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J~SV Gs N~ COUNTY OF HAWAII STATE OF HAWAII RESOLUTION NO. 279 09 A RESOLUTION TO ENCOURAGE THE ADMINISTRATION TO DEVELOP A RETIREMENT INCENTIVE PLAN FOR CERTAIN COUNTY EMPLOYEES THE COST OF WHICH IS TO BE BORNE BY THE SAVINGS REALIZED AS A RESULT OF EMPLOYEE RETIREMENTS. WHEREAS, the County of Hawaii is facing an economic crisis and the potential of additional loss of revenues received from the State of Hawaii (e.g. Transit Accommodation Tax) in the fiscal year 2010-2011; and WHEREAS, in difficult financial years, some businesses provide early retirement incentives of adding extra years to the employee's years of service and age to bring the employee's years of service and age to the minimum or greater retirement requirements; and WHEREAS, the Hawaii Revised Statutes §89-9, subsection (d) disallows negotiation regarding retirement matters, and states in pertinent part: "(d) [Repeal and reenactment on July 1, 2010. L Sp 2008, c S, §L] Excluded from the subjects of negotiations are matters of classification, reclassification, benefits of but not contributions to the Hawaii employer-union health benefits trust fund or a voluntary employees' beneficiary association trust; recruitment; examination; initial pricing; and retirement benefits except as provided in section 88-8(h)."; and WHEREAS, according to County and State Officials those County of Hawaii employees who are laid off receive a portion of their weekly pay for twenty-six weeks as unemployment benefits from the State of Hawaii Department of Labor and Industrial Relations. That amount is repaid by the County of Hawaii to the State of Hawaii on a dollar-for-dollar basis because the County of Hawaii is a reimbursing employer and self-insures for unemployment benefits. The unemployment benefits paid by the County do not assist in advancing the work of the County. Therefore, laying off employees continues to create a financial hardship to the County compared to the retirement of those employees; and WHEREAS, the County of Hawaii should not incent some employee groups to retire, such as police officers, fire fighters, water safety officers, police and fire radio dispatchers, and any other positions determined by the Mayor to be critical to public health, safety, and welfare or the financial viability of the County; now, therefore, I BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE COUNTY OF HAWAII that it encourages the administration to develop a retirement incentive plan, the cost of which is to be borne by the savings realized as a result of such a one-time retirement incentive plan. I I I