STAND. COM. REP. NO. 252

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.B. No. 935

       S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Twenty-Ninth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2017

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Judiciary and Labor, to which was referred S.B. No. 935 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO STAFF OF THE HAWAII EMPLOYER-UNION HEALTH BENEFITS TRUST FUND,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to:

     (1)  Convert certain Hawaii Employer-Union Health Benefits Trust Fund (EUTF) staff to civil service positions; and

     (2)  Appropriate funds for the EUTF to hire staff through the civil service system.

     Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Hawaii Employer-Union Health Benefits Trust Fund and Hawaii Government Employees Association, AFSCME Local 152, AFL-CIO.

     Your Committee finds that eighty-six percent of EUTF authorized positions are exempt from civil service.  Civil service employees receive benefits that are unavailable to exempt employees.  Your Committee finds that EUTF operations and employees would benefit from the hiring of certain EUTF staff through the civil service system.

     Your Committee has amended this measure by:

     (1)  Inserting an effective date of January 7, 2059, to encourage further discussion; and

     (2)  Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for the purposes of clarity and consistency.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Judiciary and Labor that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 935, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 935, S.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Ways and Means.

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

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GILBERT S.C. KEITH-AGARAN, Chair