STOCKTON, Calif. >> Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang wants to give cash to every American each month.Susie Garza has never heard of Yang. But since February, she’s been getting $500 a month from a nonprofit in Stockton, California, as part of an experiment that offers something unusual in presidential politics: a trial run of a campaign promise, highlighting the benefits and challenges in real time.Garza can spend the money however she wants. She uses $150 of it to pay for her cellphone and another $100 or so to pay off her dog’s veterinarian bills. She spends the rest on...…STOCKTON, Calif. >> Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang wants to give cash to every American each month.Susie Garza has never heard of Yang. But since February, she’s been getting $500 a month from a nonprofit in Stockton, California, as part of an experiment that offers something unusual in presidential politics: a trial run of a campaign promise, highlighting the benefits and challenges in real time.Garza can spend the money however she wants. She uses $150 of it to pay for her cellphone and another $100 or so to pay off her dog’s veterinarian bills. She spends the rest on...WW…

Lt. Gov. Josh Green and other community physicians are calling on state health officials to do more extensive testing for coronavirus, as Hawaii gears up for the peak of the outbreak in the islands.Expanding testing to all intimate contacts of coronavirus patients, whether they have symptoms or not, will stymie community transmission, Green said.“It’s no secret that I believe we have needed much more extensive testing of COVID-positive contacts. This is how countries in Asia stopped the spread,” Green said, adding that private physicians and hospitals have stepped up to fill the testing...…Lt. Gov. Josh Green and other community physicians are calling on state health officials to do more extensive testing for coronavirus, as Hawaii gears up for the peak of the outbreak in the islands.Expanding testing to all intimate contacts of coronavirus patients, whether they have symptoms or not, will stymie community transmission, Green said.“It’s no secret that I believe we have needed much more extensive testing of COVID-positive contacts. This is how countries in Asia stopped the spread,” Green said, adding that private physicians and hospitals have stepped up to fill the testing...WW…

|Honolulu police are looking for two male suspects in connection with the kidnapping and robbery of a 52-year-old man in Kapolei.Police said the suspects approached the victim at about 9 p.m. Monday and physically assaulted him. They allegedly forced him into the trunk of his vehicle and took the victim’s car.Police said the victim managed to free himself from the trunk. The perpetrators continued on in the vehicle.The 52-year-old man was taken to a hospital in serious condition.Police said the suspects remain at-large.A description of the suspects and the vehicle was not immediately...…|Honolulu police are looking for two male suspects in connection with the kidnapping and robbery of a 52-year-old man in Kapolei.Police said the suspects approached the victim at about 9 p.m. Monday and physically assaulted him. They allegedly forced him into the trunk of his vehicle and took the victim’s car.Police said the victim managed to free himself from the trunk. The perpetrators continued on in the vehicle.The 52-year-old man was taken to a hospital in serious condition.Police said the suspects remain at-large.A description of the suspects and the vehicle was not immediately...WW…

|Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders have become at higher rates than other minority groups, including high-risk African Americans and American Indians in western states, according to the University of Hawaii John A. Burns School of Medicine.In California, with the second-largest population of Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders outside Hawaii, the group had the highest rate of COVID-19 infections at 217.7 cases per 100,000, compared to all confirmed cases statewide at 62.4. In Utah, the group’s infection rate was 197.6 versus 142.2 for the total population, and Washington’s King...…|Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders have become at higher rates than other minority groups, including high-risk African Americans and American Indians in western states, according to the University of Hawaii John A. Burns School of Medicine.In California, with the second-largest population of Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders outside Hawaii, the group had the highest rate of COVID-19 infections at 217.7 cases per 100,000, compared to all confirmed cases statewide at 62.4. In Utah, the group’s infection rate was 197.6 versus 142.2 for the total population, and Washington’s King...WW…

Mahalo for supporting Honolulu Star-Advertiser. Enjoy this free story!Proposed legislation that would exempt unemployment benefits from Hawaii’s income tax hit a roadblock this month when President Joe Biden signed the American Rescue Plan. While the federal relief package exempts unemployment compensation up to $10,200 from federal income taxes, it prohibits states from using the federal aid to plug budget holes created by tax cuts.Mahalo for reading the Honolulu Star-Advertiser!You're reading a premium story. Read the full story with our Print & Digital Subscription.Already a...…Mahalo for supporting Honolulu Star-Advertiser. Enjoy this free story!Proposed legislation that would exempt unemployment benefits from Hawaii’s income tax hit a roadblock this month when President Joe Biden signed the American Rescue Plan. While the federal relief package exempts unemployment compensation up to $10,200 from federal income taxes, it prohibits states from using the federal aid to plug budget holes created by tax cuts.Mahalo for reading the Honolulu Star-Advertiser!You're reading a premium story. Read the full story with our Print & Digital Subscription.Already a...WW…

Twenty-one travelers arrested on suspicion of violating Hawaii’s quarantine order have agreed to leave the state because of threats, a member of the group said today.Kendra Carter said some of the harassment involved death threats.“People started rolling up to our house calling us all types of names. Telling us to starve and a whole bunch of stuff. We’ve been getting death threats in our inboxes,” Carter said. “People telling us to get the (expletive) off the island.”Carter wasn’t arrested with the others last week because police decided to let her and another woman stay with their...…Twenty-one travelers arrested on suspicion of violating Hawaii’s quarantine order have agreed to leave the state because of threats, a member of the group said today.Kendra Carter said some of the harassment involved death threats.“People started rolling up to our house calling us all types of names. Telling us to starve and a whole bunch of stuff. We’ve been getting death threats in our inboxes,” Carter said. “People telling us to get the (expletive) off the island.”Carter wasn’t arrested with the others last week because police decided to let her and another woman stay with their...WW…

|[ AD HAS BEEN REMOVED FROM THIS STORY ]California honeymooners were the latest to be arrested for violating .Special agents of the state Department of the Attorney General on Thursday arrested Borice Leouskiy, 20, and Yuliia Andreichenko, 26, of Citrus Heights, Calif., and charged them under Hawaii Revised Statutes for unsworn falsification to authority and violation of the 14-day quarantine.They were arrested after a Waikiki hotel reported that they repeatedly violated the requirements of the self- quarantine order after checking in after 10 p.m. on Wednesday. Both were raised in the...…|[ AD HAS BEEN REMOVED FROM THIS STORY ]California honeymooners were the latest to be arrested for violating .Special agents of the state Department of the Attorney General on Thursday arrested Borice Leouskiy, 20, and Yuliia Andreichenko, 26, of Citrus Heights, Calif., and charged them under Hawaii Revised Statutes for unsworn falsification to authority and violation of the 14-day quarantine.They were arrested after a Waikiki hotel reported that they repeatedly violated the requirements of the self- quarantine order after checking in after 10 p.m. on Wednesday. Both were raised in the...WW…

Two restaurants on the north shore of Kauai have posted social media notices that they won’t be serving visitors, who arrive through the state’s pre-arrivals testing program, in their dining rooms.Saenz Ohana Breakfast in Princeville posted Friday that it would only allow visitors to order online and pick up and that only residents with local state IDs would be allowed to order, sit and eat.“Visitors we are sorry for the inconvenience but we, as a island, are not ready for opening now,” the post said. “(Our) plan is to keep our area safe of travelers so the locals can have somewhere to feel...…Two restaurants on the north shore of Kauai have posted social media notices that they won’t be serving visitors, who arrive through the state’s pre-arrivals testing program, in their dining rooms.Saenz Ohana Breakfast in Princeville posted Friday that it would only allow visitors to order online and pick up and that only residents with local state IDs would be allowed to order, sit and eat.“Visitors we are sorry for the inconvenience but we, as a island, are not ready for opening now,” the post said. “(Our) plan is to keep our area safe of travelers so the locals can have somewhere to feel...WW…

The city has notified federal authorities that it is withdrawing from participating in the procurement of a public-private partnership for the $9.2 billion rail project.Mayor Kirk Caldwell notified the Federal Transit Administration of the decision to “conclude its participation in the procurement of a Public-Private Partnership,” city officials said in a news release.According to the city, it is now up to the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation to cancel the procurement.“Until it is canceled, the procurement remains active, which keeps the details of the proposals confidential,”...…The city has notified federal authorities that it is withdrawing from participating in the procurement of a public-private partnership for the $9.2 billion rail project.Mayor Kirk Caldwell notified the Federal Transit Administration of the decision to “conclude its participation in the procurement of a Public-Private Partnership,” city officials said in a news release.According to the city, it is now up to the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation to cancel the procurement.“Until it is canceled, the procurement remains active, which keeps the details of the proposals confidential,”...WW…

Three people were arrested today during a rally at the Hawaii State Capitol to protest local government restrictions aimed at stopping COVID-19.Organizers of the rally, which began at noon and was promoted online at change.org, called the restrictions an “illegal lockdown.” In addition to the arrests, five people were issued citations for violating emergency rules, according to the Honolulu Police Department.About 200 participants demonstrated on the mauka pedestrian entryway of the Capitol with signs containing messages that included “Open Hawaii Be Akamai” and “Tyranny is...…Three people were arrested today during a rally at the Hawaii State Capitol to protest local government restrictions aimed at stopping COVID-19.Organizers of the rally, which began at noon and was promoted online at change.org, called the restrictions an “illegal lockdown.” In addition to the arrests, five people were issued citations for violating emergency rules, according to the Honolulu Police Department.About 200 participants demonstrated on the mauka pedestrian entryway of the Capitol with signs containing messages that included “Open Hawaii Be Akamai” and “Tyranny is...WW…