SB1275 SD1

PART I

SECTION 1. The purpose of this Act is to:

(1) Require each state government branch to establish a shared leave program for state employees;

(2) Preclude state government branches from prohibiting leave sharing between employees of different departments or bargaining units because of administrative infeasibility; and

(3) Allow a public employee to designate beneficiaries to the employee's unpaid vacation allowance and wages through a statement that is not verified or written.

PART II

SECTION 2. Section 78-26, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

"§78-26 Leave sharing program. (a) [~~The legislature, with regard to its employees, or the chief executive of a jurisdiction may~~] Each state government branch shall establish a leave sharing program to allow state employees to donate accumulated vacation leave credits to another state employee [~~within the same jurisdiction~~] who has a serious personal illness or injury or who has a family member who has a serious personal illness or injury[.]; provided that the chief executive of a county may establish a leave sharing program pursuant to this section for employees of the county. The program shall allow employees who are not entitled to vacation leave to donate accumulated sick leave credits.

(b) [~~The legislature, with regard to its employees, or the director of a jurisdiction desiring to establish a leave sharing program~~] Each state government branch, and a county that establishes a leave sharing program pursuant to this section, shall develop rules governing donors, recipients, and an approval process that ensures fair treatment and freedom from coercion of employees and imposes no undue hardship on the employer's operations[. If it is administratively infeasible to allow leave sharing between different departments or different bargaining units, the rules may limit leave sharing to employees within the same department or same bargaining unit, as necessary.]; provided that a state government branch shall not prohibit leave sharing between different departments or bargaining units because of administrative infeasibility. At a minimum, the rules shall require that an eligible recipient must have:

(1) No less than six months of service within the respective jurisdiction;

(2) Exhausted or is about to exhaust all vacation leave, sick leave, and compensatory time credits; provided that sick leave need not be exhausted when the illness or injury involves a family member;

(3) A personal illness or injury or a family member's illness or injury certified by a competent medical examiner as being serious and the cause of the recipient's inability to work; provided that the illness or injury is not covered under chapter 386 or, if covered, all benefits under chapter 386 have been exhausted; and

(4) No disciplinary record of sick leave abuse within the past two years.

[Notwithstanding the requirements of chapter 91, the legislature may establish a leave sharing program for legislative employees, in accordance with this section, under policies adopted separately by each house of the legislature and each legislative service agency, or jointly by any combination of entities thereof.]

(c) As used in this section, "state government branch" includes each department or agency of the state executive branch, judiciary, and legislature."

PART III

SECTION 3. Section 78-23, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsection (c) to read as follows:

"(c) Upon discharge, an employee shall be entitled to all of the employee's accumulated vacation allowance plus the employee's current accrued vacation allowance to and including the date of discharge, notwithstanding that the current accrued vacation allowance may not have been recorded at the time. If any employee dies with accumulated or current accrued vacation earned but not taken, an amount equal to the value of the employee's pay over the period of such earned vacation, and any earned and unpaid wages, shall be paid to the person or persons who may have been designated as the beneficiary or beneficiaries by the employee during the employee's lifetime in a [~~verified written or~~] statement, including an electronic statement filed with the comptroller or other disbursing officer who issues warrants or checks to pay the employee for the employee's services as a public employee, or with the department in which the employee was employed, or, failing the designation, to the employee's estate."

PART IV

SECTION 4. There is appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $ or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2021-2022 and the same sum or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2022-2023 for the purposes of this Act.

The sums appropriated shall be expended by the department of human resources development for the purposes of this Act.

SECTION 5. This Act does not affect rights and duties that matured, penalties that were incurred, and proceedings that were begun before its effective date.

SECTION 6. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 7. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2050.

Report Title:

Shared Leave Program; State and County Employees; Designation of Beneficiary Form; Appropriation

Description:

Requires each state government branch to establish a shared leave program for state employees. Precludes state government branches from prohibiting leave sharing between employees of different departments or bargaining units because of administrative infeasibility. Allows a public employee to designate beneficiaries to the employee's unpaid vacation allowance and wages through a statement that is not verified or written. Appropriates funds. Effective 7/1/2050. (SD1)

The summary description of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.

THE SENATE	S.B. NO.	1275
THIRTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2021		S.D. 1
STATE OF HAWAII