Honolulu retailers say the $100 fine currently on the books for illegal street peddling is little more than a rounding error for repeat violators working Waikīkī's sidewalks, and the city council is now weighing a fix that could push penalties as high as $1,000 with jail time attached. Bill 52, which cleared its second reading before the full council on September 3, would overhaul the fine structure under Section 13-6.4 of the Revised Ordinances of Honolulu.
What Bill 52 Would Actually Change
As reported by Aloha State Daily, the measure would raise fines from $100 to $500 for a first offense, from $250 to $750 for a second offense, and from $500 to $1,000 for a third or subsequent offense, all within a two-year window. Under the current text of the bill, a third offense could also carry up to 30 days of imprisonment, according to details published by the Honolulu City Council. The bill is sponsored by council chair Tommy Waters, who introduced it on July 14, and it was referred to the International & Legal Affairs Committee before advancing.
The stated goal, per the same account, is to discourage unlawful peddling and ensure adequate pedestrian access in public places — language that echoes decades of concern about sidewalk congestion in Waikīkī, where millions of annual visitors funnel through a compact commercial strip. Honolulu's peddling prohibitions trace back through Chapter 13, Article 6 of the city code, which bars unauthorized vending along stretches of the Pali Highway, Diamond Head Road, Fort Street Mall, Union Street Mall, Waimea Bay, Chinatown, and the Waikīkī peninsula, the bill's supporters note.
Retailers Say Fines Are Just a Cost of Doing Business
Retail Merchants of Hawaiʻi interim president and CEO David Erdman told the council in a letter that Bill 52 would create a stronger enforcement tool against unlawful peddling in public places. Erdman said the core concern is commercial activity that violates city regulations and continues through repeat violations, and he argued that unlawful commercial activity should not create an unfair competitive environment for retailers who are already paying taxes, wages, insurance, utilities, and licensing and permitting costs. Illegal kiosks and unlawful peddling, he said, create hardship for compliant businesses and can obstruct sidewalks and affect pedestrian flow. Existing penalties, in his view, do not effectively deter people who pay a small fine and simply resume the same unlawful activity.
John Mark Mageo, employee relations and government affairs manager for Hawaiʻi's ABC Stores, backed the fine increase and said some violators view the current penalties as little more than a cost of doing business. Trevor Abarzua, president and chief executive officer of the Waikīkī Improvement Association, made a similar case, saying current penalties do not meaningfully deter operators who can earn considerably more through unlawful activity than they'd ever pay in fines. Abarzua argued the bill would support Hawaiʻi's economy by protecting Waikīkī's reputation and advocated for lawful, safe, accessible, and respectful commercial activity in public spaces.
Police Testimony and a Recent Waikīkī Sweep
Honolulu Police Department Major Paul Okamoto testified before the Waikīkī Neighborhood Board in support of regulating peddling in the district, telling the council that current penalties are not sufficient deterrence for many peddling operators, since many view the fines as simply a cost of doing business. Okamoto, who gave testimony in April, reported that during at least one peddling operation, officers cited multiple people and arrested a person on felony drug charges.
The scale of the enforcement challenge showed up directly on May 1, when Honolulu Police Department District 6 ran a joint multi-agency operation along Waikīkī beachside areas near the Hale Koa Hotel and Hilton Hawaiian Village, according to a statement from the Honolulu Police Department. That sweep, which pulled in county police, state conservation officers, tax investigators, and military police, produced eight peddling citations and warnings plus three contempt warrant arrests in a single evening — a snapshot of just how much coordination current enforcement already requires.
Some Council Members Want Data Before Deterrence
Not every council member is convinced higher fines alone will solve the problem. Council member Andria Tupola said HPD should determine whether current fines are actually insufficient to deter illegal activity before the city commits to steeper penalties, and she said she wants a better understanding of where on Oʻahu illegal peddling is actually a problem and what enforcement efforts currently look like. Fellow council member Tyler Dos Santos-Tam said the council should examine how the existing peddling law is enforced and what obstacles stand in the way of enforcement, and both he and Tupola plan to contact the Honolulu Police Department for more information on current peddling enforcement.
Despite those reservations, the bill passed its second reading, with council members Augie Tulba, Matt Weyer, and Tupola all voting in favor with reservations noted. Supporters maintain that stiffer fines and consequences would remove the financial incentive for unlawful peddling altogether.
Who Is — and Isn't — Covered by the Rules
Not everyone selling goods on Oʻahu sidewalks needs a license in the first place. City code exempts people peddling fresh fish, fresh fruit, fresh lei, fresh flowers, or fresh vegetables from licensing requirements, as well as people 60 years old and older. Those who do get licensed pay $60 for a peddler license, and the city's Department of Customer Services currently licenses 49 peddlers.
The rules also aren't uniform citywide. Under Chapter 13, Article 6A of the city code, as amended by Bill 6 in 2025, storefront merchants in designated areas such as Chinatown and Sun Yat Sen Mall are granted specific exemptions allowing limited sidewalk peddling within 18 to 48 inches of their storefronts, provided pedestrian flow and ADA compliance are maintained, according to the Honolulu City Council. That carve-out stands in contrast to the blanket prohibitions elsewhere in Waikīkī, and it underscores how the city has tried to distinguish established brick-and-mortar merchants from unauthorized street vendors.
A Broader Pattern of Illegal Vending on Oʻahu
Waikīkī isn't the only place where unauthorized vendors have tested the limits of city rules. As Civil Beat reported, unlawful peddling operations on Oʻahu have historically extended to major public beach parks such as Kailua Beach Park and Waimea Bay, where unauthorized commercial vendors have set up makeshift snack kiosks by taking advantage of park free-speech permit rules. The Waikīkī Neighborhood Board No. 9's Legislative Engagement Committee placed Bill 52 on its August 25 meeting agenda alongside Bill 53, a companion measure restricting unauthorized shopping cart possession on Oʻahu, signaling that local advisory groups are treating peddling reform as part of a broader package of public space regulations.
The push also lands amid other statewide efforts to manage crowded sidewalks. Hawaiʻi enacted Act 259 in July, establishing new statewide regulations for e-bikes and other micromobility devices on public sidewalks and paths, according to KHON2. Meanwhile, Waikīkī's retail landscape has been shifting on its own: DFS Group announced plans to permanently close its flagship T Galleria duty-free store on Kalākaua Avenue and its Honolulu airport concessions this year, ending a 63-year run in the district, as previously reported by Hoodline's DFS closure coverage. Permitted commercial activity in Waikīkī still finds an outlet through sanctioned events like the annual Waikīkī SPAM JAM on Kalākaua Avenue, which temporarily closes the street to vehicle traffic and raises money for the Hawaiʻi Foodbank — a sharp contrast to the daily, unauthorized peddling that Bill 52 is aimed at curbing.
