Wastewater Branch

Tax-Exemption Status Update: Although the Department of Health (Department) requested approval in December 2023 from the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture and U.S. Secretary of the Treasury to approve the Hawai‘i Cesspool Compliance Pilot Grant Program as a tax-exempt incentive program, the Department has not received confirmation of federal approval from either Secretary. As such, the cesspool conversion grant reimbursement remains taxable for federal and state income tax purposes. Grant recipients should consult with their tax preparer/advisor. If these approvals are ever acquired, then these reimbursements may be excluded from taxation.

Table of Contents

• Procedures
• PDf of Application
• How to Determine your Household Area Median Income?
• I received a grant qualification letter, what do I do now?
• Informational Training Video
• Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Procedures

Click this link to download a PDF version

Purpose:

The purpose of this grant program is to assist low‐ and moderate‐income property owners with converting, upgrading or connecting cesspools to a more environmentally appropriate method of managing and treating wastewater.

Available Funds:

• Each grant recipient is eligible to receive up to $20,000 in reimbursements for their cesspool conversion or connection costs incurred.
• Grant program will have a total of $5 million and be allocated on a first‐come, first‐served basis, subject to funding availability. The submit date of a complete application will determine applicant’s priority to receive the available funding.

Eligibility Requirements:

1. Applicant must be an owner of real property or a Department of Hawaiian Homelands (DHHL) lessee.
2. Subject cesspool must be in either a priority level 1 or 2 area as identified by the University of Hawaii’s 2021 Hawaii Cesspool Hazard Assessment and Prioritization Tool (HCHAPT). To check if you are in the priority areas use the following map tool:
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   Interactive Map
   

   or download a list of eligible TMKs based on county:
   When searching for the TMK of a Condominium Property Regime (CPR), please search for only the first nine-digits of the TMK.

   – City and County of Honolulu – List of Eligible TMKs – pdf
   – Kauai County – List of Eligible TMKs – pdf
   – Maui County – List of Eligible TMKs – pdf
   – Hawaii County – List of Eligible TMKs – pdf
3. Household income of applicant, based on the owner or lessee’s federal tax return of the most recent taxable year that has closed, cannot exceed 140% of the area median income (AMI) as determined by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Please click here for additional instructions.
4. Cesspools that have been upgraded or converted to an Individual Wastewater System (IWS) that has an Approval-To-Use date or connected to a sewage system prior to July 1, 2022, are not eligible for reimbursement under this CPGP.
5. If you meet all the eligibility criteria: Please complete and submit a grant application to the Department of Health. Department staff will review your application and will notify you if: (1) your application is complete; and (2) you are eligible to receive the grant.
6. If it is determined that you are eligible to receive a grant, the applicant will be required to submit the documents listed below to the Department within nine (9) months of receiving a Grant Qualification Letter notifying you that you are eligible to receive the grant. Please be aware that the IWS must be installed and approved for use within nine (9) months to qualify for this grant reimbursement.
a. Design plans prepared by a licensed engineer (ENGINEER) must comply with HAR chapter 11-62 for IWS or applicable utility standards for sewer connection and be approved by the Director of Health.
b. ENGINEER’s final construction inspection report (w/ photos, as-builts and certification) that the individual wastewater system was constructed in accordance with design plans approved by the Director of Health.
c. A copy of an approval to use letter of the wastewater system issued by the Director of Health; and
d. Receipts of payment made to the licensed engineer and licensed contractor.

>>> No Longer Accepting Applications <<<

How to Determine your Household Area Median Income?

Click this link to download a PDF version

Step 1

Step 2

Step 3

Step 4

Step 5

Information for Qualifying Applicants

If you received a Grant Qualification Letter that means you qualify to receive the reimbursement. Only about 200 Grant Qualification Letters were sent due to the limited funding available for this pilot program. If you have not received a letter yet, please note that we are maintaining a waitlist and if a new spot opens up, we will send a Grant Qualification Letter to the next person on the list.

For those of you who have received the Grant Qualification, first of all, Congratulations!! The Department is aware of the financial burden that these upgrades impose on homeowners and we are happy to provide this grant program. Please read the letter and the Hawaii Cesspool Compliance Pilot Grant Agreement. After reading both, if you choose to proceed with the grant, please sign the Hawaii Cesspool Compliance Pilot Grant Agreement, make a copy for your records and then send us the signed original Agreement in full (i.e., all three (3) pages) via mail or in person to our Oahu office. If you choose to not proceed with the grant, please notify our office so that we can free up the spot for a different applicant.

As written in Section 2.1(a), the upgrade or connection must be completed within 270 days of receiving the Grant Qualification Letter. The Department is aware that wastewater system installations and connections, like other construction projects, are occasionally subject to delays that are outside of the owner’s control. The Department wants to support homeowners in their efforts to upgrade their wastewater systems and will do its best to work with homeowners who experience these types of delays.

Please be sure to make a copy of all your documents and receipts. We are still in the process of finalizing the reimbursement procedures, but once complete and we receive your documents and receipts (as required by the Hawaii Cesspool Compliance Pilot Grant Agreement), the reimbursement will take 3 to 4 months to process through the State’s internal systems. Thank you for your continued patience and cooperation as we work to carry out this Pilot Grant Program.

Supplemental Informational Training Video

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)