB 3282 deletes every reference to “decarbonization” as an agency goal, and also rubs out “distributed energy resources,” such as rooftop solar connected to the electric grid. And it requires a state energy plan to include “strategies and actions” that match one-, five-, 10-, and 15-year forecasts of Hawaii’s energy use; while having benchmarks is reasonable, the implication here is that the state’s goal of deriving all its energy from low- to no-carbon emitting renewable sources is misplaced.

SB 3282’s chief champion, Sen. Donovan Dela Cruz, has often been critical of state Energy Office activity and at odds with decarbonization priorities. After the state Public Utilities Commission rejected biomass power plant project Hu Honua on Hawaii island because of its projected carbon emissions, Dela Cruz led the Senate’s rejection of Scott Glenn, who had been Energy Office chief at that time, from appointment as Hawaii Office of Planning and Sustainable Development director. Now comes this strike.

But for those favoring steadfast decarbonization — necessary in today’s age of rapid climate change — the Energy Office has been an ally. In December, the Energy Office submitted its “Hawaii Pathways to Decarbonization” report to the Legislature, with an approving nod to a carbon tax, but bills to enable this never reached crossover. Other initiatives include testing for geothermal energy sources on Oahu, Maui and Hawaii island.

Under current Director Mark Glick, Energy Office reports document an aggressive, ongoing search for federal funding that could also be gummed up by restraining its autonomy and nimbleness. That would interfere with efforts to improve reliability and security of the grid, such as the agency’s pursuit of an energy efficiency grant of $250 million to fund a statewide, sensor-based system that shuts off power during wildfires.

Ige and the Legislature rightly put Hawaii on a path to energy independence, and it will be a steep climb — but one that needs perseverance. The state’s moves to get there will surely require debate, but using the Energy Office as a pawn is a losing move.