STAND. COM. REP. NO. 433

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.B. No. 936

       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. 936 entitled:

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

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to:

     (1)  Extend the pension benefit adjustment finalization period by one month for those who retire on December 31;

     (2)  Change the interest rate for late benefit finalizations;

     (3)  Extend the deadline from one to two fiscal years following retirement for employer payments of additional retirement contributions associated with significant non-base pay increases; and

     (4)  Allow delegation of certain disability retirement benefit and accidental death benefit approval functions.

     Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Employees' Retirement System.

     Your Committee finds that this measure serves as a housekeeping measure for the Employees' Retirement System to correct and make consistent finalized benefit adjustment periods, address employer concerns regarding payments for pension "spiking", and improve the efficiency of processing disability and accidental death claims.

     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. 936, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 936, 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