STAND. COM. REP. NO. 3367

                                   Honolulu, Hawaii
                                                     , 2000

                                   RE:  H.B. No. 564
                                        H.D. 2
                                        S.D. 2




Honorable Norman Mizuguchi
President of the Senate
Twentieth State Legislature
Regular Session of 2000
State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Ways and Means, to which was referred H.B.
No. 564, H.D. 2, S.D. 1, entitled:

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

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this bill is to resolve certain issues
concerning the retirement credit for active duty military
service.

     The bill also allows a surviving spouse or reciprocal
beneficiary of a deceased member of the Employees' Retirement
System to retain the pension and other retirement benefits
obtained from the former spouse's or reciprocal beneficiary's
employment if the surviving spouse or reciprocal beneficiary
remarries or enters into a new reciprocal beneficiary
relationship.

     Your Committee finds that allowing contributory Employees'
Retirement System members a one-time option to purchase
additional allowance credit to raise the military service credit
to the level equal to the member's contributory allowance status
at the time the military service is credited, addresses the
equity issue between contributory and noncontributory Employees'

 
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                                   STAND. COM. REP. NO. 3367
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Retirement System members who qualify to receive military service
credit for retirement purposes.

     Your Committee also finds that allowing a surviving spouse
or reciprocal beneficiary of a deceased member of the Employees'
Retirement System to retain the pension and other retirement
benefits obtained from the former spouse's or reciprocal
beneficiary's employment if the surviving spouse or reciprocal
beneficiary remarries or enters into a new reciprocal beneficiary
relationship is a compassionate provision and will prevent the
impoverishment of the survivor simply because of remarriage. 

     Your Committee has amended this bill with language suggested
by the Employees' Retirement System to properly address the
complex drafting aspects of the military service issue, by adding
amendments to sections 88-74, 88-76, and further amendments to
section 88-132.5, Hawaii Revised Statutes.

     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.
564, 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. 564,
H.D. 2, S.D. 2.

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



                                 ________________________________
                                 CAROL FUKUNAGA, Co-Chair



                                 ________________________________
                                 ANDREW LEVIN, Co-Chair

 
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