Report Title:

Victims; Economic Security; Safety

 

Description:

Prohibits discrimination by employers against domestic violence victims. Entitles victims to employment leave. Establishes eligibility for unemployment insurance. Provides for workplace safety program tax credit. (SD1)

THE SENATE

S.B. NO.

2438

TWENTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2002

S.D. 1

STATE OF HAWAII

 


 

A BILL FOR AN ACT

 

relating to hawaii victims' economic security and safety act.

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

PART I.

SECTION 1. The legislature finds that domestic violence crimes account for approximately fifteen per cent of total crime costs in the United States each year. Violence against women has been reported to be the leading cause of physical injury, having a devastating impact on women's physical and emotional health and financial security.

According to recent federal government surveys, from 1993 through 1998, the average annual number of violent victimizations committed by intimate partners was 1,082,110. Eighty-seven per cent of these assaults were committed against women, with women victims being substantially more likely to have been killed by an intimate partner.

According to recent federal government estimates, approximately 987,400 rapes occur annually in the United States. Eighty-nine per cent of rapes are perpetrated against female victims. In addition, approximately 10,200,000 people have been stalked at some time in their lives with four of every five stalking victims being women. Stalkers harass and terrorize their victims by spying on them, standing outside their places of work or homes, making unwanted phone calls, sending or leaving unwanted letters or items, and by vandalizing victims' property.

Employees in the United States who have been victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking too often also suffer associated adverse consequences in the workplace as a result of their victimization. In fact, seventy-four per cent of harassment of women in the work place is because of domestic violence.

According to a 1998 report of the U.S. General Accounting Office, between one-fourth and one-half of domestic violence victims surveyed in three studies reported that the victims lost a job due, at least in part, to domestic violence. Women who have experienced domestic violence or dating violence are more likely than other women to be unemployed, suffer from health problems affecting their employability and job performance, report lower personal income, and rely on welfare. Abusers frequently seek to control their partners by actively interfering with their ability to work, including preventing their partners from going to work, harassing their partners at work, limiting the access of their partners to cash or transportation, and sabotaging the child care arrangements of their partners. More than one-half of women receiving welfare have been victims of domestic violence as adults and between one-fourth and one-third reported being abused in the last year.

Sexual assault, whether occurring in or out of the workplace, can impair an employee's work performance, require time away from work, and undermine the employee's ability to maintain a job. Almost fifty per cent of sexual assault survivors lose their jobs or are forced to quit in the aftermath of the assaults.

According to the National Institute of Justice, crime costs an estimated $450,000,000,000 annually in medical expenses, lost earnings, social service costs, pain, suffering, and reduced quality of life for victims, which harms the Nation's productivity and drains the Nation's resources. Violent crime accounts for $426,000,000,000 per year of this amount. Rape exacts the highest costs per victim of any criminal offense, and accounts for $127,000,000,000 per year.

The Bureau of National Affairs has estimated that domestic violence costs United States employers between $3,000,000,000 and $5,000,000,000 annually in lost time and productivity. Other reports have estimated that domestic violence costs United States employers $13,000,000,000 annually and the overall medical cost for the United States for domestic violence have been estimated to be $31,000,000,000 per year.

Ninety-four per cent of corporate security and safety directors at companies nationwide rank domestic violence as a high security concern. Forty-nine per cent of senior executives recently surveyed said domestic violence has a harmful effect on their company's productivity, forty-seven per cent said domestic violence negatively affects attendance, and forty-four per cent said domestic violence increases health care costs. Employees, including individuals participating in welfare to work programs, may need to take time during business hours to obtain orders of protection, seek medical or legal assistance, counseling, other services, or look for housing in order to escape from domestic violence.

The purpose of this part is to:

(1) Promote the State’s interest in reducing domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking by enabling victims of domestic or sexual violence to maintain the financial independence necessary to leave abusive situations, achieve safety, and minimize the physical and emotional injuries from domestic or sexual violence, and reduce the devastating economic consequences of domestic or sexual violence to employers and employees;

(2) Promote the State’s interest in ensuring that victims of domestic or sexual violence can recover from and cope with the effects of such violence, and participate in criminal and civil justice processes, without fear of adverse economic consequences from their employers;

(3) Ensure that victims of domestic or sexual violence can recover from the effects of such violence and participate in criminal and civil justice processes, without fear of adverse economic consequences; and

(4) Address the failure of existing laws to protect the employment rights of victims of domestic or sexual violence, by protecting the civil and economic rights of victims of domestic or sexual violence, and by guaranteeing that victims of domestic and sexual violence will be allowed to maintain economic self-sufficiency and employment free from discrimination related to their victimization.

To accomplish these purposes, this Act prohibits employer discrimination against actual or perceived victims of domestic or sexual violence but also recognizes legitimate employer interests related to the safety of all persons in the workplace.

SECTION 2. Chapter 378, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"§378-   Leave of absence for domestic or sexual violence. (a) An employee may take paid or unpaid leave from work if the employee or the employee’s family or household member is a victim of domestic or sexual violence; provided the leave is to:

(1) Seek medical attention for the employee to recover from physical or psychological injury or disability caused by domestic or sexual violence;

(2) Obtain services from a victim services organization;

(3) Obtain psychological or other counseling;

(4) Temporarily or permanently relocate; or

(5) Take legal action including, but not limited to, preparing for or participating in any civil or criminal legal proceeding related to or resulting from the domestic or sexual violence or other actions to enhance the physical, psychological, or economic health or safety of the employee or the employee's family or household member or to enhance the safety of those who associate with or work with the employee.

(b) An employee’s absence from work that is demonstrated to be due to or resulting from domestic or sexual violence against the employee or the employee's family or household member as provided in this section shall be considered by an employer to be a justification for leave, with or without pay, for a reasonable period of time.

"Reasonable period of time" as used in this section means:

(1) Where due to physical or psychological injury or disability to the employee, the period of time determined to be necessary by the attending physician or other treating medical professional, considering both the employee's condition and the job requirements; and

(2) Where due to an employee’s need to take legal or other actions including, but not limited to, preparing for or participating in any civil or criminal legal proceeding, obtaining services from a victim services organization, or permanently or temporarily relocating, the period of time necessary to complete the activity as is determined by the employee’s or employee's family or household member's attorney or advocate, court, or personnel of the relevant victim services organization.

(c) Where an employee is a victim of domestic or sexual violence and seeks leave for medical attention to recover from, physical or psychological injury or disability caused by domestic or sexual violence, the employer may request that the employee provide:

(1) A doctor's certificate estimating the length of leave and the estimated commencement and termination dates of leave required by the employee; and

(2) Prior to the employee's return, a medical certificate from the employee's attending physician attesting to the employee’s condition and approving the employee’s return to work.

(d) Where an employee has taken leave for non-medical reasons, the employer may require, after five days total leave in a twelve-month period, the employee to provide certification to the employer, within a reasonable period after the employer’s written request that the employee or the employee’s family or household member is a victim of domestic or sexual violence, and the leave is for one of the purposes enumerated in subsection (a). The certification shall be provided by one of the following methods:

(1) A signed written statement from an employee, agent, or volunteer of a victim services organization, from the employee’s attorney or advocate, from a family or household member’s attorney or advocate, from a member of the clergy, or a medical or other professional from whom the employee or the employee’s family or household member has sought assistance related to the domestic or sexual violence;

(2) A police or court record related to the domestic or sexual violence; or

(3) Other corroborating evidence related to the domestic or sexual violence.

(e) The employee shall provide the employer with reasonable notice of the employee's intention to take the leave, unless providing such notice is not practicable.

(f) Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit an employer from requiring an employee on leave to report periodically to the employer on the status and intention of the employee to return to work.

(g) The employer shall allow the leave under this section to be taken intermittently or on a reduced work schedule.

(h) An employee who is entitled to take paid or unpaid leave (including family, medical, sick, annual, personal, or similar leave) from employment, pursuant to federal, state, or county law, or pursuant to an employment agreement, a collective bargaining agreement, or an employment benefits program or plan, may elect to substitute any period of such leave for an equivalent period of leave provided for under this section.

(i) Upon return from leave under this section, the employee shall return to the employee's original job or to a position of comparable status and pay, without loss of accumulated service credits and privileges, except that nothing in this subsection shall be construed to entitle any restored employee to the accrual of:

(1) Any seniority or employment benefits during any period of leave, unless such seniority or benefits would be provided to a similarly situated employee who was on leave due to a reason other than domestic or sexual violence; or

(2) Any right, benefit, or position of employment to which the employee would not have otherwise been entitled.

(j) All information provided to the employer under this section, including statements of the employee or any other documentation, record, or corroborating evidence, and the fact that the employee’s or employee's family or household member has been a victim of domestic or sexual violence, or has requested leave pursuant to this section, shall be maintained in the strictest confidence by the employer, and shall not be disclosed except to the extent that disclosure is:

(1) Requested or consented to by the employee;

(2) Ordered by a court or administrative agency; or

(3) Otherwise required by applicable federal or state law."

SECTION 3. Chapter 378, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"§378-   Effect on employment and collective bargaining agreements; benefits. (a) Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to supersede any provision of any employment agreement, collective bargaining agreement, or employment benefits program or plan that provides greater benefits or rights than those benefits or rights established under this chapter.

(b) The rights established under this chapter shall not be diminished by any employment agreement, collective bargaining agreement, or employment benefits program or plan."

SECTION 4. Section 378-1, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding eight new definitions to be appropriately inserted and to read as follows:

""Course of conduct" means a course of repeatedly maintaining a visual or physical proximity to a person or conveying verbal or written threats, including threats conveyed through electronic communications, or threats implied by conduct.

"Domestic or sexual violence" means domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking.

"Domestic violence" includes acts or threats of violence, not including acts of self defense, committed:

(1) By a current or former spouse of the victim;

(2) By a person with whom the victim shares a child in common;

(3) By a person who is cohabiting with or has cohabited with the victim;

(4) By a person similarly situated to a spouse of the victim, including a person who is or has been in a social relationship of a romantic or intimate nature with the victim, where the existence of such a relationship shall be determined based on a consideration of the following factors: the length of the relationship, the type of relationship, and the frequency of interaction between the persons involved in the relationship; or

(5) By any other person from whose acts a victim is protected by the domestic, dating, or family violence laws of Hawaii or of any other jurisdiction in which such protection has been provided.

"Electronic communications" includes communications via telephone, mobile phone, computer, e-mail, video recorder, fax machine, telex, or pager.

"Family or household member" means spouses or former spouses, parents, children, and persons jointly residing or formerly residing in the same dwelling unit.

"Sexual assault" means any conduct proscribed by sections 707-730 to 707-741, including both assaults committed by offenders who are strangers to the victim and assaults committed by offenders who are known or related by blood or marriage to the victim.

"Stalking" means engaging in a course of conduct directed at a specific targeted person that would cause a reasonable person to suffer substantial emotional distress or to fear bodily injury, sexual assault, or death to the person, or to the person's spouse, parent, son, or daughter, or any other person who regularly resides in the person's household, and where such conduct does cause the targeted person to have such distress or fear.

"Victim services organization" includes:

(1) A nonprofit, nongovernmental organization that provides assistance to victims of domestic or sexual violence or to advocates for such victims, including a rape crisis center;

(2) An organization carrying out a domestic violence program;

(3) An organization operating a shelter or providing counseling services;

(4) A legal services organization;

(5) An organization providing assistance through the legal process; or

(6) A domestic violence coalition or a sexual assault coalition."

SECTION 5. Section 378-2, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

"§378-2 Discriminatory practices made unlawful; offenses defined. It shall be an unlawful discriminatory practice:

(1) Because of race, sex, sexual orientation, age, religion, color, ancestry, disability, marital status, or arrest and court record:

(A) For any employer to refuse to hire or employ or to bar or discharge from employment, or otherwise to discriminate against any individual in compensation or in the terms, conditions, or privileges of employment;

(B) For any employment agency to fail or refuse to refer for employment, or to classify or otherwise to discriminate against, any individual;

(C) For any employer or employment agency to print, circulate, or cause to be printed or circulated any statement, advertisement, or publication or to use any form of application for employment or to make any inquiry in connection with prospective employment, which expresses, directly or indirectly, any limitation, specification, or discrimination;

(D) For any labor organization to exclude or expel from its membership any individual or to discriminate in any way against any of its members, employer, or employees; or

(E) For any employer or labor organization to refuse to enter into an apprenticeship agreement as defined in section 372-2; provided that no apprentice shall be younger than sixteen years of age;

(2) For any employer, labor organization, or employment agency to discharge, expel, or otherwise discriminate against any individual because the individual has opposed any practice forbidden by this part or has filed a complaint, testified, or assisted in any proceeding respecting the discriminatory practices prohibited under this part;

(3) For any person whether an employer, employee, or not, to aid, abet, incite, compel, or coerce the doing of any of the discriminatory practices forbidden by this part, or to attempt to do so;

(4) For any employer to violate the provisions of section 121-43 relating to nonforfeiture for absence by members of the national guard;

(5) For any employer to refuse to hire or employ or to bar or discharge from employment, any individual because of assignment of income for the purpose of satisfying the individual's child support obligations as provided for under section 571-52;

(6) For any employer, labor organization, or employment agency to exclude or otherwise deny equal jobs or benefits to a qualified individual because of the known disability of an individual with whom the qualified individual is known to have a relationship or association; [or]

(7) For any employer or labor organization to refuse to hire or employ, or to bar or discharge from employment, or withhold pay, demote, or penalize a lactating employee because an employee breastfeeds or expresses milk at the workplace. For purposes of this paragraph, the term "breastfeeds" means the feeding of a child directly from the breast[.];

(8) For any employer to fail to hire, refuse to hire, discharge, or otherwise discriminate against any individual with respect to the compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment of the individual (including retaliation in any form or manner) because:

(A) The individual or the individual's family or household member is a victim of domestic or sexual violence;

(B) The individual required leave from work for medical treatment for injuries resulting from or relating to domestic or sexual violence;

(C) The individual required leave from work to attend, participate in, or prepare for a criminal or civil court proceeding relating to an incident of domestic or sexual violence of which the individual, or the individual’s family or household member, was a victim;

(D) The individual requested a reasonable accommodation due to actual or threatened domestic or sexual violence regardless of whether the request was granted; or

(E) The workplace is disrupted or threatened by the action of a person whom the individual states has committed or threatened to commit domestic or sexual violence against the individual;

provided that the individual may be requested by the employer to provide proof that the individual has taken or is taking appropriate actions to lessen the threat of future incidents of domestic or sexual violence and to lessen the possibility of harm to others in the workplace, including but not limited to, reporting the domestic or sexual violence to appropriate law enforcement entities or taking action to obtain a restraining order against the perpetrator of the domestic or sexual violence; or

(9) For any employer to refuse to provide an applicant or employee with reasonable accommodation related to the individual being a victim of domestic or sexual violence including, but not limited to, job restructuring, change of work place facility or location, transfer, reassignment, or modified schedule, leave, changed telephone number or seating assignment, installation of a lock, or implementation of a safety procedure."

PART II.

SECTION 6. The purposes of this Part are to:

(1) Promote the State’s interest in reducing domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking by enabling victims of domestic or sexual violence to maintain the financial independence necessary to leave abusive situations, achieve safety, and minimize the physical and emotional injuries from domestic or sexual violence, and to reduce the devastating economic consequences of domestic or sexual violence to employers and employees; and

(2) Promote the State’s interest in ensuring that victims of domestic or sexual violence can recover from and cope with the effects of such victimization and participate in the criminal and civil justice processes without fear of adverse economic consequences.

To accomplish these purposes, this Act provides unemployment insurance to those who are separated from their employment as a result of domestic or sexual violence, in a manner that accommodates the legitimate interests of employers and protects the safety of all persons in the workplace.

SECTION 7. Chapter 383, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"§383-   Eligibility of benefits for domestic or sexual violence victims. (a) As used in this section, the terms "course of conduct", "domestic or sexual violence", "domestic violence", "electronic communications", "family or household member", "sexual assault", "stalking" and "victim service organization" shall be as defined in section 378-1.

(b) Notwithstanding any provision of this chapter to the contrary, an individual shall not be denied benefits where the individual is separated voluntarily or involuntarily from employment due to circumstances set forth in this subsection resulting from the individual or the individual's family or household member being a victim of domestic or sexual violence.

(1) An individual’s voluntary separation from employment shall be deemed for good cause for purposes of section 383-30 in any of the following circumstances:

(A) The individual has a reasonable fear of the occurrence of future domestic or sexual violence at, en route to, or en route from, the individual’s place of employment;

(B) The individual’s efforts to relocate in order to avoid future domestic or sexual violence against the individual or the individual’s family or household member prevent the individual from reporting to work;

(C) The individual’s or the individual's family or household member need to obtain treatment to address the physical or psychological effects of domestic or sexual violence prevent the individual from reporting to work;

(D) The employer's refusal to grant the individual’s request for leave to address domestic or sexual violence and its effects on the individual or the individual’s family or household member, including leave authorized by chapter 378, section 102 of the Federal Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993, or other federal, state, or county law; or

(E) Any other circumstance in which domestic or sexual violence causes the individual to reasonably believe that separation from employment is necessary for the future safety of the individual, the individual’s family or household members, or other individuals who may be present in the employer’s workplace.

(2) An individual’s involuntary separation (suspension or discharge) from employment shall not be considered misconduct for purposes of section 383-30 if:

(A) The employer's discharge of the individual due to the individual’s actions, including absences from work, where such actions were reasonably necessary to protect the individual or the individual's family or household members from domestic or sexual violence; or

(B) The employer's discharge of the individual due to circumstances resulting from the individual or the individual's family or household member being a victim of domestic or sexual violence.

(c) Notwithstanding any provision of this chapter to the contrary, an individual who is a victim of domestic or sexual violence shall have good cause for not accepting otherwise suitable, available work, in the following circumstances:

(1) The individual reasonably believes that the employment will subject the individual, the individual’s family or household members, or other individuals in the workplace to an unreasonable risk of violence, despite the individual having sought appropriate assistance in responding to the domestic or sexual violence, including reporting the violence to the police, obtaining services from a victim services organization, and taking other appropriate legal action;

(2) The individual or the individual's family or household member is seeking or residing in emergency shelter, or is engaged in temporary or permanent relocation, whether or not the individual has actually obtained such refuge or accomplished such relocation; or

(3) The individual reasonably believes that options such as taking a leave of absence, transferring jobs, or receiving an alternative work schedule would not be sufficient to guarantee the safety of the individual, the individual’s family or household members, or other individuals in the workplace.

(d) Notwithstanding any provision of this chapter to the contrary, an individual who is a victim of domestic or sexual violence shall be deemed to have satisfied the requirement of undertaking an active search for employment where the individual has registered for work and has not been offered an employment opportunity that reasonably accommodates the individual’s need to take care of the physical, psychological, legal, and other effects of the domestic or sexual violence.

(e) The department may require an individual to provide certification demonstrating that the individual’s loss of employment and continued unemployment is due to the individual or the individual’s family or household member being a victim of domestic or sexual violence. To demonstrate the individual's eligibility for benefits, the department may request the following evidence:

(1) A notarized written statement of the individual attesting to the individual or the individual's family or household member having been a victim of domestic or sexual violence and explaining how the domestic or sexual violence caused individual’s loss of employment or continuing unemployment;

(2) A signed written statement from an employee, agent, or volunteer of a victim services organization, from the employee’s attorney or advocate, from a family or household member’s attorney or advocate, from a member of the clergy, or from a medical or other professional from whom the employee or the employee’s family or household member has sought assistance related to the domestic or sexual violence attesting to the domestic or sexual violence and explaining how the domestic or sexual violence was the cause of individual’s loss of employment or continuing unemployment; or

(3) A police record, court record, or other corroborating evidence suggesting or demonstrating that the domestic or sexual violence was the cause of individual’s loss of employment or continuing unemployment.

(f) All information provided to the department pursuant to this section, including any statement of the individual, or any other documentation, record, or corroborating evidence discussing or relating to sexual or domestic violence, and the fact that the individual has applied for, inquired about, or obtained unemployment compensation by reason of this section shall be retained in the strictest confidence by the individual’s former or current employer, and shall not be disclosed except to the extent that disclosure is requested or consented to by the employee, ordered by a court or administrative agency, or otherwise required by applicable federal or state law."

SECTION 8. Chapter 383, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"§383-   Personnel training. (a) Applicants for unemployment compensation and individuals inquiring about such compensation shall be notified of the provisions of this chapter relating to the availability of unemployment compensation for victims of domestic or sexual violence.

(b) Claims reviewers and hearing personnel shall receive training in the following subjects:

(1) The nature and dynamics of domestic or sexual violence, as defined in this chapter; and

(2) The appropriate methods for questioning individuals and other witnesses about confidential information relating to the individual’s alleged experiences of domestic or sexual violence and for otherwise obtaining evidence related to the individual’s claim."

SECTION 9. Section 383-65, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsection (b) to read as follows:

"(b) Benefits paid to an individual shall not be charged against the account of any of the individual's base period employers on a contributory plan under section 383-61 when such benefits are:

(1) Paid to an individual during any benefit year if the individual:

(A) Left work voluntarily without good cause; or

(B) Was discharged for misconduct connected with the individual's work; or

(C) Left work voluntarily for good cause not attributable to the employer.

The chargeability of benefits to an employer's account shall be determined in accordance with section 383-94 and other applicable provisions of this chapter, or as may be otherwise specified by the department;

(2) Paid to an individual, who, during the individual's base period, earned wages for part-time employment with an employer, if the employer continues to give the individual employment to the same extent while the individual is receiving benefits as during the base period and the employer establishes such fact to the satisfaction of the director of labor and industrial relations;

(3) Paid to an individual for the period the individual is enrolled in and is in regular attendance at a vocational training or retraining course approved by the director pursuant to section 383-29;

(4) Paid to an individual under the extended benefits program, sections 383-168 to 383-174; except that one-half of the amount of such benefits which are based on services performed for a governmental employer on a contributory plan shall be charged to the account of such employer;

(5) Paid to an individual who qualifies to receive benefits by meeting the minimum earnings and employment requirements only by combining the individual's employment and wages earned in two or more states;

(6) Benefits overpaid to a claimant as a result of ineligibility or disqualification under sections 383-29 and 383-30 unless such overpayment resulted from the employer's failure to furnish information as required by this chapter or the rules of the department; [or]

(7) Benefits paid to an individual during any benefit year beginning September 13, l992 and thereafter shall not be charged to the account of any base period employer from whose employment the individual is separated as a direct result of a major disaster and would have been entitled to disaster unemployment assistance under the Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (P.L. 100-707) but for the receipt of unemployment insurance benefits paid under this chapter; provided that the employer must petition for relief of any charges to an employer's reserve account as requested by the department and the director approves granting relief of charges[.]

(8) Paid to an individual when the employer discharges the individual due to the individual’s actions, including absences from work, where the individual's actions were reasonably necessary to protect the individual or the individual's family or household members from domestic or sexual violence; or

(9) Paid to an individual when the employer discharges the individual due to circumstances resulting from the individual being a victim of domestic or sexual violence."

PART III.

SECTION 10. Chapter 235, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"§235-   Workplace safety program income tax credit. (a) There shall be a workplace safety program income tax credit determined under this section for the taxable year for each employer in an amount equal to forty per cent of the domestic and sexual violence safety and education costs paid or incurred by the employer during the taxable year.

(b) In no event shall any cost for goods or services which may be included in the income of any employee receiving or benefiting from such goods or services be treated as a domestic and sexual violence safety and education cost unless the employer notifies the employee in writing of the possibility of such inclusion.

(c) No credit or deduction shall be allowed under any other provision of this chapter for any amount for which a credit is allowed under this section.

(d) If the tax credit under this section exceeds the taxpayer's income tax liability, the excess of the tax credit over liability may be used as a credit against the taxpayer's income tax liability in subsequent years until exhausted.

(e) The director of taxation shall prepare any forms that may be necessary to claim a credit under this section, may require proof of the claim for the tax credit, and may adopt rules pursuant to chapter 91.

(f) All of the provisions relating to assessments and refunds under this chapter and under section 231-23(c)(1) shall apply to the tax credit under this section.

(g) Claims for the tax credit under this section, including any amended claims, shall be filed on or before the end of the twelfth month following the taxable year for which the credit may be claimed. Failure to comply with the foregoing provision shall constitute a waiver of the right to claim the credit.

(h) As used in this section, the terms "course of conduct", "domestic or sexual violence", "domestic violence", "electronic communications", "family or household member", "sexual assault", "stalking" and "victim service organization" shall be as defined in section 378-1.

"Domestic and sexual violence safety education cost" includes any cost incurred in Hawaii for the purpose of one or more of the following:

(1) Ensuring the safety of employees from domestic or sexual violence;

(2) Providing assistance to employees and the spouses and dependents of employees with respect to domestic or sexual violence;

(3) Providing legal or medical services to employees and the spouses and dependents of employees subjected to, or at risk from, domestic or sexual violence;

(4) Educating employees about the issue of domestic or sexual violence; or

(5) Implementing human resource or personnel policies initiated to protect employees from domestic or sexual violence or to support employees who have been victims of domestic or sexual violence.

(6) Hiring new security personnel in order to address domestic or sexual violence;

(7) Creating buddy systems or escort systems for walking employees to parking lots, parked cars, or bus stops, in order to address domestic or sexual violence;

(8) Purchasing or installing new security equipment, including surveillance equipment, lighting fixtures, cardkey access systems, and identification systems, in order to address domestic or sexual violence;

(9) Establishing an employee assistance line or other employee assistance services, in order to address domestic or sexual violence, for the use of individual employees, including counseling or referral services undertaken in consultation and coordination with national, state, or local domestic violence coalitions, sexual assault coalitions, domestic violence programs, or sexual assault programs;

(10) Retaining an attorney to provide legal services to employees seeking restraining orders or other legal recourse from domestic or sexual violence;

(11) Establishing medical services addressing the medical needs of employees who are victims of domestic or sexual violence;

(12) Retaining a financial expert or an accountant to provide financial counseling to employees seeking to escape from domestic or sexual violence;

(13) Establishing an education program for employees, consisting of seminars or training sessions about domestic or sexual violence undertaken in consultation and coordination with national, state, or county domestic violence coalitions, sexual assault coalitions, domestic violence programs, or sexual assault programs;

(14) Studying the cost, impact, or extent of domestic or sexual violence at the employer's place of business, if such studies are made available to the public and protect the identity of employees included in the study;

(15) Publicizing a regularly disseminated newsletter or other regularly disseminated educational materials about domestic or sexual violence;

(16) Implementing leave policies for the purpose of allowing or accommodating the needs of victims of domestic or sexual violence to pursue counseling, legal assistance, or safety planning, including leave from work to attend meetings with attorneys, to give evidentiary statements or depositions, and to attend hearings or trials in court;

(17) Implementing flexible work policies for the purpose of allowing or accommodating the needs of employees who are victims of domestic or sexual violence, or employees at risk with respect to such crimes, to avoid assailants;

(18) Implementing transfer policies for the purpose of allowing or accommodating the needs of employees subjected to domestic or sexual violence to change office locations within the company in order to avoid assailants or to allow the transfer of an employee who has perpetrated domestic or sexual violence in order to protect the victim, including payment of costs for the transfer and relocation of an employee to another city, county, state, or country for the purpose of maintaining an employee's safety from domestic or sexual violence; or

(19) Providing any of the services described in herein to the spouses or dependents of employees."

PART IV.

SECTION 11. If any provision of this Act, or the application thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the invalidity does not affect other provisions or applications of the Act, which can be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to this end the provisions of this Act are severable.

SECTION 12. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 13. This Act shall take effect upon its approval, provided that section 10 shall apply to the taxable years beginning after December 31, 2002.