Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2002

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Health and Human Services, to which was referred S.B. No. 2717 entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to make an emergency appropriation to the Employees' Retirement System for the employer's share of contributions to cover social security and medicare costs.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Budget and Finance (BUF).

Your Committee finds that Act 259, Session Laws of Hawaii 2001, authorized the transfer of funds to the Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism for operations and events costs of the Hawaii Convention Center. That transfer authorization was necessary to operate the Convention Center.

Of the funds transferred to operate the Convention Center, $10,125,000 was transferred from funds budgeted for payment of social security expenses. As a result, there is a shortfall of funds to satisfy the State's social security and medicare expense obligations. The State is required by law to fund these programs, and therefore your Committee supports this emergency measure.

Your Committee made a technical, nonsubstantive amendment to this measure for accuracy.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Health and Human Services that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2717, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2717, S.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.