Hawaii Bill Would Fine You One Thousand Dollars Per Cat If You Refuse to Sterilize
Hawaii is drowning in cats, and the state legislature just got serious about it. House Bill 1736, introduced by Representative Luke Evslin (D, Wailua-Lihue), would make it illegal to own a cat older than five months that has not been surgically sterilized. The penalty: civil fines of $500 to $1,000 per violation, per cat.
That is not a typo. If you have three unsterilized cats and refuse to comply, you are looking at up to $3,000.
The Numbers Are Insane
The Animal Legal Defense Fund estimates 300,000 feral cats on Oahu alone, with hundreds of thousands more spread across the other islands. The state's Department of Land and Natural Resources has been sounding the alarm for years, because these cats are not just a nuisance. They are a rolling extinction machine.
Hawaii's native birds evolved without mammalian predators. They have no fear response to cats. The Hawaii Invasive Species Council lists cats as a primary threat to federally endangered species including the nene (Hawaiian goose), the palila (Hawaiian honeycreeper), the Hawaiian petrel (ua'u), the Hawaiian moorhen (alae ula), and the Hawaiian stilt (ae'o).
In 2020, a single cat killed twelve Newell's shearwaters on Kauai. These birds do not start breeding until age six or seven. One cat, one night, wiped out more than a decade of reproductive potential for a critically endangered species.
What the Bill Actually Does
HB 1736 establishes a statewide Spay and Neuter Special Fund, funded through an income-tax checkoff system. All cats five months or older must be surgically sterilized. Bringing an intact cat into the state would also be prohibited, with limited exceptions for health conditions certified by a veterinarian and cats registered with breed registries.
The bill passed its second reading with amendments from the House Agriculture and Food Systems Committee, and has been referred to the House Judicial and Hawaiian Affairs Committee.
Who Supports It, Who Does Not
The American Bird Conservancy and the Hawaiian Humane Society are backing the bill. Opposition comes from the Pacific Pet Alliance and Cat Fanciers of Hawaii, who call the sterilization mandate an "unreasonable burden" on responsible pet owners.
The Honolulu Star-Advertiser's editorial board came out swinging in support, writing on February 16 that a "more proactive and comprehensive approach is necessary, one that steadily reduces the current population."
The City Council already allocated $1 million this fiscal year for cat rehoming initiatives. A 20-acre sanctuary on Oahu's North Shore is in the planning stages. But voluntary programs have failed to move the needle. 300,000 feral cats on one island is proof that asking nicely does not work.
Watch: Honolulu Civil Beat on Hawaii's feral cat colony crisis