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.
Thousands of public school students from low-income families will get free school lunches over the next two school years, while new rules also will go into effect designed to reduce cancellations of school bus routes. Read more
The increase applies to everyone who stays in a Hawaii hotel, cruise ship or other paid lodging — including local residents. Read more
Democratic Gov. Josh Green has named Republican Joe Gedeon to succeed the late Republican Rep. Gene Ward to represent Hawaii Kai-Kalama Valley. Read more
Everyone who stays in a Hawaii hotel, cruise ship or other lodging beginning Jan. 1 will pay an extra $3 for every $400 in overnight costs — or an additional $30 for every $4,000 spent to stay in the islands — to help Hawaii pay to address climate change and reduce the risk of future wildfires. Read more
Longtime Honolulu Advertiser reporter, Capitol bureau chief, city editor and editorial page editor Jerry Burris died Wednesday in his sleep at his home in Lanikai. He was 81. Read more
Randall Wallace, 67, was apartment hunting last week for a permanent home of his own following years on the street and after only two months living in the new Iwilei homeless kauhale community, where he’s gained an appreciation for how good a stable life can be. Read more
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Green — America’s only sitting governor who’s also a medical doctor — previously testified against the Senate confirmation of Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. as Health and Human Services secretary because of Kennedy’s skepticism of vaccines. Read more
Schatz blasted the plan today on the Senate floor and called it a clear violation of the Emoluments Clause of the U.S. Constitution. Read more
Ka La‘i Ola is a modular housing project mauka of the Lahaina Civic Center designed specifically for survivors who are ineligible for Federal Emergency Management Agency assistance. Read more
Calls for greater enforcement efforts were taken much more seriously when the Legislature convened just two weeks after the deadly blast at a New Year’s Eve party in Aliamanu that killed six people, injured or maimed dozens of others and led to arrests. Read more
Yamashita’s tenure as Finance chair got off to a rocky start three years ago during chaotic, end-of-session conference committee hearings to resolve differences between House and Senate versions of bills. Read more
Some 37% of Hawaii businesses said tariffs make them “very concerned,” while another 40% are “somewhat concerned,” adding up to a whopping 77% of businesses feeling tariff anxiety, according to a new survey by ProService Hawaii. Read more
Former Honolulu City Council member John Henry Felix — who witnessed the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor as a boy, became an Eagle Scout at the age of 15, later held court at the Pacific Club over back-to-back breakfast meetings, was a proud descendant of his Portuguese ancestry and active in multiple business and philanthropic endeavours — died at his independent living facility in Hawaii Kai early Monday morning at the age of 94. Read more
There were 259 bills that the House and Senate sent to Gov. Josh Green in the final days of the legislative session that addresses new and sometimes long-standing issues. Read more
During two recesses, House Majority Leader Sean Quinlan (D, Waialua-Haleiwa-Punaluu) strode across the House floor in an unusual move to talk to some of the eight members of the Republican caucus. Read more
If approved by the full House and Senate Wednesday, the bills would go to Gov. Josh Green, who has already signed 27 new laws this year, including further tightening firearms requirements across the islands. Read more
Hawaii auto sales continued to fall this year and badly trailed the rest of the country — with an uncertain future ahead because of President Donald Trump’s economic policies, the Hawaii Automobile Dealers Association reported Wednesday. Read more
The tourism industry already has seen a drop in visitor arrivals, notably Canadians angry at Trump’s initial Canadian tariffs and his threats to make their country America’s 51st state. Read more
Eric Kingma, executive director of the Hawaii Longline Association, told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser on Friday, “You can have both ocean protection as well as allowing sustainable fisheries to occur. They can be compatible.” Read more
President Donald Trump issued an executive order Thursday overturning an Obama-era ban on commercial fishing in the nearly 500,000- square-mile Pacific Islands Heritage Marine National Monument, fulfilling a years-long goal of fishing advocates from Hawaii and American Samoa in an Oval Office ceremony. Read more
The city will lose more than $11 million in federal funding for seven programs and projects that provide special-needs housing, small-business assistance and address environmental and climate efforts. Read more
