Maui County Quality of Life Survey results released

The County of Maui Department of Planning today released results from the Maui County Quality of Life Survey, which will help inform the department's efforts to implement the County's General Plan.

The Maui County Quality of Life Survey report compiled results from 661 randomly selected Maui County residents who participated in the survey conducted Sept. 13 to Oct. 20, 2024.

Participant responses will help the Planning Department better understand the County's overall progress in implementing the General Plan, which consists of the Countywide Policy Plan, island plans and community plans. The plan serves as a long-term, comprehensive blueprint for the physical, economic, environmental and cultural identity of Maui County.

Respondents were asked questions that ranged from individual quality-of-life experiences to rating government services, using a scale of Poor, Only Fair, Good or Excellent. Results were grouped by community area and other demographic details.

Key findings from the Maui County Quality of Life Survey include the following:

• When asked how they would rate their general quality of life, 80% of the respondents said life today was Only Fair (31%) or Good (49%). Ten percent responded as Excellent, while 11% said Poor. People from more rural, low-density areas usually reported higher life ratings than people from higher-density areas.
• When asked about the best thing about life in the County, the top response was Culture and Community (46%), followed Natural Environment (23%) and Lifestyle and Pace of Life (19%).
• Conversely, when asked about the worst thing about life in the County, the top response was Economy and Cost of Living (40%), followed by Social and Population Issues (19%) and Infrastructure and Services (16%).
• When asked to rate a list of 26 public services that could be considered under the purview of local and state government, the two highest-rated items were trash collection and fire services; the lowest rated items were housing availability and affordability.
• In general, local government services were rated in the middle of the scale as Good.

The County Planning Department in early 2020 started a contract for a Quality of Life survey, which was delayed first by the global pandemic and then by the 2023 Maui wildfires. The County contracted Anthology Research, a Hawai'i-based market research firm, to conduct the survey. It was launched in late 2024, during a time when many Lahaina residents were still displaced, and the economy was struggling.

To view the survey results, visit https://www.mauicounty.gov/2820/Quality-of-Life-Survey. For more information on the General Plan, visit the Planning Department website at https://www.mauicounty.gov/2016/Division---Plan-Implementation.