HI HB1041

Amends Chapter 88, Hawaii Revised Statutes, to conform the Employees' Retirement System to Internal Revenue Code Section 401(a)(9) requirements regarding automatic disbursements and required minimum distributions under the SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022.

Modifies Section 88-74.7 to require automatic payment of retirement benefits or accumulated contributions by a member's required beginning date, even without a written application, with automatic deemed elections if no election is made within required timeframes.

Establishes automatic default benefit elections for members who fail to elect: unmarried members receive maximum retirement allowance, and married members receive option 3 (or option A) with spouse or reciprocal beneficiary as beneficiary.

Amends Sections 88-321 and 88-341 to replace age-based distribution triggers (age 62 or attaining age 62) with compliance language referencing Sections 88-22.5 and 88-74.7 for determining when accumulated contributions must be distributed.

Note: Bill contains apparent drafting error—effective date listed as July 1, 3000 rather than July 1, 2025.