Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2006

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Finance, to which was referred S.B. No. 2643, S.D. 1, H.D. 1, entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this bill is to encourage employees who have suffered work-related injuries to return to work by allowing an employee who has been deemed unable to return to the employee's original position due to a work injury to be referred by the Director of Labor and Industrial Relations for vocational rehabilitation services.

The Hawaii Government Employees Association, Hawaii State Teachers Association, and ILWU Local 142 testified in support of this bill. The Hawaii Rehabilitation Counseling Association supported the intent of this measure. The Department of Human Resources Development opposed this bill. The Department of Labor and Industrial Relations offered comments.

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. 2643, S.D. 1, H.D. 1, and recommends that it pass Third Reading.