[8] In 2012, as part of an investigation of municipal law enforcement, Civil Beat sued the City and County of Honolulu for access to public records.
Other sponsorships have come from local businesses and nonprofits, such as the law firm of Alston Hunt Floyd & Ing, Appleseed Center and Honolulu Museum of Art which together provided underwriting for a reporting project in Micronesia, and D.R.
Civil Beat provides content and analysis for other news organizations including National Public Radio.
[13][14] Articles written by Civil Beat journalists have been featured in the New York Times and are often referenced and quoted in other news sources.
The Greater Oregon[17] and the Indiana[18] chapters of the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) gave its award for "best overall news site" in Hawaii to Honolulu Civil Beat in 2011 and 2012.