Question: Would you please find out why and when did the City and County of Honolulu start to charge/include an additional fee called a "beautification fee" of $7 to register our cars? I recently renewed my registered vehicle online and saw the "beautification fee" included along with other taxes in the total cost of registration. What is the purpose of this fee?
Answer: It is a state law, Section 286-51 of the Hawaii Revised Statutes, that authorizes the counties to assess fees, by ordinance, to help pay for highway beautification and to deal with abandoned vehicles, said Gary Kurokawa, deputy director, Department of Budget and Fiscal Services.
The fee has been around for about 40 years.
For Honolulu, Section 6-20 of the Revised Ordinances of Honolulu covers the "Highway Beautification and Disposal of Abandoned Vehicles Revolving Fund."
It sets the fee at $1 for "U-drive" vehicles and $7 for all other motor vehicles.
The earliest city operating budget that included the highway beautification fund was the fiscal year 1974-75 budget, Kurokawa said.
A Kokua Line column from 2000 noted the fee at that time was $2 per vehicle. The current $7 fee took effect in July 2010.
For fiscal year 2014, $4.5 million was collected from highway beautification fees, Kurokawa said.
The money collected is used for highway beautification "and other related activities of primary highways" under the city’s jurisdiction, as well as to deal with abandoned or derelict vehicles.
In addition to hauling away vehicles abandoned on public roadways, the beautification fee covers hauling away vehicles "junked" with the owners’ permission, for free.
Those interested can call 532-4325 or go to a satellite city hall to fill out an "auto junking" application. See bit.ly/1xvQV0r for information.
Question: Whatever happened to that couple from Canada who came here for a vacation, then had a baby prematurely? They found out their insurance company wouldn’t pay for the nearly $1 million in costs because the mother had a pre-existing condition. I sure hope somebody helped them.
Answer: Jennifer Huculak and Darren Kimmel are still trying to deal with their insurance company’s decision not to pay for the $950,000 bill incurred after their baby, Reece Huculak-Kimmel, was born prematurely at Kapiolani Medical Center on Dec. 10, 2013. See bit.ly/1HnO6Wc.
A GoFundMe campaign to help the couple was launched last year, but at last check, only $16,821 had been raised.
According to the fundraising website — gofundme.com/hipmnw — the couple is considering bankruptcy and debating whether to challenge Blue Cross, the insurance company, in court.
We attempted to reach the couple through the website, but did not receive a response.
Auwe
To the person who backed their vehicle into our new car parked in the small lot on Makaloa Street behind the Hawaii State Ballet studio last month. You caused considerable damage without leaving a note taking responsibility. You know who you are.
–Perplexed Parkers
Mahalo
To all the people on Oahu who helped me recover after I developed complications in December 2009. Five years ago, on Feb. 22, 2010, I was sent to a hospital on Oahu. I landed at Honolulu Airport from Kwajalein, Marshall Islands, where I had lived for 22 years. I am very lucky to be alive five years later due to the custom agents at the airport, airport security, and the taxi driver who took me to Castle Medical Center and went inside the emergency room and told the doctors that I needed help. I am alive due to all of your help, as well as the care of doctors, nurses and CNAs who helped me recover. I lost more than six weeks of my life and my friends and co-workers on Kwajalein, but am grateful to all my friends in Hawaii.
–Mary J. Randall
Write to "Kokua Line" at Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 7 Waterfront Plaza, Suite 210, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., Honolulu 96813; call 529-4773; fax 529-4750; or email kokualine@staradvertiser.com.
