STAND. COM. REP. NO. 379

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2005

RE: S.B. No. 740

S.D. 1

 

 

Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2005

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Labor, to which was referred S.B. No. 740 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO THE EMPLOYEES' RETIREMENT SYSTEM,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to clarify and correct existing language in chapter 88, Hawaii Revised Statutes, and to conform the law to current practices.

Testimony in support of this measure was submitted by the Employees' Retirement System (ERS) and the Hawaii State Teachers Association.

Your Committee finds that within chapter 88, Hawaii Revised Statutes, clarification is needed to correct existing language and to conform the law to current practices. This measure makes several housekeeping amendments that provide as follows:

(1) Includes language to comply with federal income tax limits on compensation in determining ordinary death benefits;

(2) Specifies which appointed county positions qualify for contributory plan membership;

(3) Conforms the law to current practices and allows the ERS to calculate a retiree's pension based on the benefit formula at the time of retirement rather than separation from service;

(4) Requires the counties to remit employer contributions to the ERS on a monthly rather than semimonthly basis;

(5) Specifies that the cost to convert noncontributory plan service to hybrid plan service will be based on the member's age in full years and the member's basic rate of pay as of June 30, 2006; and

(6) Eliminates the deadlines for claiming and purchasing hybrid plan membership service and allows for the acquisition of qualifying service at any time prior to retirement, in line with current contributory plan procedures.

Your Committee has amended this measure by making technical, nonsubstantive amendments to change formatting and for purposes of clarity and style.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Labor that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 740, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 740, S.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Labor,

____________________________

BRIAN KANNO, Chair