King’s funeral tomorrow

The funeral service for retired federal Judge Samuel P. King will be held tomorrow at St. Andrew’s Cathedral. A gathering will begin at 1:30 p.m., followed by the service at 2:30 p.m. and a reception with the family on the church lawn. King, 94, died Dec. 7. The family requests that in lieu of flowers, donations in the name of the Hon. Samuel P. King be sent to Kalikolehua-El Sistema Hawaii, 1735 Dole St. No. 110, Honolulu, HI 96822.

City District 1 ballots due tomorrow

Leeward Oahu voters have two more days to turn in ballots for the special election for the City Council seat vacated by Todd Apo.

Ballots are due at the city clerk’s office at 6 p.m. tomorrow. People who do not get their ballots in the mail in time to be received by then may hand-carry them to city offices at Kapolei Hale or Honolulu Hale.

As of yesterday, 10,558 ballots had been received out of about 47,000 mailed out, a 22 percent response rate. Special elections last year for the City Council’s Windward and Makiki seats had return rates of 41 percent and 45 percent, respectively.

Results will be announced shortly after 6 p.m. tomorrow at www.honoluluelections.org.

Thirteen candidates are seeking to fill the last two years of the term for the seat held by Apo, who resigned in November to take a job with Walt Disney Parks and Resorts.

Insurance switch could cost teachers

Hawaii public school teachers will retain their health benefits but could have to pay more after they are forced to enroll in the same health insurance fund as most other state employees next week.

More than 15,000 teachers and retirees are being rolled into the Employer-Union Health Benefits Trust Fund when their exclusive Voluntary Employee Beneficiary Association expires in the new year, a move designed to reduce costs to the state.

"The bottom line is, nobody is going to lose coverage during this transition," EUTF Acting Administrator Marie Laderta said yesterday. "We don’t want them to get too anxious. We want to address the anxiety."

But it is likely that teachers, who cost less to insure because they are healthier than other government employees, will end up paying extra for the same coverage.

Costs could rise depending on the plans and coverage teachers choose, Laderta said. Details of health plan costs will be posted on the EUTF website by tomorrow.

"Some will increase, and some will be about the same," Laderta said.

Teachers intend to fight any hike in premiums caused by a change in administration, said attorney Paul Alston, who represents teachers suing to block changes in their health coverage.

NEIGHBOR ISLAND

Old phones will benefit Kauai Habitat

An organization will be collecting used cell phones to benefit Kauai Habitat for Humanity.

Kauai RSVP, a volunteer organization that is part of the Agency on Elderly Affairs, is conducting the campaign. Cell phone companies have pledged to donate between 50 cents and $30 for each cell phone turned in, depending on the model and condition of the phone.

The drive will end Jan. 17 at the Martin Luther King Jr. Day Celebration to be held at the Kukui Grove Center from 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Used cell phones, including cell phone batteries, can be dropped off at these locations:

» Agency on Elderly Affairs, Lihue Civic Center, Piikoi Building, 4444 Rice St., Suite 330

» Neighborhood centers in Hanapepe, Kalaheo, Kapaa, Kekaha, Kilauea, Koloa, Lihue and Waimea

» Mahelona Hospital

Call Linda Nuland-Ames, director of Kauai RSVP, at 241-4478 or Grace Delos Reyes at 241-4479.