HB 1014 Summary

• Adds five new definitions to Hawaii's Employees' Retirement System law: "accident," "actual performance of duty," "definite and exact time and place," "incapacitated for duty," and "occupational hazard" to clarify eligibility standards for service-connected disability and accidental death benefits.

• Defines "accident" as a single traumatic, unlooked-for event that is not expected, not a routine job risk, interrupts normal duties, and directly causes permanent incapacity or death, excluding medical conditions and unexpected results of routine performance.

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

• Clarifies that "occupational hazard" means danger inherent in a particular occupation (not common to many jobs) and excludes job-related conditions without occupational hazard elements, repetitive motion activities, and workplace-specific dangers unrelated to the occupation itself.

• Takes effect June 30, 3000, and applies only to applications and claims filed after the effective date, without affecting rights and duties that matured before enactment.