The employees of HEI and its direct and indirect subsidiaries, other than the electric utilities, are not covered by any collective bargaining agreement. The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 1260 represents roughly half of the Utilities'Utilities’ workforce covered by a collective bargaining agreement that expires on October 31, 2018.2021.

The islands of Oahu, Hawaii, Maui, Lanai and Molokai have a combined population estimated at 1.4 million, or approximately 95% of the total population of the State of Hawaii, and comprise a service area of 5,815 square miles. The principal communities served include Honolulu (on Oahu), Hilo and Kona (on Hawaii) and Wailuku and Kahului (on Maui). The service areas also include numerous suburban communities, resorts, U.S. Armed Forces installations and agricultural operations. The state has granted Hawaiian Electric, Hawaii Electric Light and Maui Electric nonexclusive franchises, which authorize the Utilities to construct, operate and maintain facilities over and under public streets and sidewalks. Each of these franchises will continue in effect for an indefinite period of time until forfeited, altered, amended or repealed.

The Division of Consumer Advocacy’s 20172018 Compliance Resolution Fund Report states that it appears Hawaii has metcontinues to progress towards its 20162020 Renewable Portfolio Standards and EEPS goals and is progressing towards its 2020 goals. The EEPS has contributed to lower kWh sales; however, the implementation of sales decoupling has delinked sales and revenues. See "Decoupling" in Note 3 of the Consolidated Financial Statements.“Regulatory mechanisms” above.

In December 1996, the PUC issued an order in a docket that had been opened to review the relationship between HEI and Hawaiian Electric and the effects of that relationship on the operations of Hawaiian Electric. The order adopted the report of the consultant the PUC had retained and orderedrequired Hawaiian Electric to continue to provide the PUC with periodic status reports on its compliance with the PUC Agreement (pursuant to which HEI became the holding company of Hawaiian Electric). Hawaiian Electric files such status reports annually. In the order, the PUC also required the Utilities to present a comprehensive analysis of the impact that the holding company structure and investments in nonutility subsidiaries have on a case-by-case basis on the cost of capital to each utility in future rate cases and remove any such effects from the cost of capital. The Utilities have made presentations in their subsequent rate cases to support their positions that there was no evidence that would modify the PUC’s finding that Hawaiian Electric’s access to capital did not suffer as a result of HEI’s involvement in nonutility activities and that HEI’s diversification did not permanently raise or lower the cost of capital incorporated into the rates paid by Hawaiian Electric’s utility customers.

Because they are located in the State of Hawaii, Hawaiian Electric and its subsidiaries are exempt by statute from limitations set forth in the Powerplant and Industrial Fuel Use Act of 1978 on the use of petroleum as a primary energy source.

See also “HEI–Regulation” above.

Title V operating permits have been issued for all of the Utilities’ affected generating units.

RCRA underground storage tank (UST) regulations require all facilities that use USTs for storing petroleum products to comply with established leak detection, spill prevention, standards for tank design and retrofits, financial assurance, operator training, and tank decommissioning and closure requirements. All of the Utilities’ USTs currently meet the applicable requirements.

The Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act under SARA Title III requires the Utilities to report potentially hazardous chemicals present in their facilities in order to provide the public with information so that emergency procedures can be established to protect the public in the event of hazardous chemical releases. Since January 1, 1998, the steam electric industry category has been subject to Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) reporting requirements.

The TSCA regulations specify procedures for the handling and disposal of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), a compound found in some transformer and capacitor dielectric fluids. The TSCA regulations also apply to responses to releases of PCBs to the environment. The Utilities have instituted procedures to monitor compliance with these regulations and have implemented a program to identify and replace PCB transformers and capacitors in their systems. In April 2010, the EPA issued an Advance Notice of Proposed Rule Making announcing its intent to reassess PCB regulations. The EPA has ceased activity on the PCB reassessment.

Hawaii’s Environmental Response Law (ERL), as amended, governs releases of hazardous substances, including oil, to the environment in areas within the state’s jurisdiction. Responsible parties under the ERL are jointly, severally, and strictly liable for a release of a hazardous substance. Responsible parties include owners or operators of a facility where a hazardous substance is located and any person who at the time of disposal of the hazardous substance owned or operated any facility at which such hazardous substance was disposed.

The Utilities periodically discover leaking oil-containing equipment such as USTs, piping, and transformers. Each subsidiary reports releases from such equipment when and as required by applicable law and addresses the releases in compliance with applicable regulatory requirements.

Hawaii Electric Light pays a storage fee to Island Energy and has no other interest in the property, tanks or other infrastructure situated on their property. Hawaii Electric Light also owns 6 acres of land in Kona, which is used for a baseyard, and one acre of land in Hilo, which houses its accounting, customer services and administrative offices. Hawaii Electric Light also leases 3.7 acres of land for its baseyard in Hilo under a lease expiring in 2030. In addition, Hawaii Electric Light owns a total of approximately 100 acres of land, and leases a total of approximately 8.5 acres of land, on which hydro facilities, substations and switching stations, microwave facilities and transmission lines are located. The deeds to the sites located in Hilo contain certain restrictions, but the restrictions do not materially interfere with the use of the sites for public utility purposes.

See “Hawaiian Electric and subsidiaries and service areas” above for a discussion of the nonexclusive franchises of Hawaiian Electric and subsidiaries. Most of the leases, easements and licenses for Hawaiian Electric’s, Hawaii Electric Light’s and Maui Electric’s lines have been recorded.

At the time of HEI’s acquisition of ASB, in 1988, HEI agreed with the OTS’Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS), Department of Treasury’s predecessor regulatory agency, that ASB’s regulatory capital would be maintained at a level of at least 6% of ASB’s total liabilities, or at such greater amount as may be required from time to time by regulation. Under the agreement, HEI’s obligation to contribute additional capital to ensure that ASB would have the capital level required by the OTS was limited to a maximum aggregate amount of approximately $65.1 million. As of December 31, 2017,2019, as a result of certain HEI contributions of capital to ASB over the years, HEI’s maximum obligation under the agreement to contribute additional capital has been reduced to approximately $28.3 million. ASB is subject to OCC regulations on dividends and other distributions and ASB must receive a letter from the FRB communicating the OCC'sOCC’s and FRB'sFRB’s non-objection to the payment of any dividend ASB proposes to declare and pay to ASB Hawaii and HEI.