STAND. COM. REP. NO. 191

                                 Honolulu, Hawaii
                                                   , 1999

                                 RE: H.B. No. 186
                                     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 Labor and Public Employment, to which was
referred H.B. No. 186 entitled: 

     "A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO DEATH BENEFITS OF SURVIVING
     CHILDREN OF PUBLIC EMPLOYEES,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this bill is to, where there is no surviving
spouse or reciprocal beneficiary of a public employee who
qualified for retirement benefits but had not yet retired, allow
surviving dependent children to receive death benefits after age
18 while a full-time student or until age 23, whichever occurs
first.

     The Department of Education and a member of the public
testified in support of this measure.  The Employees' Retirement
System commented on this measure.

     Your Committee finds that this measure will provide
surviving dependent children of public employees with an
invaluable opportunity to gain enhanced training and education.
By earning a higher academic degree or completing a vocational
training program, these individuals will be able to contribute to
the future of a better trained workforce in Hawaii.

     Upon further consideration, your Committee has amended this
measure by extending the eligibility cutoff date to age 24 to
provide comparable benefits as the Health Fund Dependent Benefit
Plan, Federal and State tax dependent exemptions, and many
private employer health plans.


 
                                 STAND. COM. REP. NO. 191
                                 Page 2

 
     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your
Committee on Labor and Public Employment that is attached to this
report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose
of H.B. No. 186, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass
Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 186, H.D.
1, and be referred to the Committee on Finance.

                                   Respectfully submitted on
                                   behalf of the members of the
                                   Committee on Labor and Public
                                   Employment,



                                   ______________________________
                                   TERRY NUI YOSHINAGA, Chair