Tree work rules in Hawaii

Hawaii licenses tree work through the Contractors License Board. The specialty class is C-27b Tree trimming and removal contractor, and there's also a C-27 Landscaping class.¹

Ask your city or county government whether removing a tree needs a permit where you live.

If a tree is touching the power line to your house, keep clear and call your utility first. Clearing the line is the utility's job, and a tree company can't start until it's done.

In Hawaii the federal OSHA rule is the one that applies: workers who aren't trained for line work keep 10 feet from lines up to 50,000 volts.²

Hawaii's one-call law doesn't name stump or root removal. It leaves out all digging at an existing one or two family home on a residential parcel of 2 acres or less.³

We don't have an official source on Hawaii's license for spraying or injecting trees. Ask any company that offers it which pesticide license it holds.