Question: I have a car with veteran license plates. I am buying a new car. I am selling my old car, but I want to keep my veteran plates. How do I do that?
Answer: Randy Leong, deputy director of the city’s Department of Customer Services, explains the process:
“Our recommendation is that you visit a satellite city hall and notify our customer service representative about your desire to keep the veteran’s license plate prior to selling the vehicle. You would then be required to surrender the veteran’s license plate, which the satellite city hall will hold until you get your new vehicle. In the meantime you would be issued a replacement plate to use on the vehicle until you return to the satellite city hall for the veteran’s license plate to be assigned or transferred to the newly purchased vehicle.
“This procedure is clearly stated on the application form for military specialty plates, which can be obtained at 808ne.ws/specialty plate. Applicants are required to attest to understanding that they must surrender their specialty plate and obtain regular issued license plates prior to transferring the registered ownership of vehicles assigned these specialty plates.
“It’s important to emphasize that the city will hold the specialty plates until the owner is ready to assign it to another vehicle.”
For the basics of obtaining a specialty license plate related to military service, see Wednesday’s Kokua Line (808ne.ws/829kline). That column addressed combat veterans specifically, but the process applies more broadly.
Q: Regarding absentee ballots in the primary election: Did a lot of people make mistakes that spoiled their ballots, like voting in two parties or something like that?
A: No. Fewer than 1 percent of mailed-in ballots were invalid, said Nedielyn Bueno, a spokeswoman for the state Office of Elections.
She also answered other readers’ questions about absentee voting in the Aug. 11 primary election:
Q: Statewide, how many ballots were mailed out to registered voters?
A: 238,941 absentee ballots were mailed to voters statewide for the 2018 primary election. These voters are either permanent absentee voters, or they requested a one-time absentee mail ballot for the primary election.
Q: Of those, how many ballots were mailed back in for tabulation?
A: 159,422 mail ballots were returned, for a voter turnout of 67 percent among people who requested absentee ballots.
Turnout by absentee voters far surpassed voter turnout overall, which was 39 percent. That percentage includes the number of registered Hawaii voters who actually cast a ballot, either in person or by mail.
For primary election results, see 808ne.ws/prim, which details statewide and county races.
Q: Is the ballot question about property taxes for the public schools limited to residential property?
A: No. The ballot question asks whether the Legislature shall be authorized to establish a surcharge on investment real property to support public education. It does not specify what type or category of investment property would be affected.
Auwe
When you cross the street at Kapiolani Boulevard and Kaimuki Avenue, watch out! Plenty cars just turn into Kaimuki Avenue and go even when the light says “walk” and you’re crossing the street. — A pedestrian
Mahalo
A belated mahalo to the Hele gas station at corner of Kapahulu Avenue and Williams Street. My car was overheating, the temperature gauge was over the high line and I smelled burning. I was close to Hele, and so I pulled in and turned off my car. The staff was so nice and let me wait in the cool air conditioning inside the station while I called Triple A. — Mahalo, A.K.
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.
