HONOLULU (KHON2) — The Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism (DBEDT) has released the 2024 State of Hawai‘i Data Book,. It’s the 57th edition in the series.
The book includes 837 tables across 24 sections and covers population, economy, environment, government, housing, transportation and more. It is available online through the DBEDT website.
“Since 1962, DBEDT has been publishing the Data Book and it remains as one of the most popular products we offer,” said DBEDT Director James Kunane Tokioka. “It allows people to understand what’s happening in our state and serves as a valuable resource for researchers, businesses, government agencies and our communities.”
Here’s a preliminary look at what the information contained in the data book.
Population and housing
Hawai‘i County had the highest dependency ratio in 2024 at 82.2. This was compared with the statewide average of 71.7 and Honolulu County’s 68.6. The dependency ratio measures people younger than 18 and older than 65 against the working-age population.
In 2023, Hawai‘i recorded 280 centenarian deaths. Women accounted for 222 of those deaths. The research found that’s nearly four times the number of men at only 58.
Social Security benefits reached $6.15 billion in 2023. This is an increase 12.4% from $5.47 billion in 2022. The number of beneficiaries also grew to 296,605. That’s up 1.9% from the prior year.
Housing prices continued to rise across the state. In 2024, the average price of single-family homes increased 8.1%, and condominiums rose 5.7%. Sales activity was strong, with 14.3% more single-family homes and 15.9% more condominiums sold compared with 2023.
Employment, business and economy
Unionized public employment stood at 60,876 at the end of 2024. That was spread across 15 bargaining units. The largest was Unit 5 with 13,993 teachers and school staff. The smallest was Unit 14 with 413 law enforcement officers.
Federal tax collections totaled $11.4 billion in fiscal year 2024. That is up 0.7%. Individual income and employment taxes drove the increase, while business and gift tax collections declined.
The percentage of jobholders with multiple jobs climbed from 7.2% of the population in 2023 to 7.6% in 2024. That’s higher than the national average of 5.2%.
Food services and drinking places were the largest private industry employers statewide, which averaged 64,335 workers in 2023-2024.
Petroleum reliance for electricity rose to 77.9% in 2023. The increase followed the shutdown of O‘ahu’s coal-fired power plant.
Child care costs remained amongst the highest in the nation. In 2024, the average annual cost for an infant in a Hawai‘i child-care center was $24,115.
Education and social characteristics
Private college enrollment grew each year since 2019. That includes a 4.3% increase in 2024.
Internet crime complaints rose to 2,603 in 2024. That is up 33.2% from 2023.
The share of residents without health insurance was 3.2% in 2023. This led to Hawai‘i being ranked amongst the lowest in the nation.
Jail sentences declined sharply. In 2024, 139 people were sentenced. That was down from 315 in 2023 and far below the 400-plus sentences recorded annually from 2009 to 2018.
Other highlights
Los Angeles remained the top flight destination from Hawai‘i. In July 2024, there were 1,161 departures that went to the city and accounted for more than 20% of all flights that month.
Hawai‘i counted 5,003 active pilots in 2024. That included 883 commercial pilots. Of the total number of active pilots, 881 were women.
Public libraries numbered 51: 25 on O‘ahu and 26 on the Neighbor Islands. Internet sessions rose 12.7%, library programs grew 19.5% and group visits declined 15.3%.
The 2024 Honolulu Marathon registered 23,641 participants. That was nearly matching pre-pandemic levels. More than three-quarters of runners completed the race, and the winning time of 2 hours, 11 minutes, and 59 seconds was the fastest since before COVID-19.
The Hawai‘i Audubon Society observed a surge of Pacific Golden-Plovers in 2024. Counts rose about 67% compared with 2023 and were higher than past records.
While these are only highlights of what DBEDT found in their extensive study, it does show that Hawaiʻi is healthier than many other states.