A year ago, the deadliest American wildfire in more than a century took 102 lives on the Hawaii island of Maui, leaving the historic town of Lahaina in ashes and spurring a series of investigations into what could have been done to better prepare for such a disaster.

Since then, laws have been passed, emergency agencies have implemented new policies, and residents and officials have grappled with how to rebuild the town.

But some of the more important steps that might help get ready for — or prevent — the next catastrophe have not happened, in part because there are lingering questions about how to pay for them.

The result is that, a year after the disaster, the island remains worryingly vulnerable to the wildfires that climate scientists say are an increasing threat, even in places like Hawaii.

Aina Kohler, a firefighter whose house was destroyed in the Lahaina blaze, moved to another home on Maui’s West Side and has taken time away from her firefighting job for much of the last year.

While she understands that only so much can be done in a year, Ms. Kohler said, she and other residents feel the government has not done enough to make the island safer.