Aloha ACEC-Hawai‘i Members,
The month of May has been a busy and productive month for our organization. I am sure that is reflective of our members’ firm’s month as well. Our industry has been busy for some time now and we, and our industry partners, have been tasked with doing it with ever more limited manpower available and rising costs. Hawai‘i is not alone in these challenges, as I heard firsthand at ACEC’s 2026 Annual Convention and Legislative Summit.
ACEC 2026 Annual Convention and Legislative Summit
The convention was held from May 3 to May 6th in Washington DC. Hawai‘i, as usual showed up with a strong group including Kealohi Sandefur (ACECH President Elect/YKE), Dayna Nemoto-Shima (ACECH Director/Pacific Geotechnical Engineers, Inc.), Scott Hayashi (ACECH Director/SSFM International, Inc.), Nimr Tamimi (ACECH National Director/Engineering Partners, Inc.), Jay Stone (ACECH PAC Champion/Bowers + Kubota), Janice Marsters (ACECH Past-President/Akalā Consulting, LLC), June Nakamura (ACECH Past-President/Kaula AE, LLC), Garret Masuda (ACECH Past-President/InSynergy Engineering, Inc.), Ginny Wright (ACECH Executive Director), Tiffany Tabbal (Manageability LLC) and myself Charles Jury (ACECH President/Okahara and Associates, Inc.). I am also happy to report that we delivered, possibly, a record amount of Aloha this year. We literally brought suitcases of macadamia nut chocolates to share with the other MOs!
Nimr, Kealohi, Tiffany and I started off by representing the Hawai‘i Member Organization (MO) at the Southwest Region Leadership Breakfast. The attendees included ACEC Board of Directors from Arizona, Colorado, Hawai‘i, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah. Many of the other MOs reported similar workforce challenges that we face here at home, and these shortages are not necessarily due to getting students interested in engineering. It was reported that engineering enrollment per capita is high but there are just not enough students in general to fill the voids in the industry. Other MOs also reported a dip in the number of member firms they represent but an increase in the total number of employees. This is attributed to mergers and acquisitions, which is similar to what ACEC-Hawai‘i has experienced. MOs also reported struggles to keep pace with compensation due to heavy competition, though the competition in some of these states is related to tech companies, it mirrors struggles that our member firms are also experiencing.
So how to do combat the workforce shortages and rising costs? How do our member firms remain competitive with the employees and with our clients? ACEC Research Institute put out publications about the Firm of the Future that looks at the Workforce of the Future and the Role of AI in the Engineering Industry which tackles some of these questions. (https://www.acec.org/research-institute/research-tools/firm-of-the-future/ )
In the Board of Directors meeting that followed, it was reported that ACEC is pushing a shift towards “Value Based Pricing” to allow for our engineering firms to recoup investments in innovations such as Artificial Intelligence (AI). The Risk Management Committee session also talked about how quickly construction costs are rising and at a rate faster than consultant fees, which is concerning for our businesses. The cost of our fees is not just tied to the expenses we incur; they also reflect the risk that we carry. As our firms take on more and more risk due to the rising costs of construction, we must find reasonable ways to mitigate that risk.
For those firms doing Federal work, you will be happy to know that the Federal Agencies and Procurement Advocacy (FAPA) Committee is seeking to clarify that the 10% fee limitation increase applies not only to MILCON projects but also to Civil Works projects. Many of these sessions were held by either ACEC Committees or Coalitions. I urge all our members to check out these different committees and coalitions on the ACEC website (https://www.acec.org/member-center/ ).
Walking the Halls at our Nation’s Capital
We spent the last day in DC meeting with the offices of our Congressmen and Congresswomen, Ed Case, Jill Tokuda, Mazie Hirono, and Brian Schatz. Unfortunately, congress was not in session that due to a visit from King Charles III the week prior. We were still able to meet with the staff of the respective offices. During our visits, we spoke about the three (3) priorities of ACEC. First, the importance of passing a new federal surface transportation bill, as the current law funding highway, transit, rail, and safety programs expires at the end of September 2026. We emphasized the importance of sustained long-term funding commitments for these programs for the State of Hawai‘i. ACEC is also advocating for language in the bill that will encourage agencies to promote lump sum contracting for State DOT’s.
Second was advocating for stronger investments into water infrastructure, which includes all forms of water, potable water, wastewater, storm water, and reuse water. The water infrastructure funding included in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) is also set to expire in September 2026 and the White House’s current budget proposes large cuts to essential water infrastructure programs. Nationwide the EPA estimates a funding need for water infrastructure of $1.2 trillion over the next 20 years. It was communicated that ACEC strongly supports Congress taking action this year to increase funding for State Revolving Fund (SRF) and reauthorizing grant programs that help localities address contaminants, including PFAS and lead.
Third, we discussed the importance of common-sense permitting reform to ensure that critical infrastructure, energy, water and other projects are delivered to the public safely and efficiently as possible. This topic of permitting was brought up by several of our Hawai‘i member firms through the survey that was sent out prior to our DC trip, and we communicated that sentiment to our congressmen and women. Permitting reform appears to have bipartisan support but how exactly to accomplish it is a challenge. Perhaps it is our industry that can help to find solutions without weakening the environmental protections that are critical to our future.
ACEC-Hawai‘i has a great reputation at the National level and that is not only due to the Board of Directors that attend each year, but also largely due to individuals from our community that attend and participate in the discussions year after year. That generation of advocates have carried the burden long enough and it is time that new advocates step up and continue that work so that Hawai‘i is not left out of the conversation. Please get involved individually, and to the member firms that support these individuals, ACECH thanks you.
May GMM – WEC Roundtable
Our May General Membership Meeting featured a roundtable discussion with representatives from the City and County of Honolulu ENV’s Division of Wastewater Engineering and Construction where, accompanied by consultant representatives, presented on WEC’s Collaborative Project Delivery initiative. Kealohi and Garrett Leong (WEC Committee Chair/Brown and Caldwell) did an amazing job facilitating the meeting and our BOD even got to show off their tech skills with fancy QC codes to collect questions and comments. Initial feedback has been positive, and we are looking at more opportunities to bring together industry and agencies. Thank you to everyone that attended, you making the time to attend and participate is why these events are a success!
Upcoming June GMM – Kauai
Show your support and attend the upcoming June General Membership Meeting taking place on Kauai. This event will feature a Talk Story session with Mayor Derek Kawakami, followed by a presentation of Traditional & Alternative Financing by Meredith Clement of Kennedy Jenks. Following these discussions please join us networking and golf at the Poipu Bay Golf Course. More information is included in this month’s newsletter.
Remembering Lester Fukuda
ACEC Hawai‘i is deeply saddened to share the passing of Lester Fukuda on April 23, 2026. Lester was a long-time, cherished member of our engineering community and his contributions to ACEC Hawai‘i and the engineering profession will live on. We extend our deepest condolences to Lester’s family, friends, and all who had the privilege of working with him during this difficult time. Details of Lester’s funeral services are included in this month’s newsletter.
Mahalo
As always, thank you to our members, committees, partners, and volunteers who continue to move this organization and our profession forward. There is a lot of good work happening across ACECH, and I am grateful to be part of it with all of you.
Mahalo,
Charles Jury
ACEC-Hawaii President