STAND. COM. REP. NO. 608

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 1168

S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirtieth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2019

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Labor, Culture and the Arts, to which was referred S.B. No. 1168 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO EMPLOYEE'S DESIGNATION OF BENEFICIARY FORM,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to:

(1) Allow a state department employee's designation of beneficiary form to be kept in the department where the employee is employed; and

(2) Eliminate the requirement that the designation be a verified written statement.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Accounting and General Services.

Your Committee finds that existing law requires an employee of a state department's designation of beneficiary form to be a written statement that is notarized and filed with the comptroller. This requirement has resulted in thousands of designation of beneficiary forms being maintained in a central location at the Department of Accounting and General Services. Your Committee additionally finds that the recent modernization of the HawaiiPay payroll system has caused several departments and agencies to request an electronic means of storing and updating an employee's designation of beneficiary. This measure removes the requirement for a notarized statement, allows electronic filing and maintenance of designation of beneficiary records, and makes the designation process more accessible to employees of state departments.

Your Committee has amended this measure by inserting an effective date of January 1, 2051, to encourage further discussion.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Labor, Culture and the Arts that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 1168, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 1168, S.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Judiciary.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Labor, Culture and the Arts,

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BRIAN T. TANIGUCHI, Chair