STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1471

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    H.B. No. 1402

       H.D. 2

       S.D. 2

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Twenty-Ninth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2017

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Ways and Means, to which was referred H.B. No. 1402, H.D. 2, S.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO EMPLOYEES,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to provide government employees greater flexibility to donate vacation leave credits to another employee who has, or whose family member has, a serious personal illness or injury.

Specifically, the measure:

(1)  Requires each state government branch to establish a leave sharing program for its employees to donate vacation leave to other state employees and develop program rules;

(2)  Precludes a state government branch from prohibiting leave sharing between different departments or bargaining units because of administrative infeasibility;

(3)  Clarifies that an employee's designation of beneficiary statement may be filed with the department in which the employee is employed and eliminates the requirement that it be a verified written statement; and

(4)  Authorizes the chief executive of a county to establish a leave sharing program for county employees.

     Your Committee received written comments in support of this measure from the Hawaii Government Employees Association and Hawaii State Teachers Association.

     Written comments in opposition were received from the Department of Human Resources Development.

     Your Committee finds that shared leave programs operated across each branch of state government would significantly expand the pool of eligible leave donors, allow more employees to participate, and promote uniformity and fairness in program implementation.

     Your Committee has amended this measure by making technical nonsubstantive changes for purposes of clarity, consistency, and style.

     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 H.B. No. 1402, H.D. 2, S.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 1402, H.D. 2, S.D. 2.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Ways and Means,

________________________________

JILL N. TOKUDA, Chair