H.B. 931 Summary

• Adds five new definitions to Hawaii Revised Statutes §88-21 to clarify eligibility for Employees' Retirement System (ERS) service-connected disability and accidental death benefits: "accident," "actual performance of duty," "definite and exact time and place," "incapacitated for duty," and "occupational hazard."

• Establishes that an "accident" must be a single traumatic event not inherent in routine job duties that directly causes permanent incapacity or death, excluding medical conditions or unexpected results of routine performance without external force.

• Requires members claiming service-connected disability retirement or accidental death benefits to bear the burden of proof by preponderance of evidence, with the burden of proving that permanent incapacity or death was not primarily caused by a pre-existing condition.

• Amends §88-79, §88-82, §88-85.5, §88-336, and §88-339 to apply the new definitional standards and clarify that benefits require performance of specific position duties at a definite time and place, with occupational hazards limited to those particular to the specific occupation rather than common workplace conditions.

• Takes effect December 25, 2040, and applies only to applications and claims filed after that date.