Local Data Momentum in a Time of Federal Instability
The year 2025 was a challenging one for our neighbors and communities in need. In Hawai‘i and across the nation, uncertainty around federal benefit programs, funding to states and local governments, and grants and contracts for the nonprofit safety net made it difficult to plan for, and sustain, services and assistance. In parallel, we have also seen increasing threats to already struggling federal statistical agencies. Together, reliance on these wavering federal resources is setting the stage for local leaders to respond to increasing unpredictability with less information.
Federal Data: A Compromised Resource
Our ability to make prudent and timely decisions about our economy, health, land, and all the conditions critical for a resilient Hawai‘i depend on data that most of us never think about until we are faced with losing it. Much of that data comes from the agencies that make up the federal statistical system such as the Census Bureau, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Bureau of Economic Analysis, and other agencies that produce the “official facts and figures” that help communities understand what’s happening and what’s changing. As the American Statistical Association (ASA) puts it, federal statistics are the nation’s “dashboard” that helps us navigate our way forward on a foundation of evidence.
The ASA’s recent The Nation’s Data at Risk: 2025 Report describes how this dashboard is now at risk. Under “unprecedented strain” from losses of staff, budget cuts, and weakening capacity to modernize, there is increasing risk that the quality, relevance, and timeliness of federal statistical data will diminish over time. If that continues – and based on the findings of this report, there is good reason to think that it will – Hawai‘i will face an information crisis at the same time as diminished federal resources and changes in benefits eligibility and funding take full effect. If key federal datasets become less reliable, frequent, and/or granular, local decision makers will face bigger blind spots just as the challenges in front of us become more complex.
The Critical Role of Local Government and Local Data
If we recognize this challenge now, we can begin to take steps to bolster local data capacities to, at least in part, supplement potential data losses. The role of local government will be absolutely critical, and there is progress already underway to advance State and County data capacities and best practices.
For example, Senate Bill 742, signed into law in 2025 as Act 154, established a Data Sharing and Governance Working Group (DSGWG) within the Office of Enterprise Technology Services (ETS). This working group is chaired by the Chief Information Officer (CIO) and composed of directors (or designees) across relevant state agencies, the University of Hawai‘i, the judiciary, relevant commissions and councils, the non-profit sector, and the for-profit sector. The DSGWG will assess the State’s current data-sharing capacity and recommend a durable, statewide governance model to improve cross-agency data use for policy and public transparency. While a specific aim of the Act is to address existing gaps in “cradle to career” data sharing within state government, the language of the act recognizes broader issues impeding interdepartmental data sharing and integration need to be addressed. The work of the DSGWG will culminate in a report to the legislature due prior to the 2027 session.
Another effort we are excited about is First Five Hawai’i, which was launched December 2025 to support families with children, five years old and under, to access key state and federal support services through a web-based eligibility tool screener. Development of the project was led by Hawai‘i Children’s Action Network (HCAN) and transferred to the Executive Office on Early Learning (EOEL) upon completion in December. While the primary aim of the project was to provide better information to families seeking benefits eligibility information, this project was an important first step toward improving integration across State benefits programs. At a time when federal benefits programs are shifting to be less accessible and more expensive for states to administer, data and systems modernization will be essential to maintaining access to critical programs while building greater insight potential to better support struggling families.
Lastly, we would like to highlight the ongoing work of the Chief Data Officer (CDO) for the City and County of Honolulu (CCH), whose work and experiences moving data initiatives forward within CCH are truly transformational and can serve as a model for the kind of transformation that is possible at the State level. Diving deep with several departments, while addressing systematic data challenges, the CDO is leading unprecedented change. As the CCH data team grows, we look forward to learning from and channeling their innovative approach to the issues that impede State data modernization.
At a time when the federal landscape is uncertain, there is momentum building toward durable, local data capacity for a more resilient and informed Hawai‘i.