Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2002

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Ways and Means, to which was referred S.B. No. 2759, S.D. 1, entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to shift funding from the Department of Human Resource Development's 2001-2002 appropriation for unemployment claims for former state employees into the Department's workforce attraction, selection, classification, and effectiveness program.

Act 259, Session Laws of Hawaii 2001, appropriated $19,830,591 to the Department of Human Resource Development for workforce attraction, selection, classification, and effectiveness program, including $4,933,726 for workers' compensation claims. The same act appropriated $2,221,620 for unemployment compensation claims of former state employees.

The Department now finds that a critical funding emergency exists in regard to the workers' compensation fund, which will be exhausted by the end of March. This bill would revise the appropriations by taking away $1,000,000 from the unemployment compensation fund and adding $1,000,000 to the workers' compensation fund. No additional funds will be required. The rearrangement of the funds will not affect the State's duty to meet its unemployment insurance requirement.

Your Committee finds that the switching of funds as provided in this bill will not harm the unemployment insurance requirement and will help fulfill the State's workers' compensation obligation. Your Committee recognizes that the Department is not asking for additional money but just reallocating funds already appropriated to it.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Ways and Means that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2759, S.D. 1, and recommends that it pass Third Reading.