Before then, he worked as an editor or reporter at the Los Angeles Times, San Francisco Examiner and San Jose Mercury News (twice). Prior to becoming a professional journalist, Nakaso was a reporter and the top editor at the San Jose City College student newspaper before becoming a reporter and the top editor at the San Jose State University Spartan Daily newspaper. He attended San Jose City College and San Jose State University simultaneously to get as much newspaper experience as possible. During his college years, Nakaso had six professional newspaper internships, including two at the Los Angeles Times and was hired as a full-time reporter two weeks into his second internship at the Times.
At the Star-Advertiser, Nakaso covers a wide range of stories but has focused on coverage of homeless issues since 2015. He is currently assigned to the Star-Advertiser's Capitol bureau.
A package of House bills would help property owners buy insurance in Hawaii’s most high-risk zones, including those in Puna’s riskiest lava zones and survivors of the Maui wildfires who also lost homes. Read more
The name Donald Trump does not appear on either Senate Bill 2392 or SB 2393, and Sen. Karl Rhoads said the bills apply to any political candidate. Read more
More humpback whales were counted Saturday during the first of three whale counts of the year versus the previous most comparable year, 2022. Read more
House Speaker Scott Saiki has thrown his support behind an effort for full public financing for political candidates starting in 2028, which proponents say would reduce the temptation for political corruption and perhaps lead to a new generation of younger elected officials who aren’t beholden to special interests and corporations. Read more
The organizer of Lahaina Strong supports Gov. Josh Green’s push to convert short-term vacation rentals in West Maui into long-term housing for survivors of the Aug. 8 wildfires and move them out of hotels, urging legislators to also find a way to use conversions to help fill the statewide need for 50,000 affordable housing units. Read more
Green said that he will issue a moratorium on short-term rentals if does not get 3,000 property owners to voluntarily convert by March 1. Read more
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Green said that he will issue a moratorium on short-term rentals if does not get 3,000 property owners to voluntarily convert by March 1. Read more
As of Friday’s deadline, lawmakers introduced 1,580 new bills in 2024 that will be up for consideration along with 2,858 bills that were introduced in 2023 but didn’t pass and have carried over. Read more
Gov. Josh Green plans a full-court offensive to convince hesitant legislators to finally lower Hawaii’s blood alcohol content level to .05% from .08% after previous bills failed. Read more
The first crack of 3 inches by 10 inches was discovered Monday afternoon and later eroded into a three-foot hole, said DOT director Ed Sniffen. Read more
The Democratic majority caucuses in the state House and Senate have some different priorities heading into Wednesday’s start of the legislative session but agree on the need to address the effects of the Maui wildfires and prevent future ones across the state, increase affordable housing, reduce homelessness and add more health care workers. Read more
Coming up in Hawaii’s construction industry as apprentices, drywaller Trisha Taketa and carpenter Vaneza Austria were usually the only women on their job sites where they received side glances from older, male construction workers. Read more
Finding ways to help Maui wildfire survivors and the rebuilding of Lahaina will likely dominate this legislative session — the first session since the firestorm on Aug. 8 swept through the historic town. Read more
The names of three people have been submitted to Gov. Josh Green to replace veteran state Rep. John Mizuno, including Mizuno’s wife and office manager, Joje “May” Mizuno. Read more
Dozens of bills from the 2023 legislative session that failed to become law remain alive going into the Jan. 17 start of the upcoming session, including one that would eliminate the Hawaii Tourism Authority and create a new tourism entity. Read more
Hawaii will see more deaths than births over the next four to five years and any population growth across the islands will be driven by new arrivals from the U.S. mainland and from other places around the world, the state House Finance Committee was told Wednesday. Read more
Heading into the legislative session for the second year in a row, Hawaii’s two Republican state senators can’t agree on which of them should serve as Senate minority leader. Read more
Maui’s struggle following the Aug. 8 wildfires should continue to drag down Hawaii’s overall economy this year even as 9.8 million visitors are forecast statewide. Read more
New laws taking effect today include an increase in the state minimum wage to $14 an hour, gender-neutral language for birth and marriage certificates, and a requirement that Hawaii law enforcement agencies establish minimum standards for the use of force. Read more
Almost five months after the Maui wildfires, nearly 3,000 families remain in hotels while county, state and federal officials work to free up 3,000 short-term rental units to get them into long-term housing. Read more
Friends and family across Hawaii have been telling Archie Kalepa that they want to show support for survivors of the Maui wildfires but don’t feel like they’re invited to the Valley Isle. Read more
