Hawaiʻi County, Hawaii

Hawaiʻi County (Hawaiian: Kalana o Hawaiʻi; officially known as the County of Hawaiʻi) is a county in the U.S. state of Hawaii in the Hawaiian Islands. It is coextensive with the Island of Hawaiʻi, often called the "Big Island" to distinguish it from the state as a whole. The 2020 Census population was 200,629. The county seat is Hilo. There are no incorporated cities in Hawaiʻi County (see list of counties in Hawaii). The Hilo Micropolitan Statistical Area includes all of Hawaiʻi County. Hawaiʻi County has a mayor–council form of government. In terms of geography, Hawaiʻi County is the most expansive county in the state and the most southerly county in the United States.

The mayor of Hawaiʻi County is Kimo Alameda, who took office in 2024. Legislative authority is vested in the nine-member Hawaiʻi County Council.

Hawaiʻi County is one of seven counties in the United States to share the same name as the state they are in (the other six are Arkansas County, Idaho County, Iowa County, New York County, Oklahoma County, and Utah County).

Geography

Hawaiʻi County has a total area of 5,086.70 square miles (13,174.5 km2); 4,028.02 square miles (10,432.5 km2) is land and 1,058.69 square miles (2,742.0 km2) is water (mostly all off the ocean shoreline but counted in the total area by the U.S. Census Bureau). The county's land area comprises 62.7 percent of the state's land area. It is the highest percentage by any county in the United States. (Delaware's Sussex County comes in second at 48.0 percent, while Rhode Island's Providence County is third at 39.55 percent.)

Major highways

• Route 11
• Route 19
• Route 130
• Route 132
• Route 137
• Route 190
• Route 200
• Route 250
• Route 270
• Route 2000

Adjacent county

• Maui County - northwest

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 200,629, 73,021 households, and 88,691 housing units. Of the residents, 20.9% were under the age of 18 and 22.7% were 65 years of age or older; the median age was 44.3 years, with men being 43.6 and women being 45. For every 100 females there were 99.6 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 97.9 males. 40.5% of residents lived in urban areas and 59.5% lived in rural areas.

The racial makeup of the county was 33.6% White, 0.6% Black or African American, 0.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 19.7% Asian, 14.0% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 2.0% from some other race, and 29.5% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 11.1% of the population.

There were 73,021 households in the county, of which 29.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 24.8% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 25.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. There were 88,691 housing units, of which 17.7% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 69.5% were owner-occupied and 30.5% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.0% and the rental vacancy rate was 9.6%. The most commonly reported ancestries were Native Hawaiian (29.6%), Filipino (20.8%), Japanese (16.9%), German (13.1%), English (12.5%), and Irish (11.9%).

2010 census

As of 2010[update], the island had a resident population of 185,079. There were 64,382 households in the county. The population density was 17.7/km2 (46/mi2). There were 82,324 housing units at an average density of 8/km2 (21/mi2). The racial makeup of the county was 34.5% White, 29.2% from two or more races, 22.6% Asian, 12.4% Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander and 0.7% African American; 11.8% of the population were Hispanics or Latinos of any race. The largest ancestry groups were:

• 9.8% Japanese
• 9.6% German
• 8.6% Filipino
• 8.5% Native Hawaiian
• 8.3% Portuguese
• 6.9% Irish
• 5.7% English
• 5.1% Puerto Rican
• 3.2% Mexican
• 2.5% French
• 2.2% Italian
• 1.9% Spanish
• 1.7% Scottish
• 1.5% Scotch-Irish
• 1.5% Swedish
• 1.1% Polish
• 1.1% Dutch
• 1.0% Norwegian

There were 64,382 households, out of which 32.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.6% were married couples living together, 13.2% had a woman whose husband did not live with her, and 30.4% were non-families. 23.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.75 and the average family size was 3.24.

The age distribution was 26.1% under 18, 8.2% from 18 to 24, 26.2% from 25 to 44, 26.0% from 45 to 64, and 13.5% who were 65 or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 100 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98 males.

41.3% of the people on Hawaii island are religious, meaning they affiliate with a religion. 18.4% are Catholic; 3.7% are of another Christian faith; 5.1% are LDS; 5.0% are of an Eastern faith; 0.1% are Muslim.[citation needed]

Government and infrastructure

County government

Executive authority is vested in the mayor of Hawaiʻi County, who is elected for a four-year term. Since 2004, the election by the voters has been on a nonpartisan basis. In 2024, Kimo Alameda was elected mayor, defeating Mitch Roth in the general election. Legislative authority is vested in a nine-member County Council. Members of the County Council are elected on a nonpartisan basis to two-year terms from single-member districts. As of December 2016, Hawaiʻi County Council has a female supermajority for the first time, with six women and three men.

Administrative districts were originally based on the traditional land divisions called Moku of Ancient Hawaii. Some more heavily populated districts have since been split into North and South districts to make them more comparable on a population basis.

The number following each district is the Tax Map Key (TMK) number, used to locate state property information. They are assigned in a counter-clockwise order beginning on the eastern side of the island.

County council districts do not directly match the property tax districts because of the variation in the population density of voters in urban areas to rural areas; Hilo & Kailua (Kailua-Kona) towns are densely populated areas, while other districts such as Kaʻū, Puna, Hāmākua, and North & South Kohala are more sparsely populated.

Several government functions are administered at the county level that are at the state or municipal level in other states. For example, the county has its own office of liquor control.

State government

Hawaii Department of Public Safety previously operated the Kulani Correctional Facility in Hawaiʻi County, on the Island of Hawaii. In 2009, the Hawaii Department of Public Safety announced that Kulani Correctional Facility would close.

Localities

Census-designated places

• ʻĀinaloa
• Black Sands
• Captain Cook
• Discovery Harbour
• Eden Roc
• Fern Acres
• Fern Forest
• Halaʻula
• Hawaiian Acres
• Hawaiian Beaches
• Hawaiian Ocean View
• Hawaiian Paradise Park
• Hāwī
• Hilo
• Hōlualoa
• Honalo
• Hōnaunau-Nāpōʻopoʻo
• Honokaʻa
• Honomū
• Kahaluʻu-Keauhou
• Kailua
• Kaiminani
• Kalapana
• Kaloko
• Kamāʻili
• Kapaʻau
• Keaʻau
• Kealakekua
• Kukuihaele
• Kurtistown
• Laupāhoehoe
• Leilani Estates
• Mountain View
• Nāʻālehu
• Nānāwale Estates
• Orchidlands Estates
• Paʻauilo
• Pāhala
• Pāhoa
• Pāpaʻikou
• Paukaʻa
• Pepeʻekeo
• Puakō
• Royal Hawaiian Estates
• Seaview
• Tiki Gardens
• Volcano
• Volcano Golf Course
• Waikoloa Beach Resort
• Waikoloa Village
• Waimea (Kamuela)
• Wainaku
• Waiʻōhinu

Other communities

• ʻĀhualoa
• Hāʻena
• Hakalau
• Kainaliu
• Kalaoa
• Kawaihae
• Keālia
• Keauhou
• Kēōkea
• Miloliʻi
• Mauna Loa Estates
• Nīnole
• ʻŌʻōkala
• Pāʻauhau
• Pāpaʻaloa

National protected areas

• Ala Kahakai National Historic Trail
• Hakalau Forest National Wildlife Refuge
• Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park
• Kaloko-Honokōhau National Historical Park
• Kona Forest National Wildlife Refuge
• Puʻuhonua o Hōnaunau National Historical Park
• Puʻukoholā Heiau National Historic Site

State protected areas

• Puʻuwaʻawaʻa State Forest Reserve. 37,600 acres state park overseen by the Hawaii Division of Forestry and Wildlife (DOFAW).
• Puʻuwaʻawaʻa Forest Bird Sanctuary.
• Upper Waiākea Forest Reserve. 53,214 acre reserve designated October 13, 1913.
• 180 acre Kealakekua Bay State Historical Park.

Economy

Top employers

According to the county's 2021 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report, the top employers in the county are the following:

Education

• University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo
• University of the Nations
• Hawaiʻi Community College

The Hawaii State Department of Education operates public schools in Hawaiʻi County.

Sister cities

Hawaiʻi County's sister cities, counties and islands are:

• Philippines Cabugao, Philippines (2017)
• South Korea Gokseong County, South Korea (2011)
• Japan Hatsukaichi, Japan (2024)
• Taiwan Hualien County, Taiwan (1971)
• Japan Kumejima Island, Japan (2011)
• Japan Nago, Japan (1986)
• Philippines Ormoc, Philippines (2011)
• Japan Izu Ōshima Island, Japan (1962)
• Réunion Réunion Island, France (2012)
• Chile La Serena, Chile (1994)
• Japan Shibukawa, Japan (1997) [originally Ikaho]
• Japan Sumoto, Japan (2000)
• Japan Yurihama, Japan (1996) [originally Hawai-cho]

External links

• Media related to Hawaii (island) at Wikimedia Commons

19°35′N 155°30′W/19.583°N 155.500°W/ 19.583; -155.500