Question: Will they ever do free shredding again?
Answer: Yes, AARP Hawai‘i is hosting a free document shredding event and food drive in Aiea on Oct. 28 (a Saturday), with Access Corp. You don’t have to be a member of AARP to participate, but you must make a reservation; anyone without one will be turned away.
“AARP Hawai‘i and Access are excited to again offer this event to help people avoid identity theft and safely dispose of their confidential information,” Jackie Boland, community outreach director for AARP Hawai‘i, said in a news release. “Space is limited and people must pre-register and provide their contact information in order to participate. Unregistered participants won’t be accommodated.”
Here are details from AARP:
To register, go to https://events.aarp.org/aiea10-28 or call 877-926-8300. You’ll choose a time slot between 8 a.m. and 11 a.m. and be given the event’s exact address, including entry and exit instructions, after you register.
Access Corp., which specializes in secure document destruction, requires a signed release form from each participant. Print and sign the form when you register; it will help the line move faster on shredding day. Remember to bring the form with you.
On Oct. 28, bring your registration confirmation (printed out or on your phone) and up to two banker-size boxes of paperwork to shred; don’t bring e-waste. Boxes will not be returned. Staples and paperclips on the documents are OK.
Each vehicle occupant who wants to shred paperwork must register for the event and bring a release form. For example, two registered occupants in a car could bring a total of four boxes (two boxes each).
This will be a drive-thru, drop-off event. Registrants will stay in their cars. Walk-ups won’t be allowed.
The event doubles as a food drive for the Hawaii Foodbank. AARP Hawai‘i encourages registrants to bring nonperishable food such as rice or canned goods, or monetary donations.
If, after registering, you decide not to go, please cancel your reservation. Demand for these free shredding events generally exceeds supply; make room for someone else.
Q: Does the PUC oversee the BWS? I wondered if they will have anything to say about the proposed water rate hikes.
A: No, Hawaii’s Public Utilities Commission does not regulate the Honolulu Board of Water Supply. The PUC regulates privately owned utilities that provide water services in Hawaii, but not county and municipal water systems, according to puc.hawaii.gov, where you can find information about all the types of industries and entities the PUC regulates.
As for the BWS, “we are a semi-autonomous agency of the City and County of Honolulu. We have a seven-member board of directors. Five are appointed by the mayor and approved by the City Council. The director of the (city) Department of Facilities Maintenance and the director of the state Department of Transportation are ex-officio and are automatically appointed to the board. The board sets policy, which includes approving our rate schedule every five years,” spokesperson Kathleen Elliott-Pahinui said in an email.
The board is expected to consider a proposal next month that would increase Oahu water rates and monthly meter charges over the next 5-1/2 years. See the proposed rate increases at https://808ne.ws/45JWjUd, in type size larger than on the tables printed in a newsletter, about the proposed rate hikes that the BWS included in customers’ mailed bills.
20231013 Web Bws Rate Propsal by Honolulu Star-Advertiser
Mahalo
Mahalo to a couple who helped me get my bearings at a bus stop outside Kahala Mall on the Waialae Avenue side, as it changes into Kalanianaole Highway. I think they were tourists but they knew how to track the bus on their phone and helped me figure out what I needed to do to get home after I missed my ride. — A reader
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.
