Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2002

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Labor and Public Employment, to which was referred H.B. No. 2809 entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this bill is to void the written designation of the beneficiary of a State or county employee for earned and unpaid wages and lump sum vacation payments if:

(1) The beneficiary predeceases the employee;

(2) The employee is divorced from the beneficiary;

(3) The unmarried employee subsequently marries; or

The City and County of Honolulu testified in support of this measure. The Department of Human Resources Development supported the intent of this bill.

Currently, an employee's written designation of a beneficiary for earned and unpaid wages and lump sum vacation payments remains valid even if the beneficiary predeceases the employee, the employee and beneficiary divorce, or the employee remarries. Although public employees are encouraged to update their beneficiary forms in these instances, they do not always do so. This measure attempts to clarify these situations.

Technical, nonsubstantive amendments were made for purposes of clarity, conformity, and style.

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. 2809, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 2809, H.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Finance.