Mufi's Message - December 18

Letter to Governor Ige

Aloha,

Yesterday afternoon, we sent another letter to Governor Ige requesting amendments to the current requirements of the State's pre-arrival testing program which now requires that travelers have their negative test results in hand before departure if they are to avoid the mandatory 10-day quarantine once arriving in Hawai'i. 

The letter, which was signed by twenty-two different organizations representing private business, trade organizations, and labor, suggested the following:

• Increase the window during which travelers could take their pre-arrival test from three days to four or five days.
• Should a traveler satisfy the required testing within 72 hours of their planned departure, but not have their test results in hand when their flight is set to leave, allow them a 24 to 48-hour window to await their test results to be uploaded to the Safe Travels app before departing for Hawai‘i to avoid being subject to the mandatory 10-day quarantine.
• Make available testing upon arrival in O‘ahu via the mobile testing lab at Daniel K. Inouye International Airport for passengers whose pre-arrival test results have not yet been uploaded to the Safe Travels website.

Our most recent letter is the latest brainchild of what has shaped up to be a formidable hui comprised of HLTA, the Chamber of Commerce Hawaii, Hawai'i Agricultural Foundation, and Hawaiian Airlines. Working closely with the leaders of these organizations as well as business stakeholders from around the state, we were able to submit to Governor Ige an impassioned and well-reasoned request for change that highlighted the dire straits in which our local economy currently finds itself.

Our communication to Governor Ige specifically focused on both the current economic strife being felt around our state, as well as the negative social effects caused by the pandemic. While it may be years before we truly understand these social impacts, it is clear that families are struggling in myriad ways and a surefire path to ease this suffering is to provide local workers with a means to earn a living while also maintaining their health and safety. We wholeheartedly believe that restoring our tourism economy and making travel to our state easy for tourists is the most expedient way to accomplish this.

Mahalo to the following organizations for joining us as signatories on this letter:

• Activities & Attractions Association of Hawai'i (A3H)
• Chinese Chamber of Commerce
• Filipino Chamber of Commerce
• Hawai'i Transportation Association
• Hawai'i Farm Bureau
• Hawai'i Island Chamber of Commerce
• Hawai'i Restaurant Association
• Hawai'i Tourism Wholesalers Association
• HLTA Hawai'i Island Chapter
• HLTA Kaua'i Chapter
• HLTA Maui Chapter
• HLTA O'ahu Chapter
• ILWU Local 142
• Korean Chamber of Commerce
• Retail Merchants of Hawai'i
• SME Honolulu
• Waikiki Improvement Association
• Airlines for America (A4A SLAC)*

*Airlines for America represents Hawaiian Airlines, Alaska Airlines, Delta Airlines, United Airlines, Southwest Airlines, and American Airlines.

Emergency Proclamation

Governor Ige signed his 17th emergency proclamation relating to the COVID-19 pandemic on Wednesday afternoon. Most notably, this update and extension to his emergency orders reduces the mandatory quarantine period from 14 days to 10 days in accordance with the CDC's most recent guidance.

It is also important to remember that Governor Ige's current emergency orders requires that all operating hotels are required to adopt a COVID-19 health and safety plan that must also be submitted to the Hawai'i Tourism Authority. As a reminder, HLTA members may use our Health, Safety, & Security Standards as their submitted plan. It is critical that we are all up-to-date and complying with the State's mandates.

Should you have any questions or concerns regarding your health and safety plan, please feel free to contact our offices at any time.

Have a great weekend,
​Mufi