STAND. COM. REP. NO.207-02

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2002

RE: H.B. No. 2077

H.D. 1

 

 

 

Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2002

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Labor and Public Employment, to which was referred H.B. No. 2077 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO WORKERS' COMPENSATION,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this bill is to allow employees to appeal a workers' compensation decision for which the employer pays for the costs of the proceedings if the employer loses.

ILWU Local 142 and the Hawaii State AFL-CIO testified in support of this measure. The Department of Human Resources Development, the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations, the Building Industry Association, and the Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii testified in opposition.

Currently, if a claimant prevails on appeal after a claim was initially denied by the Disability Compensation Division (DCD), costs and fees are not awarded against the employer. This has made it extremely difficult for injured employees, with limited resources who are initially denied compensation by DCD, to appeal since the costs and fees of the proceedings will not be awarded to them, even if they win. Moreover, many employees lack the resources to reasonably compensate attorneys for representation, which further hinders their ability to appeal a decision by DCD.

Your Committee also understands concerns raised by employers who would have to pay claimant's costs and attorney's fees if the employer loses upon appeal.

Accordingly, this bill has been amended by:

(1) Giving the Labor and Industrial Relations Appeals Board or Supreme Court the discretion to award costs of the proceedings and reasonable attorney's fees if an employer loses an appeal; and

(2) Setting standards by which this discretion is to be based upon.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Labor and Public Employment that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 2077, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 2077, H.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Consumer Protection and Commerce.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Labor and Public Employment,

 

____________________________

SCOTT SAIKI, Chair