QUESTION: Please answer another question about the “gold star” driver’s license. I looked at the Hawaii driver’s license website and was unable to find much information about licenses expiring after October 2020. My license was issued in 2013 and doesn’t expire until 2021. Do I need to go to the DMV before October 2020 and get my license revised or can I wait till 2021? If I have to go to the DMV before 2020, will the revised license have a new expiration date?
ANSWER: No, you are not required to add the gold star before your Hawaii driver’s license expires. Some people are choosing to do so because they also use the state-issued credential for federal purposes — mainly boarding domestic aircraft — and want to keep doing so after October 2020. That’s when the U.S. government has said it will fully enforce the federal REAL ID Act, a long-delayed anti-terrorism law. After that date, according to Hawaii’s Department of Transportation, your Hawaii driver’s license (or state ID) must carry the “gold star” if you wish to use it to pass through airport security.
To be clear, other identity verification — such as a U.S. passport — also will be acceptable at airport security checkpoints. Your license will remain valid for driving until its expiration date, even absent the gold star.
That said, you may add the gold star to your license now if you wish. The process is akin to getting a duplicate (although you can’t do it online). It is not an early renewal. The expiration date on your license would remain the same.
To do so, apply for a duplicate license at any Oahu driver licensing center and pay the $6 duplicate license fee, according to the city’s website. Bring your current, valid driver license and a completed driver license application indicating you wish to designate your driver license as your REAL ID-compliant card. Bring your original documents providing proof of identity, legal presence in the United States and Hawaii residency. Find the application and instructions at license.honolulu.gov.
Q: I need to renew my driver’s license. I could go to the library and use the computer there to make an appointment but I don’t want to because it asks for a telephone number and my home phone number is unlisted. I don’t have a cell phone. Can I just go to the satellite city hall and stand in line?
A: Yes, but that is likely to be the slowest option.
Reader feedback from people who made appointments online and kept them has been positive; they describe the renewal transaction as taking 15 or 20 minutes.
Previous criticism mainly was from people who couldn’t make a reservation because they didn’t have access to a computer or a cellphone. The city revised the process so that a cellphone isn’t necessary. You don’t even need to input your home telephone number; you could use a work number or a friend’s number (get their permission first). If the phone number you input doesn’t have texting capability, you won’t receive a reminder about your appointment, so be sure to write down the time, date and location.
If you insist on walking in, go to a driver’s licensing center, rather than a satellite city hall. Driver’s licensing centers have more staff devoted to driver’s license renewals.
MAHALO
Mahalo to the generous lady at Kapolei Safeway on Aug. 3. While I was waiting in line to pay for my groceries, the lady in the back of me said “Aunty, go get four more ribs,” which was the limit. She said, “I can pay for it.” When the cashier totaled the groceries, the lady said “I’ll pay for it.” I told her I had the money, but she told the cashier, “No, I’ll pay for it.” I didn’t get her name, but God bless her and her family. She made my day. — Grateful senior citizen
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