on September 10, 2026

Hawaii Dog Poop Laws

Quick answer: Hawaii has no statewide pooper scooper law. Picking up after your dog is regulated city by city, and all three of the largest cities we checked have an ordinance requiring it. None of them uses a set ticket amount. Fines are set by a judge within a range the code allows.

Why Hawaii leaves it to cities

No Hawaii statewide statute requiring dog-waste pickup was identified; each county sets its own rule. Hawaii has only one incorporated city, the City and County of Honolulu, so these entries use Honolulu plus the main towns of the next two most populous counties: Hilo (County of Hawaii) and Kahului (County of Maui). Census places such as East Honolulu and Pearl City are larger than Hilo or Kahului but are governed by the same Honolulu ordinances. The '$500 fine' widely quoted for Hawaii matches the maximum in Honolulu's litter ordinance (ROH 13-4.7), not a state statute. The state statutes site (capitol.hawaii.gov) blocked automated retrieval on 2026-09-10, so the state litter chapter (HRS ch. 339) was not read directly.

  • Court-ordered litter pickup (as cited in Honolulu ROH 13-4.7): HRS 339-8 (read it)

Pooper scooper laws in Hawaii's largest cities

Each row comes from the city's own municipal code. "Up to" is the most a court can impose, not a standard ticket. Where a city publishes no amount, we say so rather than estimate one.

City Ordinance Fine Must carry a bag
Honolulu Revised Ordinances of Honolulu (ROH) Sec. 13-4.4(a)(9) (litter: animal waste); penalty Sec. 13-4.7; parks Sec. 10-1.7(c) Up to $500 Yes
Hilo Hawaii County Code Sec. 4-3-6 (Defecation and nuisance prohibited), identified from the county's Chapter 4 PDF; text not read directly Could not verify Not stated
Kahului Maui County Code 6.04.040(C) with the 'Nuisance' definition in 6.04.010; littering 20.20.050(E); parks 13.04A.070 $100 to $1,000 No

The rule people miss: carrying the bag

In Honolulu, the law does not just require you to pick up. It requires you to be carrying something to pick up with, so walking out without a bag can be an offense on its own even if your dog never goes.

A bag holder on the leash solves that for good. Ours is the Walk Dispenser, which clips on and holds a full roll.

Worth knowing about Hawaii

  • In Honolulu the dog-waste rule lives in the litter ordinance, not the animal chapter: an animal's waste left in a public place or on someone else's property is treated as littering, with a fine of up to $500 plus the city's removal cost (ROH 13-4.4(a)(9), 13-4.7). That $500 maximum is the source of the '$500 fine' figure often repeated for Hawaii.
  • Maui County can prosecute the same act either as littering ($100 to $1,000 plus a litter-pickup order) or as a dog nuisance ($50 minimum first offense, $500 maximum).
  • Honolulu's park dog rules, which require carrying pickup equipment in designated dog areas, were most recently amended by Ord. 25-2 (ROH 10-1.7).

Common questions

Is it illegal to not pick up dog poop in Hawaii?

There is no statewide law, but every one of the largest cities we checked has a pickup rule, and most smaller towns have similar ordinances. Check your own city or county code.

How much is the fine for not picking up dog poop in Hawaii?

It depends on the city. Honolulu: Up to $500. Kahului: $100 to $1,000. Hilo does not publish an amount.

Do I have to carry a poop bag in Hawaii?

In Honolulu, yes. The ordinance requires you to have a means of removal with you while walking your dog.

Other states in the West

California · Washington · Arizona · Colorado · Oregon · Utah · Nevada · New Mexico

See all 50 states · How scoop laws work in general

Sources

Checked 2026-09-10. Ordinances change, so if you are dealing with an actual citation, read the current code at the link rather than relying on this page.

This page is general information, not legal advice.