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The Maui County Council on Thursday heard pleas for more money from local nonprofit leaders who are struggling to keep up with domestic violence, drug use, homelessness, mental health and animal welfare services in the aftermath of the Aug. 8 wildfires.

Mayor Richard Bissen’s $1.7 billion spending plan for fiscal year 2025 provides $1.3 million less in health, human services and education grants than the county did a year ago as costs mount for the fire recovery.

The council is undergoing a department-by-department review of his proposed budget this month, with Thursday’s meeting focusing on the budgets for Housing and Human Concerns, which oversee many of the nonprofit grants and animal management.

“From the 30,000-foot view of the budget, there’s a lot of nonprofits that are … in dire need of more funding because of the disease of despair,” council member Gabe Johnson said during the council’s daylong budget committee meeting.

While many of the organizations say they have received funding from the Hawaii Community Foundation’s and other places targeted specifically for fire-related responses, they said the needs are increasing.

And while expenses also have gone up, most of their county grants have stayed flat, with new requests going unfunded, such as the Maui Aids Foundation’s request of $119,000 for a second nurse at a free clinic that now only has one.

“Free clinics stop the spread of sexually transmitted infections and reduce infections that cause disease,” said Linda Puppulo, the foundation’s executive director.

The county funded $7.75 million for health and human services and education grants in fiscal year 2024, which ends June 30, but this year it is only funding $6.38 million.

Johnson and other council members indicated they were willing to adjust the budget to find more funding for these groups who are doing such important work in the county.

“The nonprofits are the biggest bang for our buck,” council member Tom Cook said. “Health, safety, mental heath. Just all of it.”

He said extra funding might be able to come from emergency funds, given the urgent need for additional social service and health support.

, which provides shelter and services for women who have experienced gender-based and domestic violence and runs a crisis hotline, had requested $250,000 but the proposed budget included $228,000. Their shelters are currently full and before the end of 2023, calls to the hotline went from an average of 200 per month to 500.

Danielle Bergan, the Maui community coordinator of , said: “With the advent of the wildfires, like many agencies, we began to pivot.”

She said the organization postponed its Maui Suicide Prevention Mini Conference that was scheduled in September “so not to trigger anybody.” Instead, the agency produced a PSA on how to respond to a trauma and ask for help.

It also began a non-clinical support group in partnership with the National Alliance on Mental Illness Hawaii and switched to self-care for youth, training more than 500 middle and high school students.

“It really helps them fight anxiety and stress, which is two really big causes of possible suicidal ideation,” Bergan said.

Employees of two nonprofits that help animals — the Maui Humane Society and Hawaii Animal Rescue Foundation —  testified about the devastating impact the fires have had on dogs, cats and other creatures. And the toll it has taken on pet owners who have struggled to care for them or have had to surrender them because they could not find pet-friendly housing.

The proposed budget provides $2.03 million for sheltering animals, but Nikki Russell, chief of operations for the Maui Humane Society, said $200,000 more is needed.

She said the agency, which takes in about 5,000 animals a year, is expecting that number to be higher in 2024.

The agency also said it needs $81,000 more than the $1.06 million that has been proposed for enforcement. The request includes $60,000 for a new vehicle, said Tanya Hosoda, interim director of humane enforcement.

In 2023, the nonprofit responded to more than 4,000 calls for services, brought in 673 stray animals, and conducted 451 cruelty investigations. It also logged a mileage increase of 26% in response to calls for service for animals in distress or victims of suspected animal cruelty.

“We expect the need of our services in rescuing sick and injured animals, as well as those who are victims of animal cruelty, to continue to increase,” she said.

Debbie Cabebe is chief executive officer of , a designated community action agency for the county that is responsible for addressing the needs of low-income individuals and families. In 2023, she said the organization helped 20,200 people, including many affected by the wildfires with rental and mortgage assistance.

She said they received many grants for fire recovery because of the “core funding that we receive from the county and people come to us because they trust us.”

While MEO had requested small increases of about 3% to 5% for various programs, the organization received about the same funding as the year before.

“But we were grateful that we weren’t cut, and that it is flat funded,” Cabebe said. “We do understand that times are tough.”

Civil Beat’s coverage of Maui County is supported in part by a grant from the Nuestro Futuro Foundation.