Question: The city website says the DMV has some Saturday hours now. Is that only by appointment, or can you walk in?
Answer: Road tests are by appointment only and other services are mainly by appointment, with limited standby service as available, a spokesperson said.
The following locations will be open on certain Saturdays through the end of the year:
>> Kapalama Driver Licensing Center: Sept. 10, Oct. 8, Nov. 5 and Dec. 3.
>> Sheridan Park Road Test Office: Sept. 17, Oct. 1, Nov. 19 and Dec. 3.
>> Kapolei Driver Licensing Center: Sept. 17, Oct. 22, Nov. 19 and Dec. 17.
“Road-test services during Saturday hours are by appointment only at the Kapolei Driver Licensing Center and Sheridan Park Road Test Office. Standby service is available during Saturday hours to customers who cannot get an appointment at the Kapalama Driver Licensing Center or Kapolei Driver Licensing Center. But same-day service is not guaranteed. The standby service is offered to offset customer cancellations and no-shows for appointments to obtain or renew driver’s licenses, state identification cards, and learner’s permits,” said Harold Nedd, spokesperson for Honolulu’s Department of Customer Services.
For more information and for links to make an appointment, go to 808ne.ws/satapp.
Q: Do you think it’s still too early to know if the wreath contest will happen in December?
A: No, it’s not too early. The holiday wreath contest and display are scheduled to resume this year as part of the Honolulu City Lights celebration, after being suspended for the past two years because of the pandemic. More information about the wreath contest will be released in the coming weeks, said Makanani Sala, director of the Mayor’s Office of Culture and the Arts.
On a related note, the city announced Wednesday that nonprofit groups have until Sept. 9 to apply for a lottery that will select five community displays to showcase during the holiday festival on the civic center grounds. Applications must be postmarked by Sept. 9 or hand-delivered by 4:30 p.m. that day to the Mayor’s Office of Culture and the Arts at 550 S. King St., Honolulu, HI 96813.
The lottery drawing will occur at 10 a.m. Sept. 23 in the Mission Memorial Building Hearing Room at the same address. Applicants don’t have to attend the lottery to be selected.
Only verified nonprofit organizations are eligible for the lottery. To obtain a permit application, instructions and rules, call the Mayor’s Office of Culture and the Arts at 808-768-6622 or email chamara.silva@honolulu.gov.
Q: Regarding the tax rebate, will that count as taxable income?
A: No, the Act 115 refund won’t count as income on a federal or state income tax return. “Unlike an ordinary refund of state taxes that must be included in income, the Act 115 refund is not received as result of a deduction claimed for state taxes paid,” the state Department of Taxation says on its website.
Auwe
E-bikes are a menace on sidewalks. Owners should be required to carry liability insurance. A boy on an e-bike mowed down my neighbor while she was out walking; he barely stopped to help her up. She will have medical bills because of this. — Outraged pedestrian
(Editor’s note: Under Hawaii law, only people age 15 and older may ride an e-bike and it’s illegal to ride any bike with a motor on a sidewalk.)
Mahalo
I was at the Kahala post office on July 23. The postal clerk and I were trying to figure out how to get the boxes to my car. A big mahalo to the gentleman who offered to help and transported the two unwieldy boxes to the car. Thank you! — Grateful senior
Write to Kokua Line at Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., Suite 7-500, Honolulu, HI 96813; call 808-529-4773; or email kokualine@staradvertiser.com.
