STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1799

                                 Honolulu, Hawaii
                                                   , 1999

                                 RE: S.B. No. 1055
                                     S.D. 1
                                     H.D. 1




Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say
Speaker, House of Representatives
Twentieth State Legislature
Regular Session of 1999
State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Finance, to which was referred S.B. No.
1055, S.D. 1, H.D. 1, entitled: 

     "A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO UNCLAIMED FINANCIAL
     ASSISTANCE BENEFITS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this bill is to broaden the scope of
financial assistance benefits that are recoverable by:

     (1)  Expanding the types of benefit payments that may be
          claimed by the State when abandoned in the Department
          of Human Services' (DHS) Electronic Benefit Transfer
          System (system) to include all benefits in the system;

     (2)  Providing that the abandoned payments revert back to
          the program's appropriation from which the funds were
          expended; and

     (3)  Allowing DHS to offset the abandoned claim balance
          against any outstanding overpayments still owed by the
          household prior to reversion.

     DHS testified in support of this measure.


 
 
 
 
 
                                 STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1799
                                 Page 2

 
     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your
Committee on Finance that is attached to this report, your
Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No.
1055, S.D. 1, H.D. 1, and recommends that it pass Third Reading.

                                   Respectfully submitted on
                                   behalf of the members of the
                                   Committee on Finance,



                                   ______________________________
                                   DWIGHT Y. TAKAMINE, Chair